Easy and Delicious Summer Salads

In the heat of summer, isn’t the last thing you 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!

Salads don’t mean just lettuce and tomatoes with a glob of dressing…There are wonderful pasta salads, like BLT Pasta Salad; there’s also “Salads on a Stick,” or amazing bean and veggie salads…

I promise you, you can’t go wrong taste-wise with any of these salad recipes! Even picky eaters are sure to like a few of these! If you do have a picky eater, when it’s possible, line up your salad ingredients on the counter, assembly line style, and let them pick their own ingredients.

Here are some of my family’s favorite salad dishes, along with a quick grocery list for each one!

Copycat Berry Almond Salad
Grocery list: Mixed greens, strawberries, blueberries, Asiago cheese, sliced almonds, grilled chicken breast, and raspberry vinaigrette

Doritos Taco Salad
Grocery list: Beef or turkey, taco seasoning, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, beans, cheddar cheese, Doritos and dressing

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

Pesto and Sun-dried Tomato Chicken Salad
Grocery list: Chicken, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, mayonnaise, and croissants or lettuce to serve

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

Pesto and Sun-dried Tomato Pasta Salad
Grocery list: Pasta, pesto, balsamic vinaigrette, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, Mozzarella, Parmesan and spinach

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

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

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

Pizza Bread Salad
Grocery list: Romaine lettuce, garlic breadsticks, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, pepperoni, basil and Italian dressing

These aren’t just a great dinner ideas, they’re also delicious for a lunch or brunch buffet! There you go, some scrumptious cooler dinner recipes for summertime!