Best Salad Recipes

Grilled Caesar Salads… with easy options for a complete meal and a bonus recipe for watercress

Grilled Caesar salads are a summertime classic and can be a quick, well-rounded meal. This bright-tasting dressing is easy to prepare—no need for a blender or food processor—and is egg and anchovy free. Anchovy fans may absolutely serve them alongside, of course, and I’ve included my favorite ways to turn the salad into a complete…

Greek Pasta Salad

Bursting with flavor and easy to transform into a complete meal, this versatile pasta salad is equally perfect for busy weeknights and casual entertaining.    When I was pondering what to say about this light-but-satisfying, Mediterranean-style salad, four simple words came to mind: low effort, high reward. It’s a bowlful of flavor that everyone seems…

Absolutely Famous Greek Dressing and Marinade

When I look through my ever-growing list of recipes, I notice quite a few that are modeled after memorable restaurant meals or frequently used store-bought products. In an effort to save money or control ingredients, readers sometimes ask if I can replicate items that they like to eat. Recent requests are as varied as belVita…

Chicken & Broccoli Slaw with Speedy Thai Peanut Sauce

This veggie-packed, protein-rich meal is quick, easy, and delicious. Perfect for busy weeknights and a great way to stretch some leftover chicken into a new meal.   Summer cooking begs to be carefree and easy. Who wants to be holed up in the kitchen when the sun is shining and outdoor activities abound? Since you…

Strawberry Chicken Salad with Candied Walnuts and Goat Cheese

Easy jam jar dressing and candied walnuts add amazing flavor to this crisp, fresh plate.  Leftover chicken makes it a satisfying, complete meal.   Friends and family provide some of the best recipe feedback, which often steers me towards sharing a particular dish sooner than later–or in some cases, going back to the drawing board.…

Abby’s Watermelon Salad

A little sweet, a little salty…  this quick-to-assemble salad is perfect on a summer night paired with something off the grill.   Though we only attended the same school for one year and weren’t even in the same grade, my friend Abby and I have a unique history and never fail to relive old memories…

Black Bean Dip (or Salsa or Salad)

Enjoy this easy, endlessly versatile recipe as a dip with chips, a salsa for fish or chicken, a super-simple salad, or the foundation of a healthy, plant-based meal. Perfect for a potluck and can be prepared up to a day in advance!         Amidst all my experimenting with new recipes, this simple…

Green Goat Salad with White Balsamic Vinaigrette

A remake of a restaurant favorite, this satisfying salad hits all the right flavor notes. Add a protein of choice to make it a complete meal.    How many times do you enjoy a restaurant meal only to crave it at home?  Quite a few recipes on this blog are recreations of menu offerings that lingered…

Lemon Dijon Kale Salad with Sweet Potatoes & Apples

With a combination of creamy, crunchy, and crisp ingredients, this wholesome salad is sure to satisfy, and leftovers hold up well. For a protein-rich complete meal, top with grilled or roasted chicken or salmon-or white beans or seared tofu for complementary meatless alternatives. Every fall, when the days start to grow shorter and colder, I sell…

Build-Your-Own Veggie and Grain Salad

It’s January.  The weather is cold (at least it is here!) and the holiday festivities are behind us. Eating well can be a challenge when the mercury plummets, colds and flus rear their ugly heads, and warm sunshine and flip flops seem a long way off. Of course, all of this makes heavy comfort foods…

Easy Winter Fruit Salad

A straight-forward combination of fresh fruits with a little something extra to elevate the simple salad into something sublime.   From the time my kids could hold a crayon, I helped them make the gifts they’d give their loved ones on Christmas morning. My hope was that amidst all the material trappings of the holiday,…

Greek-Style Grilled Chicken Dinner Salad

Last year, I shared a story about a friend of mine, Sarah Lanphier, whose successful college fundraiser led to a thriving granola company.  Nuts About Granola produces a variety of uniquely delicious flavors–think carrot cake and PB&J–as well as a grain-free Forager line. Recently, Sarah launched a line of savory granolas, fittingly named Sarah’s Savory…

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