I’ve been making this salad on repeat for lunch and it’s so satisfying & delicious. It’s simple to throw together and has the perfect combination of sweet, strong, vibrant & peppery. It’s bold flavors in a bowl—my favorite way to do salads! If a salad is boring, I will not be spending time making it or consuming it so rest assured if I share a salad recipe, it’s gonna be good and worth the effort. If you’ve never tried an arugula salad, please(!!), this is your sign to buy the arugula over the other salad greens you typically reach for next grocery trip. Arugula has this refreshing, peppery flavor that compliments seasonal fruits and nuts so well. Here’s to arugula!
Ingredients you’ll need:
- For the Salad:
- baby arugula, wild red arugula is a recent favorite! (Earthbound Farm Brand)
- fresh blueberries
- gorgonzola or goat cheese
- pecans, chopped or whole
- For the Dressing
- extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil
- lemon juice from ½ of a medium-size lemon
- garlic clove
- honey
- sea salt
- cracked fresh black pepper
Why you’ll love this Blueberry Arugula Salad:
- It’s bold in the best ways.
- Showcases blueberries – a summer seasonal fruit! If you’re curious what’s else is in season this month, check out my seasonal produce guide.
- Comes together quickly & doesn’t require a ton of effort. The homemade dressing is an extra step but it’s worth it, I promise!
Recipe Tips
Arugula: I found Wild Red Arugula recently at Sprouts and its the best variety of arugula I’ve ever had! You may notice there is both baby arugula & normal arugula. Baby arugula comes from the same plant, it’s just harvested earlier and has a milder, sweeter taste. Mature arugula takes on more of the peppery note. I love both, try them both or pick what your palette leans more towards. Buy organic if you can!
Crumble the cheese fresh: Look for a block or wedge of cheese instead of buying it already crumbled. Peruse the good cheese section, often the block cheeses are in a different area than the other pre-shredded cheeses! Goat cheese is a great substitute.
Toasted Pecans: If you don’t have time to roast the pecans, don’t fret. I often don’t toast the nuts when I’m trying to be quick but the short roasting period does add a deliciously sweet & nutty element to the salad. You can also buy pecans that are already roasted but watch out for extra added oils in the ingredients. Many of the oils used to roasts nuts commercially are inflammatory. This is why I typically buy them raw and toast at home.
Serving Suggestions:
Some toasted, high-quality bread & butter to accompany this salad would be lovely! This is indeed my favorite way to eat salad, with a generous piece of buttered sourdough bread. Balance is key folks. If you have never made bread before, I would encourage you to at least consider it and I would be happy to share what’s worked well for me. Making bread is not as difficult or time consuming as you may think. There is something so innately satisfying about making your own bread. The experience, the visual sight, the smell & the taste of hot, freshly baked bread will surely bring joy & comfort to your home, as it has for mine.
That being said, if you aren’t quite there yet or do not have interest in baking your own bread, there’s loads of incredible bread bakers out there! Find someone local & pick up a crusty loaf to accompany this beautiful salad! I’d recommend buying a sourdough boule (round shape with nice crust) or a french baguette to pair with this salad.
Lastly, if you make this Blueberry Arugula Salad, please let me know down below by leaving a comment and rating! I love to hear from you guys! It’s so fun to share food stories & cook these recipes together. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me @saltedseasons on Instagram! I love looking through your food photos. Cheers to handmade meals!
Love y’al
– Țaylo
Blueberry Arugula Salad with Gorgonzola & Roasted Pecans
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 5 ounces baby arugula wild red arugula (Earthbound Brand) and baby arugula are my favorite varieties!
- 1 ½ cups fresh blueberries
- 2-3 ounces gorgonzola or goat cheese*
- ½ cup pecans chopped or whole, roasted if you have time
For the Dressing
- 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice from ½ of a medium-size lemon
- 1 small minced garlic clove
- 1⁄8 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil
- 2 tablespoons honey
- cracked fresh black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Chop and spread the pecans on a parchment lined baking sheet. (I typically add them to the oven while its heating up, you don't have to wait for it to reach 350 for them to toast if you're tight on time.) Roast for 8 minutes, then remove to cool. While the pecans are roasting, move on to the dressing.
- For the dressing, add the minced garlic clove, lemon juice and salt to a small jar or bowl. (I like using mason jar with lid for shaking/mixing the dressing later). Let the garlic, lemon and salt sit for about 5 minutes before adding the rest of the dressing ingredients. The freshly squeezed lemon juice will mellow the raw garlic a bit, so let it sit for this short period if you have time.
- For the salad, place arugula in a serving bowl. Add the blueberries, crumbled cheese & cooled-down roasted pecans.
- After the 5 minutes of garlic mellowing time, add the honey and olive oil to the jar. Stir with a fork continuously until combined or shake vigorously with lid. Taste. If it's too tart for your liking, add a bit more honey. If it's too bland, add a bit more lemon juice. Lastly, add freshly cracked black pepper to taste!
- Wait to dress the salad until you're ready to serve. If I'm serving this to a group, I like to lightly dress & toss the salad right before serving. I put the remaining dressing at the table for anyone that wants more! Enjoy!
Notes
- The gorgonzola cheese has a strong flavor that pairs really well with the mild sweetness of blueberries and pecans but goat cheese is also great here. Try to find a block and crumble the cheese fresh if you can!
- This salad is amazing with raw, un-toasted pecans as well. I eat it with raw nuts often but the toasting adds a layer of flavor that is such a treat with the honey dressing.
I hope you enjoy this recipe that has become a well-loved favorite here at Salted Seasons— where we celebrate seasonal eating and down to earth living. Thank you for being here and thanks so much for cooking with me! Until next time—
—Taylo
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Your salads are amazing! I’ve spent the summer learning how to forage, and I’ve started adding plantain, dandelions, chickweed, and purslane to my salads, and your dressing recipes are perfect. Thank you!!
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed them! Shelley, this sounds incredible. I am looking forward to getting into foraging a bit more this year now that we have more land to explore. These additions you mentioned sound so yummy, makes me excited!!