Need the perfect healthy, gluten-free summer side dish? This asparagus, tomato, and feta salad is chock full of colorful vegetables and toasted walnuts and is an impressive dish to take to BBQs, potlucks, Memorial Day, 4th of July celebrations any summer gathering! ⟹
With Memorial Day approaching quickly, I’m starting to see lots of recipes for cookouts, 4th of July, and summer parties.
And while the cute creative red, white, and blue patriotic sweets are usually the “star” of the meal, how about a showy salad as a healthy option to balance all of those desserts? If you’re searching for a side dish for your Memorial Day menu, I’m sharing this simple and delicious asparagus salad recipe that compliments almost any summer meal!
Jump to RecipeThis post contains Amazon and other affiliate links for your convenience. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you purchase something through any link, I may receive a small commission, at no extra charge to you. I only recommend products that I love or would purchase for myself. See my full disclosure here.
What’s in Balsamic Asparagus, Tomato, and Feta Salad?
Aside from the ingredients in the name of this beautiful salad…asparagus, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese, and balsamic vinaigrette, there are lots of options!
For this recipe I’ve also included these ingredients to amp up the colors, flavors, and texture:
- Cucumbers
- Sweet mini peppers
- Red onion
- Black olives
- Toasted walnuts
Or here are even more ingredient ideas:
- Carrots
- Radishes
- Chickpeas
- Goat cheese instead of feta
- Add protein like chicken for a meal
It’s so versatile…just add or omit any of these or come up with some of your own!
Ingredients for the balsamic vinaigrette.
I might have cheated on this step since I love shortcuts and used a ready-made balsamic glaze, but I’m glad I didn’t because this vinaigrette with balsamic reduction and a little sweetness added tastes amazing! My friend and hostess for the gathering I’m taking this to is extremely sensitive to gluten and sometimes balsamic glazes have something in them that makes her sick. So with that in mind, I went homemade on the vinaigrette and all of these ingredients were gluten free approved:
- Balsamic vinegar
- Olive oil
- Honey
- Dijon mustard
- Garlic
- Salt and pepper
See the recipe card at the bottom for exact measurements and directions.
How to make this yummy Balsamic Asparagus, Tomato, and Feta Salad recipe.
Assembling this salad is easy and I was able to multitask the following steps and chop veggies while the oven was preheating for the walnuts, and make the vinaigrette while waiting for the water to boil.
- Chop and toast the walnuts: Coarsely chop the walnuts and toast them in a 375 degree oven for 5-6 minutes.
- Prep the veggies: Wash, slice, and chop all of your veggies.
- Cook the asparagus: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the asparagus and cook until crisp tender, about 4 or 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of your asparagus.
- Cool the asparagus: While the asparagus is cooking, fill a large mixing bowl with water and ice. When the asparagus is done, submerge it in the ice bath for ten seconds to stop the cooking and maintain its bright green color.
- Make the vinaigrette: Reduce the balsamic vinegar by boiling it down by half for about 3 minutes and then whisk it and the rest of the vinaigrette ingredients together in a bowl.
- Put together the salad ingredients: Layer or combine all of the ingredients for the salad in a bowl or on a platter. Since I was taking mine to a party, I wanted a pretty presentation so I arranged the asparagus tips around the rim of a white serving platter. Then I layered on the different colorful ingredients and finished with the feta. I topped it with a little special touch for Memorial Day…some cucumber stars! It only took a minute to punch out these cute stars from the cucumber slices with a star cookie cutter.
7. Add the vinaigrette: To finish it off I drizzled the balsamic vinaigrette over it all. If you put it on early, it will soak in a bit, but it is still tasty! But if you’d really like to be able to see it, wait until your gathering starts. (When everyone started making their plates, I did toss the salad a bit with the serving utensils to mix everything.)
Although this salad is perfect for summer, it’s also popular in the spring when asparagus is in season. If you need a couple of other recipe ideas for summer gatherings, check out my Summer in a Cup cocktail and my cold No Bake Eclair Cake dessert!
So let’s make this delicious Asparagus, Tomato, and Feta Salad!
Enjoy and let me know what you think and how you customized it!
