Grilled Peach Salad with Cashew Herb Cheese
If it’s one nut that really impresses me, it’s the cashew. Rich in antioxidants, healthy fats, and minerals, it’s one of the most versatile ingredients to cook with. From cashew sour cream to cashew frosting, the possibilities are endless!
They might not be able to touch the real thing in some cases, for example grilled peach crostinis with goat cheese and mascarpone. If you can get past the white balance issues in the pictures then I promise you that is one stellar appetizer.
But for the sake of health, personal preferences, or allergies, cashews make a fantastic stand-in for dairy.
The only tool you need to whip up cashew cheese is a food processor or a blender. I personally haven’t tried it with a blender but I can imagine the Vitamix does a great job making smooth cashew nacho cheese. Mmmm…that’s next on my list! Just as soon as I can muster up the courage to drop $600 on a blender.
I used a cheap little processor (prior to my upgrade) for my nut cheese and it worked great. The idea is to leave it a little on the thick side so that it’s kind of like a medallion in the center of your salad.
Just a squeeze of tart lemon juice and fresh herbs give it enough flavor to stand out and compliment the juicy grilled peaches.
By the way, have you noticed some bloggers are already posting pumpkin recipes? Um hello, it’s August. There is still a TON of summer produce to be had. Like peaches.
Okay, so maybe some part of me is dreaming about sweaters and pumpkin too. Why do we do this to ourselves? We’re supposed to be living in the moment, right? I suppose in the world of food blogging, that’s kind of a lost cause. You always have to think about what’s next so you can be ahead of the game.
Well, for now, I’m going to stop and savor what’s left of the long sunny days and the fresh produce. Because before we know it, we’ll be shivering, wishing for a hot day and a big summer salad!
Ingredients
3 cups mixed greens
1 cup spinach
2 peaches, halved and sliced
1/2 cup roasted almonds
balsamic vinaigrette
Cashew Herb Cheese
1 cup raw cashews soaked for at least eight hours
juice of one lemon
salt to taste
fresh herbs (basil, oregano and thyme)
Instructions
- To make cashew cheese, drain the soaked cashews (reserving water) and transfer them to a food processor. Add juice of one lemon and pulse until a thick puree forms.
- Add as much water as needed to achieve a thick, smooth texture. Toss in the fresh herbs and salt and pulse to combine. Taste test the cheese and add more salt as needed. You can also make it ahead of time and refrigerate it for later.
- Next, heat a grill pan over medium heat and brush with oil (I used sunflower). Arrange the slices on their sides and cook for 5 minutes then flip them to the other side to cook for another five minutes.
- Arrange the mixed greens and spinach on a plate, top with grilled peaches and roasted almonds and then a dollop of cashew cheese in the center. Serve with your favorite balsamic vinaigrette (honey or agave flavored works great) and enjoy!
This salad looks so freaking delicious.
I’m totally with you, keep posting about summer! I am SO not ready for anything pumpkin and won’t be until October. Plus, I feel like September is always hotter in the bay area than August.
Whenever you do buy the vitamix, I swearrrrrrr you won’t regret it! I literally have used it every.single.day. since I got one!
Another delicious looking meal. I’ve never even thought about attempting cashew cheese … that’s a little advanced for me. And yes, I’m dreaming of pumpkin too. Have a good one!
I love peaches on salads! I’ve got one more summer vacation at the end of this week and I think after that summer will be over in my mind. Almost time to bring on football season and PSLs! :-)
This is simply gorgeous! I just ate a peach for breakfast – they are so good right now. I’ll take peach over pumpkin any day, especially in August!
Oh my gosh I was just thinking (dreaming) about pumpkin the other day! But I waited so long for summer. It is pretty crazy. This salad looks great.. I actually just bought peaches so I may be making a rendition of this soon!
While I’m so shocked that summer just breezed right on by, I’ll never say no to fall + pumpkin + big cozy sweaters. We only get like 4 seconds of fall weather in Michigan, though. This salad sounds delicious, especially the cashew herb cheese. I’m all about cashew lately (always).
I love, love, love this salad idea! I’m a big fan of cashews as well, so this cashew cream cheese sounds absolutely amazing!
I’ve got a blender but it’s no use when making creams and dips. Most of the blenders are just for liquids. Of course, if you spend $ 600 it’s another story… I really need to buy a food processor (and spend much less than 600 dollars!). The salad is very beautiful to look at and I’m sure it tastes great!
What a gorgeous salad!! I have been wanting to experiment with cashews as a cheese substitute lately but just haven’t gotten around to it yet – but now I need this salad in my life so …. soon!
And yes! I want fall to arrive but it is too early for pumpkin!! haha I’m still stuck on corn and tomatoes and peaches and watermelon…
I NEED to grill peaches before the summer ends… Adding that to my must-do list! Totally agree about cashews, they are just so nice and versatile. I just recently got hooked on TJ’s cashew butter. It’s the best drizzled on top of a bowl of fruit!
I’m totally intrigued by the cashew herb cheese, I’ve gots to try! Such a beautiful salad!
This salad is so beautiful. I never thought to make nut cheese. It looks so good, especially the consistency. :)
Consequently tasty! That seems impressive!
Cashew herb cheeeeeeeese! I literally just threw myself on the ground like a ragdoll and then picked myself back up to tell you how much I want to make cashew herb cheese. And those perfectly grilled peaches? I’m crunching all over this salad!!
Cashews are such an impressive nut! What can’t they do? I’ve really been enjoying grilled peaches with savoury dishes this summer. It’s something new to me, but I really can’t get enough. I need to make this salad asap! I’m totally a fall girl, but I love the summer produce. If only there was a way to have both at once… :) hehe.
I really don’t take enough advantage of cashews. I might need to break that habit with this recipe. The grilled peaches sound especially fantastic!
Awesome flavor combo! I just love everything about this! Delish!
this salad looks amazing.. never added peaches to a salad before. definitely something i need to try. they look seriously delicious.
I’ve been doing a lot of experimenting with cashew cheese lately and it is so much fun! I feel like I am the only one on the face of the earth that hasn’t grilled peaches yet this summer. I think it is time for me to go buy a bunch of peaches, throw them on the grill, and make this delicious salad! I hope you have a great weekend :)
This looks so good! I’d say it looks restaurant quality. And I never thought of cashew frosting! Great idea! Do you recommend drying the herbs before throwing them into the food processor? Meaning…can I wash them and put them in right after?
Thanks Amanda! I dried mine off beforehand but now that you ask that question, there really isn’t a reason to. You can throw them in even if they’re still wet, it shouldn’t cause any changes.
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