Peach & Mozzarella Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing

This was my favorite salad of the whole summer – just wow. Juicy peaches, rich mozzarella, sweet corn, salty pistachios, what’s not to love? Then drench it all in a creamy basil dressing, I mean, how good does that sound?

I love piling salad ingredients on top of creamy, thick dressings. The presentation is so beautiful and it’s easy to mix around while getting big dips of that dressing, which is the star of the show after all.

Peach & Mozzarella Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing
serves 4

Ingredients

for the salad

1-1/3 cups dry farro, cooked/drained/cooled
4 ripe peaches, sliced or diced
6-8 oz fresh mozzarella pearls
1/2 lb frozen corn or 4 cobs, sauteed with 2 tsp oil and 3/4 tsp salt until slightly brown
3/4 cup roasted/salted pistachios
5-8 oz mixed greens

for the Creamy Basil Dressing

3/4 cup raw cashews
3/4 cup water
1 cup fresh basil
2 scallions, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons granulated garlic
2-3 teaspoons honey
1-1/4 teaspoons sea salt, fine grain

To Make

Blend all dressing ingredients in a powerful blender until velvety smooth. You’ll need a high-speed blender to make the cashews super smooth.

Reserve 1/2 cup dressing. To assemble the salad, add divide dressing into 4 serving plates/bowls, making a layer of dressing on the bottom of each dish. Pile on the remaining ingredients, dividing everything into 4 servings. Drizzle each serving with reserved dressing.

To ripen peaches, keep them in a sealed paper bag. Check everyday for ripeness. When ripe, transfer to fridge out of the bag, in a produce drawer.

I like a grain-heavy salad so I like to make 1/3 cup dry farro per serving, reduce to 1/4 dry farro per serving if desired (a more typical serving size).