Celebrate fig season with this sweet and savory Arugula Fig Salad recipe! It’s tossed with crisp apple, creamy goat cheese, toasted walnuts and a tangy balsamic vinaigrette for a salad that’s guaranteed to impress!

Fig salad in a white bowl with dressing

This Arugula Fig Salad Recipe is the perfect crossover between summer and fall.  It incorporates summer arugula and fresh figs, and it also celebrates the beginning of apple season.

The combination of peppery arugula, sweet figs, crisp apple, creamy goat cheese, crunchy walnuts, and tangy balsamic dressing pair so beautifully together, making this one of my favorite summer salads.

Aside from my fig jam recipe, this salad is my favorite way to use fresh figs. It’s incredibly easy to prepare, and it’s guaranteed to impress.

See my 27 Fresh Fig Recipes for more exciting ways to use figs!

Fig salad in a white serving bowl

Why you’ll love this recipe:

  • This fig salad recipe is an irresistible blend of sweet and savory flavors and a variety of textures. It’s guaranteed to impress!
  • It’s easy enough for busy weeknights and impressive enough for dinner parties and gatherings.
  • It comes together in minutes and the walnuts and dressing may be prepped in advance.
  • It can be easily customized based on what you have on hand.

Recipe ingredients

This fig and goat cheese salad includes just a few ingredients that can be customized according to your tastes or ingredients that you have on hand.

Fig salad recipe ingredients

Ingredient notes:

  • Arugula. Peppery arugula pairs beautifully with the sweetness of the fresh figs and tangy goat cheese, so I highly recommend using it. You can certainly substitute it with your favorite dark leafy greens such as massaged kale, spinach or spring greens.
  • Figs. If fresh figs aren’t available, dried figs are a great substitute.
  • Apple. Crisp, sweet apple adds great texture and flavor to this salad. If you don’t have any on hand you can substitute it with blueberries, raspberries, peaches, pears or your favorite fruit.
  • Goat cheese. The tangy flavor of the goat cheese pair so well with the arugula and figs, but if you’re not a fan, sub with feta cheese, blue cheese or omit entirely to make this recipe dairy-free.
  • Walnuts. Sub the walnuts with pecans, almonds or your favorite nuts or seeds.
  • Dressing. My sweet, tangy balsamic vinaigrette dressing is my favorite dressing for this salad. You can substitute it with apple cider vinegar dressing or your favorite store bought dressing.

How to make fig salad with goat cheese

This salad comes together so quickly, and the toasted walnuts and balsamic vinaigrette dressing may be prepped up to a few days in advance.

Pro tip:   For best results, toss the salad with the dressing just before serving and serve immediately.  Fig salad is best served the day that it’s made.

See the recipe card below for full instructions.

How to make fig salad with goat cheese
  1. Toast the walnuts and prep your ingredients.
  2. Place the arugula, figs, apple, goat cheese and walnuts in a large bowl and toss with the desired amount of dressing.
Fig and goats cheese salad with balsamic dressing

FAQs

What goes with figs?

Figs are extremely versatile and pair well with a variety ingredients. They’re very sweet, so they’re especially great in savory recipes like this arugula fig salad.

This salad incorporates peppery arugula, sweet fresh figs, crisp apple, creamy goat cheese, toasted walnuts and tangy balsamic vinaigrette. The flavors pair beautifully together for one the tastiest sweet and savory salads ever.

Should figs be refrigerated?

Figs ripen very quickly at room temperature, so it’s best to store them in the refrigerator to slow down the process.

How do you cut figs?

You will need to halve or quarter the figs for this fig salad depending on their size. Simply remove the stem from the top with a paring knife, then place the figs on a cutting board and either cut in half or quarters by cutting from top to bottom, or place the figs on their sides and cut them in half lengthwise.

Apple fig salad in a bowl without dressing

Serving suggestions

Fig salad can be served up a number of delicious ways as outlined below.

Recipe notes

  • Pro tip:   For best results, toss the salad with the dressing just before serving and serve immediately.  Fig salad is best served the day that it’s made.
  • You can customize this to your liking, but the one thing that I wouldn’t change at all is the arugula. The bold, peppery flavor of the arugula is the perfect contrast to sweet fig, juicy apple and tangy goat cheese.
  • If figs aren’t in season, you can substitute with dried figs. If apples aren’t in season, substitute them with raspberries or blueberries.  And if you’re not into goat cheese, feta cheese is a good replacement.
  • The dressing may be made in advance and stored in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Arugula fig salad with balsamic dressing drizzled over it

More fresh fig recipes!

Did you try this recipe?  If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram

Fig salad in a white bowl with dressing

Arugula Fig Salad Recipe

Servings: 6 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Additional Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
This Arugula Fig Salad recipe is packed with sweet and savory flavor! It's tossed with crisp apple, creamy goat cheese, toasted walnuts and a tangy balsamic vinaigrette and is guaranteed to impress!
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Ingredients

  • 5 ounces baby arugula
  • 6 large fresh figs quartered; use up to 8 figs if they're smaller in size
  • 1 small apple halved, sliced and chopped
  • 1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
  • 1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces
  • balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Instructions 

  • Toast the walnuts in a large skillet over medium to medium low heat, stirring occasionally until golden and fragrant. Keep a close eye on them as they can burn quickly! Set aside to cool.
    1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces
  • Place the arugula, figs, apple, goat cheese and walnuts in large bowl.
    5 ounces baby arugula, 6 large fresh figs, 1 small apple, 1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
  • Pour the dressing over the salad (you may not need it all), and toss gently to coat. Serve immediately and enjoy!
    balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Notes

  • Pro tip:   For best results, toss the salad with the dressing just before serving and serve immediately.  Fig salad is best served the day that it’s made.
  • You can customize this to your liking, but the one thing that I wouldn’t change at all is the arugula. The bold, peppery flavor of the arugula is the perfect contrast to sweet fig, juicy apple and tangy goat cheese.
  • If figs aren’t in season, you can substitute with dried figs. If apples aren’t in season, substitute them with raspberries or blueberries.  And if you’re not into goat cheese, feta cheese is a good replacement.
  • The dressing may be made in advance and stored in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Nutrition

Calories: 227kcal, Carbohydrates: 18g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g, Cholesterol: 6mg, Sodium: 153mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 14g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Salads
Cuisine: American
Author: Marcie
Keyword: fig and goat cheese salad, fig salad, fig salad recipe
All recipes and images © Flavor the Moments.
Did you try this recipe?Be sure to tag @flavorthemoments with the hashtag #flavorthemoments on Instagram so I can see what you made!

**This recipe was originally published in August 2018. The photos have been updated to include step by step photos and the text has been modified to include more recipe information.

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