Peach Salad

This peach salad is summer in a bowl! It's loaded with sweet peaches, crunchy sourdough, and crispy bacon, and hits the spot every single time.

It's become my go-to side dish during peach season when I want something easy. Honestly, I've lost count of how many times I've whipped this up for my family, and there's never any leftovers!

Key Ingredients & Substitutions

Choosing the right ingredients is key to a delicious peach salad! Below are some notes about each ingredient, and what you can substitute it with:

Peaches: Choose fresh ripe peaches that have a sweet aroma when you take a sniff. They should be ripe but firm—they should give a little when you give it a gentle squeeze. Both yellow and white peaches work, so choose what you prefer or what's available. Yellow peaches are more acidic, whereas the white peaches are sweeter.

Sourdough: Stale sourdough bread is the best, since it's already a little dried, and once baked in the oven, it'll absorb the dressing without becoming mushy. You can also use any rustic, crusty bread. Swap it out for some gluten-free bread and this peach salad recipe can be gluten-free! You can also use cornbread croutons instead.

Baby Greens: You can use mixed greens, arugula, or baby spinach. Chopped lettuce works too!

Bacon: Crispy bacon adds delicious bites of saltiness. You can skip it to keep this a vegetarian salad.

Cheese: I've made this salad using torn fresh mozzarella, small mozzarella balls, as well as crumbled vegan feta cheese. They've all been delicious!

Nuts: Walnuts are my go-to, but you can also use chopped pecans or almonds.

Dressing: You can use your favorite vinaigrette, but I highly recommend the honey vinaigrette I include in the recipe card.

Tips for a Delicious Peach Salad

Making a great summer salad is all about using the freshest ingredients, but here are a few tips to make it delicious every single time:

Crisping your bread. For that perfect crunch, take your stale bread and tear it, then lightly toast it in a dry skillet or bake it in the oven. This will prevent the bread from getting soggy when tossed with the dressing.

Choose ripe peaches. Your salad will only be as good as your peaches. Avoid rock solid, unripe peaches that lack flavor and juiciness. Also, try to choose freestone peaches, as they're much easier to separate the flesh from the pit.

Don't over-mix. Toss the salad with the dressing only until the greens are coated. Be sure you don't mix too aggressively and bruise the peaches or wilt the greens.

Taste and adjust. Make sure to taste the honey vinaigrette so you don't make it too salty, since you've got both cheese and bacon in the salad which will add saltiness! Always taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking.

Storage & Make-Ahead Instructions

This peach salad is best enjoyed fresh, as the bread soaks up the vinaigrette. However, if you find that you have some leftovers, loosely cover the bowl and put it in the fridge for up to 24 hours.

Because we're using delicate baby greens and peaches, I wouldn't make this salad more than an hour before serving it. That said, you could prepare the individual ingredients ahead of time:

• Make the dressing, and wash and dry the greens up to 3 days ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge.
• Tear and toast the sourdough and store them in an airtight container at room temperature.
• Crisp the bacon a day in advance.
• Slice the peaches and assemble just before serving the salad for optimal freshness and texture.

FAQs

More Summertime Recipes

Need another salad to serve at your barbecue? Try my vegan pasta salad—the roasted garlic dressing is so delicious! This broccoli salad's great too!

Want an easy summer dessert? Make this peach cobbler with canned peaches or this rhubarb crisp. They're both super easy and so good—enjoy them with some vanilla ice cream!

If you don't want to turn your oven, this icebox cake and mango sorbet are for you!

Want more recipes with honey? This lemon honey cake and honey butter chicken are delicious!