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Chopped Salad with fresh arugula, dried cranberries, crunchy red peppers, feta cheese, sweet corn, and couscous tossed with a creamy basil dressing.
Chopped Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing
One of my favorite restaurants to go to in Arizona is Wildflower Bread Company. They have vibrant, healthy salads with homemade crusty bread. My Mom introduced me to her go-to salad, their famous Chopped Salad. Ever since then, we order it every single time.
Last year we got together with my husband’s cousins. His cousin’s wife, Christine, made a copycat version of this chopped salad. I literally had 3 servings! No shame. I begged her for the recipe and went straight to the store to pick up the ingredients. This salad just keeps you guessing! The ingredients just go perfectly together.
What is in this Chopped Salad?
It begins with peppery arugula. Dried cranberries add a touch of sweetness. Red peppers add a nice crunch. Feta cheese adds a salty creaminess. Sweet dried corn adds a crunchy sweetness. Couscous adds some heartiness. Sunflower seeds add an earthy crunch. The creamy basil dressing adds a burst of freshness. Everything is chopped small so you can get all of the unique flavors in one single bite. You will love this salad!
If you aren’t a huge fan of arugula, you can use spring mix or romaine lettuce. This Chopped Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing recipe calls for freeze dried corn. You may ask what in the world is freeze-dried corn? It tastes amazing! It is literally corn harvested at its freshest and freeze-dried so it is sweet and crunchy at the same time. I have found it at Whole Foods, Sprouts, Winco, and Amazon. I am sure there are many other places that sell freeze-dried corn. If you can’t find it, you can use fresh corn off the cob or even frozen corn.
The creamy basil dressing is made with an abundance of fresh basil, extra virgin olive oil, mayonnaise, a touch of sugar, red wine vinegar, and salt. It is a hybrid between a vinaigrette and a creamy dressing. I make mine in a food processor but a blender works great too! You will want to lick the bowl!
To find more SALAD recipes click below:
Berry Candied Pecan Salad with Vanilla Dressing
Southwestern Chicken Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing
{To find all of my favorite kitchen items in one place, click HERE}
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Chopped Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing
Ingredients
- 6 - 8 cups Arugula
- 1/2 cup Dried Cranberries
- 3/4 cup Feta Cheese
- 1/2 cup Couscous cooked according to package instructions
- 1 Red Pepper diced
- 1/4 cup Sunflower Seeds or Pepitas
- 3/4 cup Freeze-Dried Corn or Fresh Corn
Creamy Basil Dressing
- 1 cup heaping Fresh Basil Leaves
- 1/3 cup Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/3 cup Mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons Sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar or any vinegar
- 1/2 - 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add arugula. Layer on dried cranberries, feta cheese, cooked and drained couscous, diced red pepper, sunflower seeds, and corn.
To make dressing:
- In a blender or food processor, whip together basil, oil, mayonnaise, sugar, vinegar, and salt. Taste and add more salt or sugar, if desired.
- Toss dressing with salad. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Who has tried this chopped salad with arugula at a restaurant before? It is unbelievably fresh and delicious! Add chicken breast or salmon for a complete meal. I hope you love it! Thanks for stopping by.
— Melissa
Tastes like the chopped salad we order at a local restaurant. I have had lots of compliments. We put leftover salmon on top.
Made this salad for the first time to take to a derby party this past weekend. It was delicious! The dressing is phenomenal. The crunchy corn and toasted pine nuts added a great crunch. Instead of all arugula I used a mix of romaine, spinach, butter & arugula because it’s what I had on hand.
Love how fun and different this salad is! Amazing recipe and definitely a crowd pleaser!
The BEST salad!!! Delicious and unique recipe!
My new favorite salad! We did quinoa instead of couscous (because I couldn’t find it at the store) and added avocado and it was yummy!!!! The kids all loved it! ????????
Made this for dinner last night, added pulled chicken and purple onions – DELISH! The dressing is also amazing. Thank you for posting such great recipes – love your site!
The Chopped Salad with salmon is my very favorite salad at Wildflower….I order it everytime. So naturally I was excited to try your recipe to see if I could replicate it at home. I was so excited when it turned out…I felt like I was eating at Wildflower. So happy!
I love their Chopped Salad as well, and have also tried to recreate it at home. Thanks for the reminder — it’s been too long and I have yummy dried corn just waiting to be used.
I use Israeli (pearl) couscous when I make it (because they do) and being the online recipe “stalker” that I am, saw on their site that their creamy pesto dressing, as listed in their nutrition section (and then the specific ingredients list) is a mix of pesto sauce and ranch dressing. I’ll be anxious to try yours!
If you haven’t tried their V12 Salad it’s also fab, by the way. 🙂 Thanks, Melissa, for the recipe inspiration!
Hi Alicia! You are so much like me! I love to do a lot of “research” or we can call it “recipe stalking” to figure out what they use. I did look up their ingredients as I was preparing this salad and noticed the same thing. I even went in and asked them a few questions at the restaurant. I decided to make mine a little lighter and it is definitely a hybrid of a vinaigrette and a creamy dressing. It has a very fresh basil flavor. I am glad you love that salad too! You will have to let me know if you try it. 🙂
Made it — it is yummy! I am a HUGE basil and pesto fan — the dressing definitely makes the salad! Thanks!