Grilled Peach Salad with Mint Basil Pesto
on Jul 12, 2013, Updated Aug 23, 2022
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We are knee-deep in summer heat here in the heartland of America and when we were graciously extended an invitation to a dinner party earlier this week, I volunteered to bring a salad. The kicker is, I had no clue what salad I would prepare to bring. Thankfully, I was not short on ideas.
Throughout the day I considered something with avocados. Our host loves these green over-sized eggs of smooth and soft goodness and what’s more, they’re versatile in the roles in which they can play – center stage, back-up, and anywhere in between. In spite of my deep admiration of avocados, my mind kept drifting back to that fruit of which we have been enjoying so much lately, the same one that has been featured in the last two posts of Platter Talk.
As this production progressed and I made some flavor adjustments, I really wasn’t sure how this salad was going to taste, or in all honesty, if it would even be edible. This was not the typical Iceberg or spinach, or romaine lettuce I was familiar working with and serving.
The salad that resulted from the day’s pondering turned out to be incredible. Although it wasn’t at all that difficult to put together, the incidental obstacles that popped up throughout the process were relatively daunting. You know the types of unwelcome events that can come along while you’re busy trying your best to perform a new and important task First, there was the propane tank that decided to expire while I was preheating my oven and prepping the veggies. No problem, nothing a quick run to the corner gas station would not solve. Then there was the gas grill failure, after the propane tank had been refreshed. Major problem. Thank goodness I recalled stashing a small Webber grill away during a recent garage clean up. Of course all this was occurring during an afternoon where our temperatures were hovering in the mid-80s with humidity that seemed equally high. The fun didn’t stop there, however. Before it was all said and done, Scott discovered a window had leaked in our basement during the previous night’s torrential rain storm. I would be far less than honest if I said that for a brief moment, the prospect of the wine I had planned on taking with us never making it out of our house did not seem at all plausible.
The 45 minutes or so of profuse perspiration, language I know my mom would have frowned upon, and the “accidental tossing” of a grill grate, all came to fruition with a very happy ending. The creation made it out of our kitchen, along with the Pinot Grigio; both salad and bottle of wine fully intact. This wine in particular was an excellent accompaniment to the salad and perfectly suited for a warm summer evening. Even better, I found it on sale for $8.99 which proved to be a fantastic price for a wine of this caliber. We arrived at our friend’s home and soon found ourselves seated with five or six other guests. The first bite of this salad was a veritable celebration of taste – complex with a solid flavor structure, I knew immediately that it all “worked.”
For this recipe, I used a base of Escarole which gave a nice balance to the peppery Arugula. For added interest, I threw in some Water Cress and the three very different greens got along quite nicely with each other, providing a flavor and texture in and of themselves that would have sufficed for a main entry. The grilled peaches and fresh mozzarella made a perfect team to go with the rest and the accompanying pesto dressed it perfectly. Give this recipe a try, either as a side or main course. It’s a delicious and wonderful salad, especially for summer. Want to brush up on your lettuceology? This is a great reference site for different greens.
Grilled Peach Salad with Mint Basil Pesto
Ingredients
For the salad:
- Escarole
- Arugula
- Water Cress
- 6 peaches, medium sized
- mozzarella cheese, sliced
- 1/8 cup pine nuts, toasted
- juice from 1/2 lemon
- fresh ground peppercorn
For the Pesto:
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
- 1/8 cup pine nuts, toasted
- 1 garlic clove
- 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- juice from 1/2 lemon
- kosher salt to taste
- fresh ground peppercorn
Instructions
For the salad:
- Peel peaches, cut in halves, remove pit. Brush lightly with olive oil.
- Place peach halves on grill over medium high heat, about 4 minutes on each side so that both sides are well marked.
- Remove peaches from grill and allow to cool, then halves into quarters or smaller and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and roast pine nuts on baking sheet for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and allow to cool.
- Using large mixing bowl, toss greens in olive oil, then arrange on serving platter.
- Evenly distribute peaches and mozzarella slices over greens.
- Sprinkle pine nuts over salad, add fresh ground peppercorn to taste.
- Add spoonful dollops of pesto, as prepared below, as a dressing, and evenly distribute lemon juice on top of salad and pesto.
For the pesto:
- Place fresh herb leaves in small food processor along with other ingredients.
- Process until desired consistency is achieved, adjust amount of olive oil as necessary.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
WOW Dan! What a beautiful blog post! And your photos are absolutely mesmerizing! Sharing all around!
Thanks so much, Linda. I really enjoyed putthing this one together.
Wonderful! I have never grilled peaches either, I must try this sometime!! I love it!
Thanks, Kecia; this salad is all about summer!
Such a pretty and summer-y salad! Love the smoky flavor of the peaches here, along with mint and basil. Delicious!
Anne,
Thank you for the comments. Yes, I could not think of a better salad-meal for these dog days of summer!
This salad and a glass wine… perfect summer evening! Seriously, this salad sounds totally delicious!
Ruby,
This salad, a glass of wine, and summer. All very compatible! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment!
Such cheerful looking salad! Love the beautiful colors and pairing of ingredients. It has all come together so well. Great pics too 🙂
Thank you. The colors were indeed cheerful. As a bonus it tasted great!
I appreciate your comments!
I absolutely adore everything about this dish. I love fruit in salads and especially paired with cheese. Beautiful images too.
Thanks so much – I’ll be putting this one together again. Have a great weekend and thanks for the comments!
Wow…I just stared at these pictures for so long haha!! The picture of the flame is just awesome. I’ve never grilled peaches before but it does seem so easy! Enjoy your weekend!
Ashley,
I had never grilled peaches before either but I can join the ranks of those who have now and say that they are absolutely wonderful when grilled. Hoping you have a nice summer weekend and thank you for commenting!
Wow! What a stunning salad, Dan! Thanks for sharing all the trials and tribulations. I imagine though that it was all worth it…and, especially with that glass of Pinot Grigio! You deserved a nice, relaxing meal. Thanks for all the tips (salad greens link), too. You have convinced me that I need to grill some peaches, for salad…STAT! Thanks so much for sharing and stay cool! xo
Stacy,
Thanks for the comments. For “some reason(s)” the wine was especially good, that evening! haha 🙂 Hope you have a great weekend!
Ohh, Dan, this is amazing! I love those big chunks of creamy mozzarella. Combined with the sweet peaches and salty pesto, I bet this tastes absolutely incredible. I can imagine enjoying this on our patio this summer for sure. Thanks for sharing and have a great weekend!
Georgia,
The mozzarella truly was a perfect accomplice to the peaches, pesto, and peppery arugula! It’s funny how some characters get along so well, even when you least expect it. Thanks for the comments and enjoy your weekend!
Oh my this salad is CRAZY beautiful! I can’t stop staring at it (and drooling!)
Joanne,
Thanks for the comment, it was a pretty thing! Have a great weekend!!