nectarine summer salad

As soon as summer comes, I’m looking for summer fruit. It’s my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I love apples and pears to, but there’s something about the vibrancy of summer fruit that leaves me so happy. The versatility is a good thing too so when I buy it in bulk from Costco and end up with 5 million pounds of nectarines, I know they’ll get used because there’s 5 million different things I can do with them. Like nectarines or peaches soaked in red wine, ever tried that? It’s an Italian thing that’s totally worth checking out as a summertime dessert (and now I have an idea for another recipe to post).

Like most of my recipes, this one came up as a happy accident. You should know that all the happy accidents end up on the website, all the recipes gone wrong are never spoken of again. Just FYI.

Anyways, I knew I was going to have the day of all days in the hot sun at the waterpark with the kiddo and the last thing I would want when I came home was hot food. I seriously started thinking about this when we were in line for lunch. Like what about a salad? With a nectarine? And what else…and it just went from there, turning into one of the arguably best salads as a meal I’ve ever made.

The thing that made it though: the dressing. I tried it with other dressings, but the Poppyseed Dressing from Sprouts was totally the way to go. Balsamic Vinaigrette was a close second and what I would use in a pinch, but dang that Poppyseed Dressing took the salad to a whole other level. If you find a dressing that works better, you be sure to let me know, I’m up to give it a shot.

nectarine summer salad

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Serves: 4

2 cups of arugula, rinsed

2 cups of spring mix, rinsed

1/2 cup blueberries

1 nectarine, diced

2 green onions, diced

1 avocado, diced

1/4 cup slivered almonds

3/4 cups grilled chicken, diced*

1/3 cup (adjust as desired) Poppyseed Dressing

Grab your big salad bowl, put all of your ingredients into the bowl, toss with the salad dressing and enjoy!

*I usually leave out the chicken if I’m using the salad as a starter or side dish!