This summer farro salad is unforgettably delicious. Combining chewy farro with delicious grilled peaches and golden squash tastes like a dream. This salad has the best summer veggies with fresh basil and garden mint, cooling cucumbers, juicy tomatoes and sharp red onions. Meaty white beans make it more filling and buttery avocado adds heart-healthy fats to this summery Mediterranean Salad. Artichoke hearts and a fresh, light lemon and olive oil dressing tie it all together.
Why you’ll love this Healthy Summer Farro Salad Recipe
- Tastes amazing - If you have never tried grilled peaches, you are in for a treat!
- Checks all the nutritional boxes - Each serving contains healthy doses of plant-based protein, fiber and healthy fats.
- Uses up all the garden produce - Squash, tomatoes, cucumbers and herbs are abundant, especially this time of year, and we often scramble for ways to use them. This is the perfect salad for that!
- Refreshing Mediterranean vibe - The summery, Mediterranean vibes are palpable with the simple citrus dressing, delicate artichoke hearts and fresh herbs.
- Filling without being heavy - The farro and beans will help you stay full without having to heat up the kitchen too much. It works great as a main meal or a nice side dish at a summer potluck!
What is farro?
Farro is an ancient grain that has been grown in the Mediterranean region for centuries. It is comes from the wheat family, so it is not a gluten free food.
It looks similar to barley and has a nutty taste and firm, chewy texture. Farro is made from whole grains, and is a great source of fiber as well as vitamins and minerals. It's an especially great addition to salads and soups.
The extra fiber and bulk will also fill you up without feeling heavy, giving you a greater sense of satiety or fullness than a standard vegetable salad.
New to working with farro? Look for quick cook varieties, like pearled farro, that are pearled to avoid soaking or dealing with long cooking times. Trader Joe sells a 10 minute farro that I love using in my recipes.
Ingredients for Summer Farro Salad
This gorgeous summer salad has a longer ingredient list than many of my salads, but I promise it is worth it. There is so many layers of flavor here. Every bite is an explosion of taste and texture.
- Farro - Hearty farro is the "meat" of this recipe. It has a nutty flavor and a nice, wholesome texture that makes it filling. To make this gluten free use quinoa or brown rice.
- Mint and Basil- These garden fresh herbs make this so flavorful. Other herbs that you can use instead or in addition to are parsley, oregano and thyme.
- Avocado - Avocado adds healthy fat and buttery texture to this salad. If they are unavailable, substitute ¼ cup walnuts or almonds.
- Raw veggies - For plenty of freshness and texture, we need some raw veggies here, too. I like to use sharp red onion, tangy cherry tomatoes (or your favorite fresh tomatoes) and mild Persian or English cucumber.
- Artichoke hearts- Artichoke hearts bring a Mediterranean vibe. Sub jarred roasted red peppers or pitted kalamata olives, if you prefer.
- Salad greens - Spring mix or peppery arugula make a nice base for this salad when serving.
- Goldbar squash- Fresh summer vegetables deserve to be blistered and caramelized over a hot grill. Goldbar is basically golden zucchini. If you cannot find it, use summer squash or zucchini instead.
- Peaches - Peaches and nectarines are best for grilling and they add sweetness to this salad that makes adding sugar to the dressing unnecessary.
- Cannellini beans - White beans make this salad meatier and more filling. Sub chickpeas, lentils or lupini beans.
- Extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice - This is all you need to dress the salad, plus a little S+P. Super simple, but totally delicious.
Marinade Ingredients
- Olive oil
- Salt and black pepper
- Smoked paprika - Sweet, smoked paprika brings a nice smoky flavor to the marinade for grilling the peaches and squash.
- Dijon mustard- Dijon is my favorite way to quickly add more flavor to any marinated veggie.
How to Make Summer Farro Salad with Peaches
This summer farro and peach salad is not my easiest recipe. There are two cooking steps: boiling the farro and grilling the veggies. But, a beginner cook can do it, if they follow the directions.
- Cook the Farro - If you follow the package directions, this is easy.
- Marinate and Grill the Veggies - This is a quick step. If no grill is available, oven roast them on a rimmed sheet pan at 400 degrees for 20 minutes instead.
- Preserve the avocado - To keep the avocado green, toss it in lemon juice before adding to the salad
- Assemble the salad - Add all the ingredients together in a large bowl and dress with herbs, lemon, and olive oil. Toss well until combined.
- Serve - Serve this filling salad over salad greens. Be sure to keep the greens separate until serving.
Tips for Making the Summer Farro Salad
- Use pasta. Instead of farro, feel free to use your favorite cooked pasta for a simple summer pasta salad. So good!
- Adjust the veggies. You can really go wild with the summer veggies. The flavors also work great with bell pepper, raw sweet corn, snap peas, green beans, and more.
- Add "cheese." Feta is a classic in many Mediterranean salads, and the salty, briny flavor works great with grilled peaches. Use a vegan feta cheese to keep this recipe totally plant-based.
FAQs
You can technically add raw peaches, but the grilling process caramelizes the flavor and adds a nice smokiness that brings everything together. It also helps remove excess moisture to keep the salad from becoming too wet. I highly recommend it.
Absolutely, and this is a great way to simplify your prep, especially before parties or for meal prep. This is a cold salad and you will want the farro chilled to room temperature before you assemble everything. You can easily cook it the night before and let it chill in the fridge overnight before assembling and serving.
Nope! You can keep this is a grain salad, if you want, and skip the greens. I like how they add a little bulk and the arugula or spinach will soak up the flavors from the dressing and veggies really nicely. If you want to make this salad for meal prep, make sure you store the greens on the side or they will wilt!
More Plant-Based Summer Salads
- Summer Orzo Salad
- Summery Mediterranean Salad
- Smoky Eggplant Salad
- Tropical Kale and Quinoa Salad
- Balsamic Strawberry and Feta Salad
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Summer Farro and Peach Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz farro (8 oz dry)
- 4 tbsp Mint chopped
- 3 tbsp basil chopped
- 2 avocado peeled and chopped
- ¼ red onion slivered
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 2 Persian cucumbers chopped
- ½ tsp salt
- pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lemons juiced
- ½ cup artichoke hearts diced
- 3 cups salad greens of choice for serving
- 1 goldbar squash cut in half lengthwise for grilling
- 2 peaches halved and pit removed for grilling
- 15 oz cannellini beans drained and rinsed
Marinade ingredients:
- 1 tsp olive oil
- Pinch salt
- Pinch smoked paprika
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
Instructions
- Cook farro according to package, rinse, drain, toss with a drizzle of olive oil and set aside in a large bowl to cool.
- Mix olive oil, smoke paprika, salt and dijon mustard to make marinade for grilling in a small bowl. Then coat gold bar squash and peaches with marinade. Grill for 5 minutes each side then let cool and chop
- In a small bowl, add avocado and a squeeze of lemon and mix to help preserve the avocado's green color.
- Add cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, artichoke hearts, squash, beans and peaches to the large bowl with cooked and cooled farro. Add lemony avocado. Alternately, keep the avocado separate and add when serving instead.
- Dress by adding lemon, olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs and mix well
- When serving make a bed of your favorite salad greens and top them with the farro salad. Keep the greens separate and only combine to serve.
- Enjoy this summer farro and grilled peach salad within 3-4 days for best quality.