Summer Salad with Herbed Ricotta and Balsamic Vinaigrette

Summer Salad with Herbed Ricotta and Balsamic Vinaigrette – a simple salad with heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers and radishes, all drizzled with a simple balsamic vinaigrette and a dollop of herbed ricotta!

Now that the warmer weather is here our summer lunches and dinners are pretty much made of salads and grilling something. So when you pretty much eat the same thing over and over again we try and make all kinds of different salads. I must say that my hubs is a pro when it comes to making salads and although he tries to keep his salads simple they are always incredible. But this salad here, I am proud to say that I made myself.

I bought some gorgeous heirloom tomatoes the other day when we went to the market and I just knew they were going to make a perfect salad. Now when I make salads I also like my salads simple, though every once in a while you’ll catch me throwing in some berries, or mangoes or some sort of fruit in my salads, I like to stick to simple dressings like olive oil and lemon or balsamic vinegar. I’m not one for creamy dressings, but I do enjoy my Caesar salad every once in a while.

So let’s talk about this salad a bit because it’s worth talking about. Lots of gorgeous tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes and red onions. Then I got the brilliant idea to add some serrano peppers and boy did it kick it up a notch. Maybe it was just my serrano pepper because it was hot as hell but oh yeah it was worth it. Then there are lots of herbs here that I used to combine with the ricotta cheese. All fresh of course, some thyme, oregano and some basil, make sure you chop them finely and mix it in with the ricotta, so good. And the dressing, as I said, a bit of olive oil, a bit of balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. That’s all you really need for tons of flavor. That about says it all for this salad. I stacked the tomato slices nicely but feel free to toss everything together, though I thought it looked really pretty like this.

If you try this recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!

Did you love this salad? Try these!

• Greek Salad
• Chicken Shawarma Tabbouleh Salad
• Asian Chopped Chicken Salad

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Summer Salad with Herbed Ricotta and Balsamic Vinaigrette

5 from 1 vote

Prep: 15 mins

Total: 15 mins

Author: Joanna Cismaru

Serves: 4

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Summer Salad with Herbed Ricotta and Balsamic Vinaigrette - a simple salad with gorgeous heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers and radishes and drizzled with a simple balsamic vinaigrette and a dollop of herbed ricotta takes this salad over the top!

Ingredients

For Herbed Ricotta

• 1/3 cup ricotta cheese
• 2 basil leaves chopped finely
• 1 tsp fresh oregano chopped finely
• 1 tsp fresh thyme chopped

For Salad

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 tsp salt or to taste
• 1/4 tsp pepper or to taste
• 1 lb heirloom tomatoes cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 1/2 English cucumber sliced
• 6 radishes sliced
• 1/2 red onion sliced
• 1 serrano pepper chopped
• 1/4 cup basil leaves chopped
• 1 tbsp oregano leaves

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• In a small bowl combine the ricotta cheese with the basil, fresh oregano and thyme. Set aside.
• In another small bowl whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.
• Arrange the tomato slices, cucumber, radishes and onion on a large platter then drizzle with the dressing. Season with salt and pepper if needed, then top with serrano peppers and dollop ricotta mixture evenly over the tomato slices.
• Garnish with fresh basil and oregano.
• Serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

Regular tomatoes will do if you can't find heirloom.

 

You can use jalapenos in place of the Serrano, or leave them out completely if you don't like spice.

 

Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

 

★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below! 

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 209gCalories: 138kcal (7%)Carbohydrates: 9g (3%)Protein: 3g (6%)Fat: 10g (15%)Saturated Fat: 2g (13%)Cholesterol: 10mg (3%)Sodium: 173mg (8%)Potassium: 395mg (11%)Fiber: 2g (8%)Sugar: 5g (6%)Vitamin A: 1190IU (24%)Vitamin C: 19.7mg (24%)Calcium: 90mg (9%)Iron: 1.1mg (6%)

Course:Salad

Cuisine:American

Keyword:heirloom tomatoes, serrano, summer

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