Arugula Salad with Quinoa, Apricot & Avocado

A lightly sweet cumin-spiced dressing fills this arugula salad with flavor, while avocado, apricots, quinoa & chickpeas make it hearty & satisfying.

Arugula Salad with Quinoa, Apricot & Avocado

I’ll never get tired of an arugula salad with avocado and quinoa. They’re probably my favorite three ingredients to use. I love this sweet combo of dried apricots, peppery arugula, smoky cumin, and fruity Arbequina Olive Oil. (I almost named this Arbequina Quinoa – but try to say that one five times fast).

homemade olive oil dressing for arugula salad Arugula salad recipe ingredients

The Key to a Good Arugula Salad is a Good Dressing

The cumin-spiced salad dressing really makes this salad shine, and its key ingredient is Arbequina Olive Oil. So what’s Arbequina Olive Oil? It’s a light and fruity extra-virgin olive oil that’s perfect for flavorful dressings like this one. Coincidentally, I’ve been buying it long before the folks at California Olive Ranch started sending it to me. Try it, I promise you’ll love it. (I usually get mine at Whole Foods). You can also use any quality extra-virgin olive oil in this recipe.

The dressing here is a simple Moroccan-inspired combination of cumin, garlic, lemon, and honey. If you’re vegan, you can use maple syrup in place of the honey, and the dressing will still have the sweet, spiced flavor that perfects this salad. Its flavor is especially good against the chewy dried apricots and toasted almonds.

Arugula Salad with Quinoa, Apricot & Avocado

If you love salads as much as I do, check out many many more in the salad section of our recipe index!


5.0 from 3 reviews

Arugula Salad with Quinoa, Apricot & Avocado

 
Prep time
Total time
 
A flavorful arugula salad would be an excellent choice as a side dish for any dinner or holiday meal. With quinoa, chickpeas, almonds & avocado, it's also hearty enough to be a meal on its own!
Author:
Recipe type: Salad, side dish
Serves: 4 as a side, 2 as a meal
Ingredients
dressing:
  • ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • juice of 1 medium lemon
  • ½ to 1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup, if vegan
  • 2 teaspoons cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chopped chives
  • pinch of red pepper flakes
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
for the salad:
  • 1 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1 cup chickpeas, drained, rinsed
  • a few big handfuls of arugula
  • ¼ cup dried apricots
  • 1 small avocado, cubed
  • ¼ cup chopped, toasted almonds
  • ¼ cup chopped chives
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Whisk together the olive oil, garlic, lemon, honey, cumin, chives, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, toss together the quinoa, chickpeas, arugula, dried apricots, and a few generous pinches of salt and pepper. Drizzle in ¾ of the dressing and toss again. Top with the avocado, chopped almonds, chives, and drizzle the remaining dressing. Season to taste and serve.

62 comments

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  1. Lynne from Berwyn
    12.24.2016

    I’ve made this salad three times so far, but could eat it often. When I’ve been out of one ingredient or another (apricots, chives, arugula avocado), I’ve substituted something else (raisins or cranberries, scallions, mesclun) or gone one without it (avocado) and it’s still been amazingly bright and tasty. The dressing is delicious and can be used on other salads too. My kids, 20’s and 30-something foodies, love this salad! Thanks for posting the recipe!

  2. Brooke
    03.31.2015

    This is the best salad I have had in a long time! I would have never thought to put cumin in the dressing but it really made it. This will be on repeat 🙂

    • jeanine
      04.03.2015

      I’m so glad! It’s one of my favorites – I just love the little bit of warm spice the cumin adds.

  3. Roslyn from artbyroslyn.on.ca
    07.22.2014

    This salad sounds absolutely wonderful. However I wish you had used apricots without sulphur dioxide added – you know the brownish ones that are so soft and sweet. I realize the colour is not as appealing as the sulphured ones, which is why they do that, but there are many of us who cannot tolerate sulphur. I would prefer the organic apricots anyway which would not contain this drug which can be life-threatening to some!

  4. Analida
    07.11.2014

    Nice recipe for quinoa arugula and apricot salad, especially for the summer months. Looks so healthy and delicious. Thanks.

  5. Angela
    07.05.2014

    Made this last night along with many other salads…. This one stole the show,, soooooooo good….thanks for the recipe!

  6. salads forever
    06.27.2014

    This salad was delicious! I made it with fresh apricots rather than dry since they’re in season. I gota say though-this dressing had way too much garlic for me! one glove or less would do the trick next time.

    • jeanine
      06.29.2014

      thanks, I’ll note that about the garlic in the recipe (I guess I like a lot of garlic!)

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  9. Annie
    06.09.2014

    How many servings does this make??

    • jeanine
      06.09.2014

      about 2 as a meal, 3-4 as a side

      • Annie
        06.09.2014

        Thank you so much for your quick reply! Can’t wait to make it!

  10. Niina G
    06.06.2014

    This was fantastic. I used fresh apricots instead of dried, and added some fresh green onions as I had them handy. Great salad. Thank you!

    • jeanine
      06.09.2014

      so glad you liked it!

  11. Andrea
    06.05.2014

    We had this delicious salad this evening. Thanks!

    • jeanine
      06.05.2014

      so glad you liked it!

  12. Beth
    06.02.2014

    I made this tonight, and I’m so glad I did! It was light, refreshing, delicious, and unexpected with the cumin in the dressing. Thank you! 🙂

    • jeanine
      06.05.2014

      thanks for sharing – glad you enjoyed it 🙂

  13. Jaimie from lizzyinthekitchen.typepad.com
    06.02.2014

    Awesome! I’ve been throwing some dried papaya in my chopped salads lately and it is seriously the most delightful surprise when you get a bite. 🙂

    • jeanine
      06.05.2014

      I love a little pop of sweetness in salads!

  14. Emily from ginghamandsteel.com
    06.02.2014

    I love all your recipes, especially your salads, but I’ve got a rather silly question – how do you keep the quinoa in each bite of your salad? I find when I make salads with quinoa, I can’t get any to stay with the leaves and other goodies, and so it’s more like a bowl of quinoa at the end of a nice salad. (Not that it’s horrible, but still – seems like a bit of a waste!)

    • jeanine
      06.05.2014

      Ha, I’m not sure I’ve noticed that problem :). Try tossing the greens with the quinoa while it’s still a little bit warm (not hot) – it’ll wilt them slightly and help everything stay together.

  15. Nina
    06.01.2014

    This looks delicious! Any suggestions of what I could substitute for cumin in the dressing? (It’s one spice that I’m lacking in my cupboard at the moment) Maybe turmeric?

    • jeanine
      06.01.2014

      I think turmeric would be great (maybe with a pinch of cayenne for some heat, if you have some ground corriander, that would also be nice with turmeric). OR Paprika would work too (if it’s smoked paprika, start with less, add more to taste).

      • Nina
        06.01.2014

        Thanks Jeanine! Can’t wait to try it!

  16. sandy
    06.01.2014

    sounds so yummy. is the cumin in the dressing whole or ground?

      • sandy
        06.01.2014

        many thanks for your speedy reply – on the menu now for my lunch!

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Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.