Menu Plan for the Week: Salads -

In the muggy heat of summer, the last thing I want to do is turn on the oven for 45 minutes at dinner time, and turn the kitchen into a sauna. So what’s a girl to do? Serve some delicious and healthy, crisp, colorful salads!

If you’ve got picky eaters, when it’s possible, line up your salad ingredients on the counter assembly line style, and let everyone pick their own ingredients.

Salads don’t have to mean just lettuce and tomatoes…There are wonderful pasta salads, like this weeks BLT Pasta Salad; there’s also “Salads on a Stick,” or an amazing bean and veggie salad…

I promise you, you can’t go wrong taste-wise with any of this weeks featured salad ideas!

BLT Pasta Salad
Grocery list: Pasta, bacon, tomatoes, green onions and bacon ranch dressing

Southwestern Black Bean Salad
Grocery list: Black beans, corn, peppers, onion, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, light olive oil, garlic and limes
This isn’t just a great dinner idea, it’s also delicious for a lunch or brunch buffet!

Spinach Salad on a Stick and Breadsticks
Grocery list: Spinach leaves, grape tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and balsamic vinaigrette

Cobb Salad
Grocery list: Romaine lettuce, grape tomatoes, cooked chicken or turkey, avocado, bacon, blue cheese, hard-boiled egg and dressing

Asian Chicken Salad
Grocery list: Cooked cubed chicken, lettuce, coleslaw mix, tortilla strips, sliced almonds and your favorite Asian dressing

Southwestern chicken salad
Grocery list: Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, corn, black beans, cheddar cheese, chicken breast, hard boiled eggs, dressing and any extras

To help with “keeping the oven off” here are 15 Scrumptious No Bake Chocolate Dessert Ideas!