Lemon Arugula Salad with Pine Nuts is a quick and easy salad that is peppery, sweet and satisfying. Arugula is tossed with cherry tomatoes, toasted pine nuts and parmesan cheese and finished off with a lemony, olive oil dressing. 

LEMON ARUGULA SALAD WITH PINE NUTS

We all need a few simple, yet delicious salads in our back pocket for those busy nights. Today’s Lemon Arugula Salad with Pine Nuts is one of those salads for me. When it comes to salads I don’t discriminate.

I love so many different kinds from a big Greek Village Salad, to an Easy Lebanese Salad, to a tabbouleh salad, to a fattoush salad, to a zucchini chickpea salad.

But sometimes simple is best, and this is one of those times. 

I am a lover of arugula. You can almost always find a bag of it in my fridge for salads, pizzas or wraps. I love adding a handful to a pizza along with parmesan cheese, prosciutto and olive oil.

I also love adding arugula to a veggie hummus wrap or sandwich.

But I have to admit my favorite way to eat arugula is in a simple salad that is dressing with an olive oil and lemon dressing.

I also love making a big jar of this Lemon Dressing and adding that to the salad.

There is something about that peppery arugula paired with sweet lemon juice that makes me so happy. 

WHAT OTHER ADDITIONS CAN I PUT IN MY ARUGULA SALAD?

The sky is the limit but here are some of my favorite additions:

• I love roasting chickpeas and throwing those in my salad. Forget croutons, crunchy chickpeas are the way to go. 
• Add beans to your salad. My favorites are white beans or chickpeas.
• If you want to bulk up the salad try adding grilled chicken, salmon or tofu. 
• I love adding whatever vegetables I have on hand. Some of my favorites are red onion, carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, sun-dried tomatoes and avocado.
• Switch up the cheese you are using. I personally love adding parmesan cheese to my salad but you could do feta, goat cheese or white cheddar. 
• I added toasted pine nuts to this salad but some other options are sunflower seeds, almonds, cashews, pecans or walnuts. 
• Add your favorite fruit. I love adding fresh apple, pear or even mandarin oranges.

WHAT SHOULD I SERVE ARUGULA SALAD WITH?

There are a lot of great options to serve this salad with. Here are a few of my favorites:

15 Minute Shrimp Linguine with Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce

Shrimp Scampi with Sun-dried Tomatoes 

Sheet Pan Honey Balsamic Chicken Tenders with Vegetables 

Easy Chicken Piccata 

Slow Cooker Mediterranean Whole Chicken 

Easy Baked Rigatoni with Chicken Meatballs

Stuffed Shells  

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Lemon Arugula Salad with Pine Nuts

Yield: 4-6

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Lemon Arugula Salad with Pine Nuts is a quick and easy salad that is peppery, sweet and satisfying. Arugula is tossed with cherry tomatoes, toasted pine nuts and parmesan cheese and finished off with a lemony, olive oil dressing. 

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Ingredients

For the salad:

• 4 cups arugula, washed
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, cut into thin slices

For the dressing:

• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey {or natural sweetener}
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

To toast the pine nuts:

1. Heat a dry large skillet over medium-low heat and toast pine nuts, stirring frequently, until pine nuts are golden in spots, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.

For the dressing:

1. In a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, honey, garlic, salt and pepper. Set aside.

For the salad:

1. Toss the arugula, tomatoes, toasted pine nuts and Parmesan cheese slices together in a large bowl. Pour the salad dressing over the salad and gently toss. Finish the salad off with the shaved Parmesan cheese and a bit more black pepper. Serve immediately.

Notes

Other ideas for this salad:

1. I love roasting chickpeas and throwing those in my salad. Forget croutons, crunchy chickpeas are the way to go. 
2. Add beans to your salad. My favorites are white beans or chickpeas.
3. If you want to bulk up the salad try adding grilled chicken, salmon or tofu. 
4. I love adding whatever vegetables I have on hand. Some of my favorites are red onion, carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, sun-dried tomatoes and avocado.
5. Switch up the cheese you are using. I personally love adding parmesan cheese to my salad but you could do feta, goat cheese or white cheddar. 
6. I added toasted pine nuts to this salad but some other options are sunflower seeds, almonds, cashews, pecans or walnuts. 
7. Add your favorite fruit. I love adding fresh apple, pear or even mandarin oranges.