Balsamic Strawberry Basil Salad with Goat Cheese and Pistachios
I absolutely love visiting my local farmers’ market. Fresh produce makes me excited, and freshly baked bread and pastries make me even more excited. Yep I’m using the term “farmers’ market” loosely.
Recently, I’ve been at the farmers’ market even more regularly than usual because my roommate has developed a crush on the sauerkraut guy. Every week we go to the kraut stand, and I stand around awkwardly while the two of them joke about how they keep utensils in their pants for emergencies and engage in other strange banter that you would expect from two people who love pickling things.
The main consequence of this roommate-kraut guy flirtation has been that I am up to my ears in sauerkraut. Last week, I bought juniper berry kraut, which is one of the weirdest things I’ve tasted in the past several months. I’m currently accepting all suggestions regarding what to do with it. Should I borrow my roommate’s pants spoon and just eat it straight from the jar because I don’t know what else to do??
I’ll be happy to point out here that I haven’t exclusively been buying sauerkraut at the farmer’s market. It’s also my destination for summer herbs like basil and fresh berries that are then happily married in this balsamic strawberry basil salad with goat cheese and pistachios.
Most of my salads are a result of me emptying the fridge into a bowl, but I always make this balsamic strawberry basil salad with intention. The components of the salad complement each other so well that I resist my subversive desire to mess with the ingredients and the ratios. Okay sometimes I get a little heavy handed with the goat cheese, but we all have our flaws.
What’s more, this strawberry basil salad accomplishes sophistication in just five ingredients plus dressing, which is really a boon for those of us who strive to be salad people but don’t want to buy and cook and prep so many damn vegetables. Here’s to being salad people!!! At least for today.
I’ll get off my pulpit now and leave you with the recipe. Cheers!
| Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Servings |
salads
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- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 shallot finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup aged balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 ounces mesclun or spinach
- 16 ounces strawberries quartered
- 1/2 cup pistachios
- 1/2 cup basil chiffonaded or torn
- 4 ounces chevre goat cheese
Ingredients
For the dressing:
For the salad:
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- Pour olive oil in a small bowl and add diced shallots. Let the shallots infuse into the oil for about 5 minutes.
- Add remainder of the dressing ingredients to the bowl with oil and shallots and whisk until the dressing has a slightly thickened, relatively uniform consistency.
- Add mesclun to a large bowl, followed by strawberries, pistachios, and half the basil. Toss if desired, or leave all the good stuff at the top for presentation purposes.
- Immediately before serving, dress the salad and use a fork to loosen goat cheese from the package and sprinkle on top. Toss lightly and finish with the remaining basil.
The recipe sounds great! Simple and quick! Also the photos are exceptional! I’m eating at o Friday’s right now and my salad doesn’t look remotely this tasty. Always love the entertaining writing too!