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OMG! This salad is so good I ate it for lunch AND dinner. Will absolutely make again. Thank you so much!
Autumn
This post is sponsored by juicy, crisp, beautiful California Grapes! Is that not the most fun thing ever?!
Look look look look look. 👆🏽
I’m gonna just tell you: That Tastes Really Good. It’s extra exciting to be sharing today’s arugula salad with you because
- You are down for the creative food combos that I dream up.
- You’re also lovers of whole, healthy food that TASTES SRSLY AWESOME (me too).
- We all like things that are generally weeknight-easy to make.
And this salad is all of that.
Yaaas.
We’re starting with those bursty California grapes and tossing them with a big bowl of farro, cashews, arugula, pickled red onions (!), and basil FROM MY GARDEN THANK YOU VERY MUCH, but oh no – the fun won’t stop there. We are capping off this epic combo by drizzling a black pepper vinaigrette over the whole thing and calling it a Very Delicious Day.
And the star of this lush arugula salad… it’s obvi. The GRAPES! 🍇👈🏼
Like, hey/quick reminder/note to self – grapes really DO rock.
They are naturally sweet, deliciously healthy, and not only do they make the perfect What Do I Eat While Watching TV Snack — grapes are a must in all my salads from here on out.
Let’s talk about the origins of this party on a plate.
Once upon a time, I went to New Orleans.
I ate a lot of things, but one thing really latched onto my food brain: Black Pepper Vinaigrette. It doesn’t even make sense. In the land of beignets and jambalaya and southern fried chicken, I find (and become addicted to) a dressing. On a salad. Just kick me off this blog already.
To my credit, the salad was not really a REAL salad – it had peaches and nuts and don’t get weirded out but also really delicious pieces of raw fish called cobia 😬👌🏽 and then, as mentioned, a luscious black pepper vinaigrette. I came home to Minnesota, where I don’t eat raw fish salads or other brave things, like, ever, and said to myself: you must must must find a way to get that very basic, very wonderful Black Pepper Vinaigrette into your life.
On an arugula salad with grapes and cashews and pickled red onions and basil.
I mean, look at us.
Gosh, we grow up so fast.
As I sort of obsessively mentioned already, the grapes in this salad were ON POINT.
I have been on the hunt for California grapes ever since I learned that 99% of our grapes grown here in the US are grown in California – so when I found the ones that said “Grown in the USA” (they are now in season and get ready for 6 more months of this, baby) I knew they were the California gems I was looking for.
And those juicy little bursts of joy were more than delicious. I couldn’t even stop myself. If half of them actually made it into this arugula salad before getting nabbed by my snacking mouth, I would be doing pretty well with life.
TO SALAD BLISSDOM –>>
Arugula Salad with Grapes and Black Pepper Vinaigrette
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Description
This Arugula Salad has grapes, cashews, pickled red onions, and a simple black pepper vinaigrette. Vegan, vegetarian, gluten free.
Ingredients
For the Pickled Red Onions
- 3/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/3 cup champagne vinegar
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 red onions, very thinly sliced
For the Black Pepper Vinaigrette
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 2/3 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 clove garlic
For the Salad
- 2 1/2 cups red California grapes, halved
- 2 cups cooked farro or a gluten free alternative like quinoa
- 3 cups arugula
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, cut into ribbons
- 1/2 cup chopped cashews
Instructions
- Pickled Red Onions: Place the vinegars, water, sugar, and salt in a jar with a tight fitting – shake lid until well combined. Add the sliced red onions. Refrigerate at least 24 hours or longer for best flavor.
- Dressing: Place the vinegar, olive oil, sugar, pepper, and salt in a jar. Crush the garlic clove and just drop it in the jar in one or two pieces – the idea is that you’ll still get some fresh garlic flavor infused into the dressing without the little pieces of raw garlic in the dressing when you serve it. 🙂 Shake to combine. You can make this ahead.
- Assembly: Toss the grapes and farro with about half of the dressing. Add the arugula, basil, cashews, and a handful (however much you want) of the pickled red onions. Toss to combine. Add additional dressing if it needs any more – for me, the original amount of dressing was just about right. Let the salad sit for just a few minutes to really get it nice and yummy, soaking in that dressing.
Notes
The amount of dressing is more than what you’ll need for 6 servings, but I always like to have extra homemade dressing on hand so I’m leaving these amounts as-is. Just keep the dressing for a few days and make the salad one more time! 🙂
For the nutrition I only counted half the dressing amount for 6 servings.
If making ahead, toss everything except the dressing, arugula, and basil. Those should be added right before serving.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: arugula salad, vegan salad, black pepper vinaigrette
Thank you to California Grapes for sponsoring this delicious arugula salad which I will now go devour for the 800th time mmmk bye.
I messed up and pressed the garlic, and it was still wonderful. Next time I’ll read more thoroughly as I like the way you presented it.
Delicious. Thank you.
Amazing salad! Played with proportions a little but otherwise followed recipe as written. A definite keep!!
Absolutely the best salad EVER!! would give it 10 stars in a heartbeat.
I just want you to know that my co-worker made this salad and I LOVED it!! I have made this salad twice for Thanksgiving and I have received many compliments. It’s a really really really good salad.
