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Hey, hey Summer Abundance Salad. It is official, I am declaring this summer, the summer of salads!
Oddly, I am really loving it, but I think that’s only because I make my salads BIG, full, and only filled with things I love…plus a heck of a lot of cheese. I mean, obviously.
Soo you know that feeling when your fridge is basically bursting with fresh produce? You’re overwhelmed because, one, you don’t know what fruit or veggie to start with first, and two, you just do not know how you will eat it all before it goes bad? Tell me you know what I am talking about? No? Is that just me? I admit, I can get way too excited when I see the foods I love in the store and then I buy them all…it’s kind of an issue, but it’s the reason this yummy Summer Abundance Salad was born, so whatever.
Also, I have yet to throw anything out, so hey, maybe it’s not that much of an issue. I dunno, either way, I’m loving the big salads. Especially this one because it’s grain based and SUPER fruity.
YUM.
You know what is so weird though? I am currently talking about all things summer, but during the day I’m working on all things autumn and holiday. I know I mentioned this a bit yesterday, but it’s so weird to be working on holiday things in July. I don’t NOTÂ like it…in fact, I love it…but it is weird. One minute I’m thinking about Christmas cookies, and the next I’m talking about stone fruit and berries.
My mind is a little all over the place. Plus, Asher has me in planning mode for our trip to Disney in August. Which by the way, thank you guys all so much for your awesome input on which park to go to. I think that Orlando is winning, as it sounds like all in all, it just has more to offer. Asher pretty much has her mind set that we should head to Orlando, and since it’s her birthday trip, whatever she says goes. Yes, I can already tell I am going to be spending a lot of money on that little girl. Say hello to wands, wizard hats and all the butterbeer we can get our hands on! 🙂
Okok, but salad talk!
This salad is so incredible, it’s light, but filling…and you guys…it actually gets better the longer it sits, YES! Got to love a salad that can be made in advance and genuinely tastes better the next day. Perfect for easy lunches, summer picnics or dinner parties!
Plus, it’s pretty dang healthy too. Whole grains, protein, fruits, veggies… it’s even almost vegan. Almost being the key word there. I mean, if you leave off the feta this salad is vegan, but then you know I could never do that. ?
And like most salads I’ve been making these days, this beauty is topped with toasted nuts and seeds. They’re sort of my go-to salad topping these days. They just add a really nice crunch!
OH, and if you wanted to make this a little heartier, you could definitely add a fried or poached egg, that would be delish. This salad would also be great served up as a side dish for grilled meats and seafood. Personally, I just like to go to town on this with some homemade, super salty tortilla chips or naan.
Summer Abundance Salad.
Servings: 4 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 1079 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 ounce can chickpeas drained + rinsed, 15
- 2 tablespoons basil pesto
- 2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa wild rice and or black rice
- 1 cup pitted fresh cherries halved
- 1 cup fresh blueberries or blackberries
- 1 nectarine thinly sliced
- 2 ears grilled corn kernels removed from the cob
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 6-9 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- 1 avocado sliced
- large handful of microgreens and or arugula
- 1/2 cup mixed toasted nuts + seeds (sunflower pumpkin, cashews, almonds, etc)
Spicy Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon rounded fig preserves optional
- 1-2 in chipotle chili peppers adobo chopped
- kosher salt + pepper
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together the chickpeas and pesto. Let sit at least 15 minutes minutes to marinate.
- Prepare your grains as directed on the package.
- In a large salad bowl, toss together the quinoa, cherries, berries, nectarine, corn, tomatoes and feta. Stir in the pesto marinated chickpeas and toss the salad with about half the vinaigrette (see below).
- To serve, top the salad with sliced avocado, toasted nuts + seeds and fresh greens. Serve with the remaining vinaigrette and chips or bread for scooping!
Spicy Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Combine all ingredients in a glass jar or bowl and whisk until smooth. Taste and adjust salt + pepper to your liking
Too flipping good.
Wait. When in August are you going??
Hey Jordan, my dates are not set yet, thanks!
Another gorgeous one Tieghan! And I love the spicy honey dressing!
Thanks so much Mary Ann! (:
If you get a chance to break away from Disney there are great restaurants in Orlando. The Yellow Dog Eats and Briarpatch are favorites!
Thanks so much Kimber! I will try to check these out!
