Grilled Vegetable Pesto Salad

The farm I am working for has had an abundance of basil this July – I’m talking pound upon pound of the stuff. And basil is light! It is in such great abundance that we have started selling in in a quantity called “pesto basil”, which is awesome because it is difficult to find that type of quantity at the grocery store. It is also awesome because any Basil that isn’t deemed “market quality” (i.e. it didn’t sell or has some natural browning) goes into the staff Basil pesto pile. Thus, this abundance has transferred over to me.

Usually I would make pesto and use it in my partners favorite Pesto Grain Salad or smother a pizza with it, but this time I wanted to go for something lighter. Something that captured the freshness that late summer brings while still being hardy enough to be a satisfying post field work lunch. This also was a part of the lammas celebration so it had to have general appeal.

That in mind I decided to go for a mixed green salad – these are universally appealing and a perfect side dish or main course (if done well). But I still needed something to give it the umph… ah ha! Grilled Vegetables! What is more summery than that? We are bursting with Eggplant and Zucchini (Aubergine and Courgette) right now so it seemed opportune. There was also the most perfect little pint of cherry tomatoes in the staff fridge as well. My salad was shaping up pretty nicely!

But it still needed more.. So I threw in some roasted chickpeas for a bit of savory, cucumbers and celery for a nice fresh crunch, and olives for the sake of olives.

This salad definitely had a lot of moving parts so it isn’t exactly quick. It is however a crowd pleaser and totally worth the bit of extra effort. It can also be made the “leftover makeover” way with grilled vegetables from a previous nights dinner. This can probably serve 10 people as a side salad or be 5 lunch servings.

Below you will find the recipe for both the pesto (it’s a big batch) and the salad:

Ingredients:

Vegan Pesto

• 1 lb basil leaves and stems (destem if you want it very smooth)
• 2 packed cups arugula
• 1 packed cup sorrel leaves (or more arugula)*
• 1/2 cup green onion
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (or other acid)
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 – 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup sun flower seeds
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
• pepper to taste
• additional fresh herbs you have on hand (thyme, oregano, parsley, etc.)

Salad

• 1 head of butter lettuce – washed and chopped
• 2 packed cups of spring greens
• 2 packed cups of flat leaf kale
• 2 cups chickpeas – drained **
• 2 – 3 stalks of celery – diced
• 1/2 cup olives – sliced
• 1 medium cucumber – sliced and quartered
• 1 large or 2 medium eggplant – sliced
• 2 medium zucchini- sliced
• 1 pint of cherry tomatoes – quartered
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp. liquid aminos
• salt, pepper and paprika to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F
2. Chop and wash lettuce, kale, and greens. Allow the lettuce to set in the colander while you prep the other things to let the water drain off completely. You can toss it around a bit too
3. Toss the chickpeas with 1 tbsp. olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika. Place on the bottom rack in the oven and cook for 20 – 25 minutes or until the chickpeas become golden and crispy.
4. Combine 1 tbsp. pesto with the liquid aminos and 1 tbsp. lemon juice. Pour this over the sliced zucchini and eggplant *** – grill until browned but not burnt. Alternatively you can roast these in the oven but the grill gives them a nice char.
5. Using the leftover liquid from the veggies, begin to make your dressing by adding 1 cup pesto, the remaining lemon juice and oil, water, and balsamic vinegar to this mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Pat the lettuce off a bit more with a clean dish towel and transfer to a serving bowl
7. Prepare your salad by layering the ingredients in a way you find visually appealing. I recommend starting with the grilled veggies (reserving some for the top) then the cucumbers and tomatoes, followed by the olives, chickpeas, and celery. Top with a few extra veggies for good measure and allow guests to dress to their liking
8. Alternatively if you are storing this for later meals- wrap the lettuce in a clean dish towel and store in an air tight container. Store toppings and dressing separate and add when you are ready to eat/take with you.

Enjoy!

Notes:

*If you plan to use sorrel only use the leaves. I find the stems too stringy for pesto. You can also sub with some of your favorite herbs or more arugula/spinach

** I did these from dry chickpeas. If you want to do that too I recommend combining 1/2 chickpeas with 1 1/2 cups water plus 2 tsp of baking powder and 1 tsp of salt. Let this soak overnight or for at least 8 hours. Drain the liquid and rinse the chickpeas thoroughly. You will then want to boil them with some fresh water for 10 minutes before draining and roasting them.

*** I allowed my veggies to sit overnight in this mixture but it isn’t totally necessary.