So happy to hear that Cynthia!
I had visions of an Italian countryside orchard in making this salad so with that in mind, I swapped out the cashews for toasted pine nuts. Yummmm! Tks for the recipe 🙂
Beautiful, Andrea! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
OMG! This salad is so good I ate it for lunch AND dinner. Will absolutely make again. Thank you so much!
So glad you enjoyed this, Autumn!
I live and die by food blogs and, with few exceptions, do not leave comments on them as I usually don’t have anything new or exciting to say. But. But but but:
This recipe might be the greatest recipe I’ve ever found on the internet and I’m here to tell you why. As a rule, I can’t be bothered to assemble salads. I love a good salad, but when I’m making them at home, they’re often tedious, soggy, and underwhelming enough for me to be sad about eating them two days in a row.
NOT THIS ONE, THOUGH. It’s so easy to prep the limited ingredients in bulk, then just toss it all together in 3 minutes come lunch time. Also it’s mysteriously not lost its luster in the two years I’ve been making it for myself and any/all guests who are lucky enough to get some. The recipe is seared in my memory indefinitely. It’s infinitely adaptable (red wine vinegar worked just fine instead of champagne vinegar) and as healthy as you want to make it (farro is an added bonus, but it tastes just lovely without). It’s absolutely magical, tasty, delicious… like candy but with greens, nuts, and fruit. Honestly in love. Thanks so much for sharing; I’m sure I’ll be enjoying it for decades to come!
So happy to hear you’ve been enjoying this salad, Kait! Thanks for sharing!
I want to make a light salad to go with one of your vegan pasta dishes. Will this be too much, with the faro as far as starch goes?
If you’d prefer, you could cut the amount of farro in half or omit it altogether.
I made this today for lunch with friends and they were raving about the salad all afternoon! The directions were easy to follow and it is a delicious salad!! I substituted the farro for quinoa and it turned out very nicely!
Glad to hear you and your friends enjoyed this, Suzanne! 🙂
Making this to take to a dinner tonight. A bunch of firsts for me–never cooked farro nor pickled onions before. Unfortunately, didn’t start this soon enough, so my onions will only be pickling for a few hours. Left the garlic out of the marinate–can that be listed in the list of ingredients? Can’t wait to try this, it sounds delicious!
I cannot find champagne vinegar at my local grocery store. What do you recommend using instead?
White or red wine vinegar would work as a replacement!
HOLY F@@K THIS IS THE BEST! I made this ahead of time for work and it is my new favorite salad. Filling yet light and refreshing (plus no meat!) I can’t say enough for this. Quinoa was delicious!
The pictures 😍 Cant wait to try, but I have a doubt what can I substitute for champagne vinegar ? 🤔
Hi Ankita! You could sub with another vinegar – plain white vinegar, balsamic, etc.
This looks fantastic! I’m going to make it for dinner next week after I pickle the onions. One question though – I’d like to add a protein. What would you recommend?
Chicken would be a great addition!
Wow! This salad looks amazing, I love crunchy grapes tossed into a salad for sweetness and texture! Also – where is that beautiful gold speckled ceramic bowl from?! I must know!!
Hi, Christal! The bowl was actually made for Lindsay by her father in law. 🙂
It’s beautiful!
I’ve never tried pickling onions before! Do you think it’s worth it even if I’m short on time? Beautiful recipe, by the way.
You could certainly try it! As with most things that are pickled, they will be better the longer they sit. Hope you enjoy it!
Make extra! My 20-year-old son who does not eat salad gobbled up it all up.
That’s awesome, Karen! Thanks for the comment!
I have never tried the Arugula Salad with grapes and Black Pepper Vinaigrette before. Perhaps, it was due to my childhood dislike of grapes. When I read this piece, I realize that it is delicious. I must prepare it today. I hope it will be delicious and yummy as it looks in the pictures above.
Hope you like it, Chella!
Killer salad! Made it last night and had leftovers today for lunch. The best part? My ENTIRE family ate and loved it – including the kids!
I just recently found your blog and I’m so glad I did
Awesome, Angie! It’s so great to find crowd-pleasers for the whole family.
Made this the day I first saw it – sent half home with our daughter. CRAZY GOOD! Have been sharing with all of my friends. Looking forward to throwing together pan bagnat with leftover pickled onions. LOVE this site.
Glad to hear that, Karen! Thanks!
This looks and sounds amazing. I am an absolute black pepper hound. One question though: my boyfriend is allergic to cashews, but he is not allergic to pecans, peanuts, or almonds. Which to you think would work best if I wanted to do a substitute?
I think any of those could work, but I would tend toward the almonds!
I am now dying to try grapes in a salad! This looks so good!
Perfect! Enjoy Cathleen!
uh! this looks delicious, definitely will try this recipe 😉
http://loadsof-joy.blogspot.com
Awesome! I hope you like it Ines!
¡Excelente receta! tiene una presentación increible, con unas bonitas fotografías, parece fácil de elaborar. No veo el momento de probarla.
Gracias por compartirla con todos.
http://www.mascasaonline.com
Thank you! 🙂
This looks so fancy schmancy – perfect for a dinner party!
I know right?! Making it tonight for our dinner guests!