To really enjoy your Disney experience I highly recommend getting a VIP Tour. It is worth every penny and there are several packages to chose from. The advantages are many…..first off you don’t have to wait in the long,long lines. Your guide takes you to the front of the line. Lines are typically one to two hours long this time of year. It is hot, humid and rainy in August, September. This is the rainy season for Florida but they typically don’t last more then 20 or 30 minutes then move on till you get the net rain cluster. Those clusters can be torrential with very heavy rain.
Consider staying at a Disney Hotel and taking the tram instead of staying at a cheaper hotel further away. The parking lots are huge bigger then long term parking at any major airport and expensive. Food inside the park is I think very expensive and cold drinks are outrageous. Consider buying a case of water at Publix (local grocery store) and by all means take a backpack with that water as you are not supposed to bring in any outside food or drink. I lived in Fl for 40 years but have retired to the West Coast as I swore to never be there in July, August or September unless I had to. Disney world is much bigger and better then Disneyland and offers other theme parks in addition.
Love your blog and have tried many of your creative creations. Have a great trip.
Hey Barbara! Wow, thank you too much for this insanely awesome info!! Not so happy to hear about the rain though…ugh! Off to start planning! Thanks again!
YUM! So beautiful with all of those colours.
Oh please, please, please get the wands that allow you to conduct spells around the park. I think it is an absolutely inspired idea from the park creators. I can hardly wait to hear all about your trip – will you do a full post about it? My sister and I have been thinking about making the big trip to Orlando ourselves, so it would be wonderful to hear about the do’s and don’ts. 😀
Thanks Kate! Oh yes, I so will make a post about it and fill you guys in on everything I did! (:
Can I be your friend? I’ll come hang out in your kitchen, talking with you all day, stealing some forkful of these delish meal you’re always doing !!
Joking apart, yumm !
(You’re really my number 1 cooking inspiration these days :p)
Haha I could always use company!! Thanks so much Erika!!
You truly have the most amazing salad combinations! So need these ideas because mine are getting old and boring! With yours, they are fresh, awesomely photographed and makes me wish I had you as my personal chef! Thanks for saving my summer meals! xx
WOW! This is so awesome to hear, thank you so much Britta! I am so happy that I am giving you some summer meal ideas! ENJOY!(:
What a great colorful combination with all These fruits. I don’t use fruits very often in my salads but you remember me to do. And I def. will Keep in mind the fig preserves . Amazing idea.
Thanks so much Janine! This is so nice!(:
all the beautiful things!!!! this looks so stunning T, as always! xo
Thanks so much Christine! (:
gosh you are so incredibly healthy! I bet you feel amazing all the time! This salad begs me to up my salad ante!!!
https://www.searedandshameless.com
Thanks so much Jessica!
I’d like to order a bowl, please? Oh! You’re not making it for us? Darn!! The salad would be perfect at any time. I really like the addition of fruit to the salad. Great inspiration. Thank you!
It so is perfect for anytime and I really hope you love it if you get a chance to try it! Thanks so much Marisa!!(:
Just YES! This salad fits exactly what I’m craving these days and I’d never be able to skip the feta either, YUM! Thanks for the continuing inspirations Tieghan!
That is so great! I hope you enjoy this one, Tori!! Thanks so much(:
The picture looks like it has either mango or a peach thinly sliced on the side yet I don’t see that listed? Either way it does look delish I’m not a quinoa fan thinking couscous for me
I was looking at that too and wondering if that was the nectarine??
No matter what–that salad sure looks good.
Cindy and Nancy, The fruit in the pictures is a nectarine. The recipe also states 1 nectarine thinly sliced.
Hi Cindy! That is actually a thinly sliced nectarine and it’s including the recipe. Thanks so much! ?
This salad looks SUPER good to me right now! BIG salads are my favorite and I am so excited to try this one !
Thanks so much Amanda!! I hope you enjoy this one! (:
My son is a sucker for salads, so every day for lunch salad it is!! Normally I toss around with the leftovers from the previous night’s dinner – like chicken, or fish – and just add veggies and lettuce and tons of tomatoes, other times I go for beans and those are my fave. What I never do is add fruit, I really cannot stand fruit in savoury salads, but my son does, I sometimes just add a few bits to his plate. I think he’d really like this one!
http://bloglairdutemps.blogspot.pt/
I am sure your son would love this one! Thanks Miranda!