Plum Salad with Powergreens

As August leaves us and summer is winding down, many people think fresh produce is on its way out–but that couldn’t be farther from the truth! This Powergreens & Plum Salad recipe uses a rich mix of dark leafy greens, sliced plums, red onion, walnuts, gorgonzola, and our homemade plum vinaigrette to create a delicious late summer salad!

Tips for Picking out Delicious Plums

Plums may be a new food for some of you. If you don’t typically buy plums, here are some tips for picking out good ones!

• Look for plums without any gashes or indents
• The flesh should be soft, but not mushy.
• Plums come in varying shades of colors. The black plums have red flesh and are sweeter, but red plums (with yellow or white flesh) may be easier to find in some stores. Any type of plum will work in this salad! Choose the variety you can readily find.

Remember: plums are a stone fruit and have a small pit, so be careful when slicing!

Ingredients

• 4 cups dark leafy baby greens (such as kale, spinach, chard, arugula, etc)
• 1-2 plums
• 1/4 small red onion
• 1/4 cup gorgonzola
• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 1/2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp honey
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• 1 batch plum vinaigrette (see recipe below)

Ingredients for Plum Vinaigrette Dressing

• 1 plum, sliced & peeled
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 2 tsp honey
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper

How to Serve this Salad

This salad is perfect served in a large bowl with some protein to complete the meal. Topping it with rotisserie chicken is delightful, but it would also make a great side for almost any roasted meat!

This salad is also an easy dish to bring to an end-of-summer barbecue, and everyone will love the addition of plums.

Why I Love This Salad

This is one of our favorite salad recipes in our home because it’s so quick to throw together. It doesn’t involve much beyond some quick chopping and assembly! Plums add just the right amount of sweetness with a pleasant texture that goes well with the bite of red onion and a strong cheese like gorgonzola. It’s also a great way to use up plums when you have a lot of them.

Not to mention they’re a highly nutritious fruit full of antioxidants!

We also love this salad because it is generally easy for kids to accept. It’s easy enough to leave off or scoop around some of the stronger flavors they may not like (such as the gorgonzola or onion), which leaves even more deliciousness for the adults at the table!

Need a Simpler Salad?

Try my Turkish Cabbage Salad. That recipe only needs a few simple ingredients and whips together quickly!

Step by Step Instructions

1. First, you are going to lightly toast and glaze your walnuts. Heat a small skillet on medium heat. Add a 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil and a 1/2 tsp of honey to the pan. Tilt pan on each side to evenly coat.

2. Add the walnuts to the pan followed by 1/8 tsp of cinnamon. Stir the walnuts evenly in the oil, honey, & cinnamon mixture to coat. Allow to toast in the pan, stirring frequently to prevent burning, for about 3-4 minutes. Remove walnuts from heat and allow to cool on some parchment paper.

3. Prepare your dressing. Slice and peel one plum and add to an immersion blender cup. 

4. Add 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp dijon mustard, & 2 teaspoons honey to the blender cup. Season your dressing with 1/4 tsp dried thyme and 1/8 tsp each of salt and pepper. Use the blender and combine. 

5. Wash greens and dry on a towel. Add them to your serving bowl as a base.

6 . Wash plums and slice. Layer on top of your greens.

7. Thinly slice your red onion and add to the salad.

8. Add your cooled walnuts and gorgonzola. Drizzle your dressing and enjoy!

Powergreens & Plum Salad Serving Tips

This salad is best enjoyed shortly after it’s made. The onion flavor can get overpowering if kept for days at a time. If you want to prep a large batch to eat throughout the week, I recommend keeping all components of the salad in separate containers and mixing them together right before serving. That will keep the plums from getting mushy, will keep the walnuts crunchy, and keep the onion flavor more mild.

If you have some kids or family members that don’t like vinaigrettes, go easy with the drizzle of the dressing. Our middle child prefers this with ranch instead of the vinaigrette. That’s why I like to drizzle the dressing instead of toss the whole salad in it. It makes it much easier to scoop around the vinaigrette to customize for every picky palate at the table.

Nutrition Info

Here is the nutrition info for the Powergreens & Plum Salad, Salad only: (Nutrition info for dressing is below)

For 1/6 of recipe:

• Calories: 107
• Protein: 2.8 grams
• Fat: 9 grams (1.9 g saturated)
• Carbs: 4.5 grams
• Fiber: 1.3 grams

For 1/6 of the plum vinaigrette:

• Calories: 52
• Protein: .1 gram
• Fat: 4.5 grams (Saturated fat is .6 gram)
• Carbs: 3.2 grams

We hope your family loves this simple side salad as much as mine!

For a fun twist on the vinaigrette, try my Balsamic Citrus Vinaigrette recipe on this salad!

For other plum recipes, check out my roasted plums & chicken sheet pan recipe! If you want another beautiful salad, try my Kale Salad with Pomegranates.