Description
This mouthwatering spinach and nectarine salad combine the best summer flavors: sweet nectarines, earthy spinach, peppery basil, creamy feta, and crunchy cashews. Pair it with your favorite protein for a complete meal.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
1 bag of organic baby spinach
3 stems fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup sweet onion dressing
2 nectarines with skin, thinly sliced
1/4 cup raw cashews, chopped (optional)
4 ounces gluten-free feta cheese, crumbled (optional)
Protein of choice (optional)
For the Dressing:
1/2 of 1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup avocado oil, divided
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
Pure Liquid Monk Fruit Drops to taste (or raw honey)
Instructions
- Prepare the Dressing: Sauté the onion and salt in 1 tablespoon of avocado oil over medium-low heat, until soft and translucent, about 5-7 minutes. Then transfer to a small bowl, and add the remaining avocado oil, vinegar, onion powder, and sweetener of choice. Whisk until completely emulsified. Cool and serve chunky, or blend in a food processor for a creamy consistency (about 30 seconds).
- Dress the Greens: Empty the bag of spinach into a large mixing bowl. Add the basil leaves and the dressing. Using your hands, gently toss the greens to avoid bruising the leaves, ensuring they’re evenly coated.
- Toss the Ingredients: Add the nectarines, cashews, and feta cheese (if using) to the bowl. Gently toss once more to distribute the ingredients evenly throughout the salad.
- Plate and Serve: For a family-style meal, transfer the nectarine salad to a clean bowl and serve. For a healthy entrée, top the salad with a protein such as crunchy oven-baked turkey bacon, wild-caught salmon, or chicken breast.
This salad is best eaten fresh, but leftovers can be refrigerated for one day. Keep any remaining salad dressing refrigerated in a glass jar for up to 2 weeks. Hint: Use it on my Turkey BLT Salad recipe!
Notes
For a vegetarian entrée salad add a heaping tablespoon of hemp seeds for protein.
Omit the cheese to make it vegan.
You can substitute arugula for the spinach; use Marcona almonds instead of cashews, and peaches in place of nectarines.
See the full blog post above for additional recipe tips.
