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🥗 Salads & bowls

The ultimate summer salad

Peaches, tomatoes, feta, and pickled onion all doing their sunniest little best

⏱️ Time estimate: about 30 minutes

Butter lettuce gets piled with cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, peaches, feta, pepitas, and quick-pickled red onion, then drenched in a bright cilantro-lime dressing.

Summer salad with peaches, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, and herbs

Ingredients

Serves: 6

  • 2 large limes, divided
  • 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced, about 1/2 cup
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons granulated sugar, divided
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, plus more to taste
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup packed finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus whole leaves and tender stems for serving
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 medium head butter lettuce, about 1 pound, torn into bite-sized pieces
  • 2 Persian cucumbers, or 1 medium English cucumber, thinly sliced
  • 6 ounces multicolored cherry tomatoes, halved, about 1 cup
  • 2 large ripe peaches, pitted and sliced 1/2 inch thick
  • 4 ounces crumbled feta, about 1 cup
  • 1/4 cup roasted salted pumpkin seeds, pepitas
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. Pickle the onion. Finely grate the zest of 1 lime. Add 1 teaspoon zest to a small bowl and save the rest for topping the salad. Juice 1 tablespoon lime juice into the bowl, then add the red onion, 1/4 teaspoon sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Toss and let sit for at least 15 minutes, tossing once or twice.
  2. Make the dressing. Juice the remaining 1 1/2 limes until you have 1/4 cup juice. Add it to a small bowl or jar with the garlic, chopped cilantro, olive oil, remaining 1 teaspoon sugar, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk or shake to combine.
  3. Build the salad. Place the butter lettuce, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, peaches, and feta in a large salad bowl.
  4. Finish and toss. Top with the pepitas, pickled onion, reserved lime zest, and a handful of torn cilantro leaves and tender stems. Season with a little more salt and black pepper. Drizzle half the dressing over the salad and toss gently, then finish with the remaining dressing.

The dressing and pickled onions can be made up to 3 days ahead, which makes this a very nice one for a picnic or dinner-with-friends situation.