Salad season is upon us; a beautiful time of year when we let the abundance of summer produce inspire what we toss together. While I appreciate classics such as the French Niçoise or a Waldorf, I love the ability to mix it up and lean into summer’s beautiful fruits and vegetables. Salads are a blank canvas, therefore allowing us to take not only the ingredient’s health benefits into consideration, but invite flavors our palates are craving to shape the meal prepared. Plus, they’re usually super quick to whip together and a perfect fresh option when those temperatures heat up!

This farro salad with a sun-dried tomato vinaigrette is a huge hit with my family, so deems itself worthy of one that goes into the summer salad repertoire. It can be served as a side dish or even as the entrée with a little shredded chicken thrown in, but either way, it’s packed with flavor and loads of protein and fiber from the farro, a nutrient-rich grain. I’ll also never turn down a salad with grilled corn and avocado!

Sun-dried Tomato Vinaigrette:

• 5 oz jar of sun-dried tomatoes in oil
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• 1 ½ – 2 Tablespoons honey
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Pulse all of the above ingredients together in a food processor until well mixed.

Salad Ingredients:

• 4 ears of corn, husks removed
• 1 cup farro
• ½ cup chopped fresh basil
• 5 Campari tomatoes, (or your tomato of choice) and cut in quarters or eighths
• 8 oz fresh mozzarella, torn into bite-size pieces
• ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped
• 2 avocados, diced
• 2 cups of arugula

Grill the corn. I wrap the corn in foil (optional) and grill at 400°F for about 30 minutes, flipping half way through. Grill until lightly golden. Once cooled, cut off the kernels. While the corn is grilling, cook the farro according to the package directions (I use Bob’s Red Mill), these should both take about the same amount of time.

In a large bowl, mix the grilled corn, cooked farro, basil, tomatoes, mozzarella, olives, avocados and arugula together. Pour in the sun-dried tomato vinaigrette and toss until it’s well mixed. Enjoy!