Seven Simple Salads

Hi everyone!

This week I wanted to share some super easy ideas for giving your basic salad a new twist. With Summer upon us, I figured there could be no better time than this to talk about a light and refreshing dinner option, like salad. No one wants to turn on a oven or stand over the heat of a stove on a hot Summer day and salads are a quick, cool solution. In this post I've included one suggestion for each day of the week. Be creative with your ingredients and don't be afraid to try out new combinations. It's easy to get stuck in a routine and make the same thing over and over, but by altering just a few items you can add so much variety to a old classic. For those of you who are a little more adventurous, start experimenting with making your own salad dressings! Also you will notice that a couple of my salads use alternates to dressing altogether (ie. BBQ sauce or salsa). Feel free to share some of your simple Summer salad favorites in the comments below. Enjoy!

1.) Sweet & Spicy Jubilee

Lettuce (of choice)
Purple cabbage
Shredded carrots
Grape tomatoes
Fruit salsa of choice (a favorite of mine is a fire roasted papaya/mango salsa...)

2.) Spinach and Cranberry Salad

Fresh spinach
Romaine lettuce (optional)
Dried cranberries
Shelled sunflower seeds
Thinly sliced apples (optional)
Raspberry vinaigrette dressing


3.) Seafood and Crisp Veggie Salad

Romaine hearts
(or mixed greens of choice)
Spinach
Chopped veggies (tomato, carrots, peppers, mushrooms, cucumbers...)
Canned/packaged chunk light tuna or Pink salmon (if in water, drained... The single serving 2.5 ounce pouches work great)
Ground black pepper
Sweet balsamic dressing

4.) Southwestern Flair

Mixed greens (iceberg or romaine salad mix works well)
Garbanzo beans (drained)
Diced bell peppers
Roasted corn (toss in frying pan with salt, pepper and a splash of Tapatio)
Pico de gallo
Squeeze fresh lime juice

5.) Egg Salad

Simply put a few spoonfuls of egg salad over bed of fresh spinach and sprinkle with dash of black pepper

(if you don't want to spend time making your own or don't have a favorite recipe, Trader Joe's sells a couple varieties of mayo-free, egg white salad that are pretty tasty)

6.) BBQ Chicken or Shrimp Salad

Grilled chicken strips
or pre-cooked salad shrimp
1/2 Spring Mix
1/2 romaine lettuce blend
Sliced Avocado
Diced tomato
Tortilla strips (or crushed corn chips)
BBQ sauce (many varieties are gluten free, but make sure to check the label)

7.) Fruit and Nut Salad

Spring mix
Sliced red grapes
Coarsely chopped walnuts
Homemade tangy vinaigrette dressing

Dressing -
2 parts white wine vinegar
1 part extra virgin olive/canola oil blend
Blue agave nectar (I use equal or a little more than the amount of the vinegar)
Couple splashes of lime juice
Black pepper




Pictured:

- Seafood and Crisp Veggie Salad
(shown with tuna)

- Sweet & Spicy Jubilee

- Spicy Ranchero Egg White Salad
with Spinach

- Spinach and Cranberry Salad

- Tangy homemade dressing w/grape garnish