Why You’ll Love It
It tastes amazing. Featuring fresh peaches, red onion, and creamy avocado, this peachy salad is a delicious way to get more veggies into your life. It’s a great way to reduce food waste. If you have bruised peach that isn’t pretty enough to eat, simply cut off the bruises, remove the pit, and throw it in a blender to make this easy peach vinaigrette. It gives the dressing a velvety texture, while using a fraction of the oil traditional dressing recipes require. It’s easy to customize. This recipe calls for kale leaves, but you can also use baby spinach, spicy arugula, or any other leafy greens you love. You can also get creative with the toppings! Feel free to add baked chicken or tofu for extra protein, or crumbled feta or goat cheese for some tangy creaminess. It’s easy to make ahead of time. If you need an easy side dish to bring to a party, this peach vinaigrette can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store it in the refrigerator, and then toss it over your salad ingredients shortly before serving.
Ingredients You’ll Need
When selecting your peaches, select ones that give a little when you squeeze them to ensure they are ripe. If the peaches are too firm, they won’t be flavorful enough yet and will be difficult to cut into. Let the peaches ripen on your counter if they aren’t soft enough to use yet. Feel free to use any other greens or salad toppings you love in this recipe. Fresh basil would be a nice, refreshing addition, or you can add some pecans or pine nuts for extra crunch.
How to Make the Best Peach Salad
- Prepare the dressing. Add the peaches, apple cider vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, water, honey, salt & pepper to a high-speed blender, and blend until smooth. Taste the dressing, and add an extra tablespoon of honey, if you’d like more sweetness. The flavor will vary each time you make this dressing, depending on how sweet the peach is that you use. You can also add a pinch of black pepper, for a touch of spice. Set the dressing aside while you assemble the salad.
- Prepare the leafy greens. When using kale for this recipe, be sure to wash the leaves well and remove the tough stems, which aren’t as pleasant to bite into. Chop or rip the greens into bite sized pieces, then add them to large bowl and drizzle some of the dressing over the top. Use your hands or tongs to toss the dressing well over the greens. Kale tends to taste best after you massage the dressing into it, so don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty!
- Add the toppings. Once the greens have been tossed in the dressing, add in the rest of the salad ingredients. Sprinkle on the sliced avocado, extra peaches, red onion, chickpeas, and any other toppings you love. Drizzle on extra dressing, as you like, and then the peach salad is ready to serve right away. Looking for more summertime salads? Try my Strawberry Spinach Salad with Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing, Arugula Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette, or Summer Salad with Orange Basil Vinaigrette.
More Salad Recipes to Try
If you love this peach salad, you’ll also love my Apple Walnut Salad, classic Holiday Salad, or Thai Salad with Peanut Dressing for more flavorful ideas. Have more peaches to use? Be sure to also try my Peach Ice Cream, Gluten-free Peach Crisp, and Peaches & Cream Ice Pops. If you try this peach salad recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like it.