Don’t forget to sign up for updates to keep in touch…I have lots of fun and useful freebies you may be interested in in my subscriber-only library like my cheat sheet for emergency spice and seasoning substitutions!
Pin this to your recipe and salad boards to refer to later:
Asparagus, Tomato, and Feta Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette
Need the perfect healthy, gluten-free summer side dish? This asparagus, tomato, and feta salad is chock full of colorful vegetables and toasted walnuts and is an impressive dish to take to BBQs, potlucks, Memorial Day, 4th of July celebrations any summer gathering!
Ingredients
Salad ingredients:
- 2 lbs fresh asparagus medium thickness
- 1 container grape tomatoes halved
- 2/3 cup chopped walnuts toasted
- 4 oz feta cheese crumbled
- Any other veggies you choose to add
Vinagrette ingredients:
- 6 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 clove minced garlic
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
Prep the salad:
- Chop and toast the walnuts: Coarsely chop the walnuts and toast them in a 375 degree oven for 5-6 minutes.
Wash and trim the tough ends from the asparagus and slice the rest into 2 inch pieces. Wash, slice, or chop the rest of your veggies.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the asparagus and cook until crisp tender, about 4 or 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of your asparagus.
- While the asparagus is cooking, fill a large mixing bowl with water and ice. When the asparagus is done, submerge it in the ice bath for ten seconds to stop the cooking and maintain its bright green color.
Make the vinagrette:
Boil the balsamic vinegar to reduce it by half for about 3 minutes. Then whisk it and the olive oil, dijon mustard, honey, garlic, and salt and pepper together in a bowl.
Dress the salad:
Layer or combine all of the ingredients for the salad in a bowl or on a platter. For a pretty presentation arrange the asparagus tips around the rim of a serving platter. Layer on the rest of the desired ingredients and crumble the feta over the top.
Drizzle the balsamic vinaigrette over the top right before serving.
Recipe Notes
If you put the vinagrette on early, it will soak in a bit, but it is still tasty! But if you’d really like to be able to see it, wait until your gathering starts.
Not sure what happened, but I see the 4th of July mason jar cheesecake recipe on this page instead of the Balsamic Asparagus, Tomato, and Feta Salad recipe. Is it possible to send the salad recipe via email? I have searched Pinterest too for the recipe and it too comes up with the 4th of July recipe. Thank you so much!
Sent you an email Teresa!
Not sure what happened, but I see the 4th of July mason jar cheesecake recipe on this page instead of the asparagus tomato salad. Is it possible to send the salad recipe via email? Thanks!
I will email it to you right away Audra! Can you tell me where you were linking from when you ended up in the wrong recipe? I’d love to get that fixed. Was it maybe Hometalk or my email?
Your friend might want to talk to a wine expert about the problem with her gluten illness. Good vinegar Balsamic is aged in oak barrels, that formerly contained wine during it’s first fermenting stage. It can be in those barrels for 50+ years aging itself. During that time any remaining yeast from the wine it followed. A balsamic reduction concentrates the the vinegar since you’re evaporating the water from it to obtain it. Not many people realize yeast doesn’t get all of its energy from sugar. That just enables us to test it. it grows on flour too,, but more slowly, in a controlled fashion. A wheat flour may have been the substrate for the yeast used for the wine.. That would cause her a nasty reaction. In a Celiac Disease patient, it definitely. She should get a full spectrum allergy testing, as well. Where 1 major problem exists, more may be lurking. Food allergies are often found in groups. They would test for all grains and seeds, to determine which ones are most problematic, then if there are other allergies, she’ll know about them. They might be able to offer some treatment options or meal planning help.
Now about your salad. It sounds great. It contains all of my favorite ingredients and the dressing sounds unique and different using reduction instead o straight vinegar balsamic. I’ve put it on my list of salads to try..
Thanks for all the good info MaryAnn! I’ll make sure my friend sees it. Although she’s so highly allergic she has done extensive research and testing. She’s mostly gun shy about dishes with balsamic in restaurants because it’s usually a glaze. I get it, I’m highly allergic to avocados which is sad so I avoid them like the plague. I hope you enjoy the salad!!
What are the stars?
Hi Cathy! They are cucumber slices that I punched stars out of with a small cookie cutter.