3 EASY SALADS YOU SHOULD MAKE THIS SUMMER

It's still summer, so there's still LOADS of time to make these 3 easy, yummy and incredibly versatile salads!

These 3 salads can be the star of your dinner, or the side kick.  

When it comes to serving the perfect side dish, it can be hard to come up with something new and tasty this far into the summer.  You've grilled ALL the veggies and eating ALL the tomatoes.    Then you go and buy some steaks with a definite plan to throw them on the grill, but you haven't really figured out what to serve WITH the steaks.  You could go traditional, and grill up some corn on the cob.  AGAIN.  Or there's asparagus.  AGAIN.   If you're looking for something new, you'll find your new summer side dish with these salads.  All 3 of them are easy to make, simple to adjust depending on what ingredients you have on hand, and will go with any main course you serve this Summer.  Best part? You can make them fast!

BONUS:  If you want a ONE DISH WONDER, just add your favorite grilled protein and VOILÁ, dinner is served!

So, without more chattering on, here are 3 easy salads you should make this Summer.

First up is a salad that has just a few ingredients, but packs so much flavor because of the vinaigrette.  It's light, fresh and is Summer in a salad.   This is an incredibly versatile salad that goes just as well with grilled fish as it would with chicken or pork.  Fennel has a faint licorice flavor and gives this salad a great crunchy texture.  There's avocado for creaminess, grapefruit for a burst of fresh citrus and the tangy vinaigrette ties everything together.  Grilled shrimp or grilled salmon would be the perfect match to turn this into a one dish dinner.

Citrus Salad with Fennel and Avocado

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Cook Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

Dressing:

  • 1/5 cup fresh orange juice
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon minced shallot
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
  • 1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard

Salad:

  • 2 large pink grapefruits, peel and white pith removed
  • 1 pound fennel bulbs, trimmed, cut into paper-thin slices.
  • 2 large avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, cut into thin slices.
  • 2 cups arugula or spinach (you can also use your favorite salad mix)
  • 2 cups walnuts, toasted

Instructions

  • Put all dressing ingredients in a medium size mason jar. Shake vigorously to blend. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
  • Using sharp knife, cut between membranes of grapefruits to get just the segments.
  • Place the arugula (or spinach or favorite salad mix) in a large salad bowl, and place fennel slices on top.
  • Arrange grapefruit segments and avocado slices on top of the fennel.
  • Give the dressing a good shake and then drizzle over salad. Garnish with toasted walnuts. Serve immediately.

Notes

  • Make the salad dressing day before to let the flavors infuse for maximum flavor.
  • Measure ingredients for dressing in mason jar, cover and shake to mix.
Have you made this recipe?I'd love to know! Leave a comment or recipe rating and tag me @amenuforyou on social media!

Here's a salad I could literally eat every day.  all day long.  all Summer long.   I've used a variety of different melons and can vouch that you really can't go wrong with whichever melon you choose.  Just pick one that's sweet to balance the salty prosciutto.   Burrata is my absolute favorite type of mozzarella to use in this salad.  In Italian, burrata translates to "buttery" and is the dreamiest, creamiest, most amazing mozzarella you will ever eat.   The outer shell is mozzarella and the inside is an unpulled mozzarella and cream.  When you cut into it, melt in your mouth goodness will flood onto your plate.   You can read all about how much I LOVE burrata in this blog post. 

If you use burrata, it won't slice evenly, so I usually break the burrata in a bowl first, then plop down pieces on the plates to keep it somewhat neat.  Scatter basil leaves on top, or chiffonade the basil.   To chiffonade the basil, take the basil leaves, layer a few on top of each other, roll them together and then thinly slice starting at the top.  You now have lovely ribbons of basil for the salad.

Prosciutto, Melon and Mozzarella

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Cook Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 8 slices of Prosciutto
  • 1 melon ( Crenshaw, Canteloupe or Honeydew) ,cutinto 8 wedges, seeded and skin removed.
  • 1 large ball of Burrata (you can substitute smallmozzarella balls), sliced thin.
  • 6-8 fresh basil leaves.
  • Extra-virgin Olive oil. (use the highest quality you canfind)
  • Maldon sea salt.
  • Freshly ground pepper.

Instructions

  • Lay 2 slices of prosciutto on each plate
  • Arrange 2-3 melon slices around the prosciutto
  • Scatter mozzarella across the top
  • Place 2-3 basil slices as the final layer
  • Drizzle with olive oil
  • Season with a generous sprinkling of sea salt and pepper.

Notes

Because this is a very simple salad, it's important to use the best ingredients you can find. This is the perfect time to head to the farmer's market, your local organic grocery store your own home garden.
Have you made this recipe?I'd love to know! Leave a comment or recipe rating and tag me @amenuforyou on social media!

This easy, breezy salad literally tastes like Summer to me.  The peppery bite of the arugula, sweet peaches and tomatoes all get a light drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  This salad can play lots of different roles on your menu.  Add grilled shrimp or thinly sliced steak on top and VOILA it becomes a main course.  Or leave it as is for the perfect, light, refreshing side salad.  If you can find heirloom tomatoes, I definitely recommend using them for their sweetness.   The salty feta balances the sweetness, but another cheese that works just as well is goat cheese.  Or, you can  shave a bit of Parmesan on top.

Arugula, Peach and Tomato Summer Salad

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Cook Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 bag of arugula.
  • 2 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced.
  • 1 pint grape tomatoes (or 2 large heirloom tomatoes), sliced in half (if using grape tomatoes, you don't need to cut them in half).
  • 1/4 - 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (I tend to use closer to 1/2 cup because I love feta!)
  • 1/2 cup toasted nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, pecans) Extra-virgin Olive Oil.
  • Balsamic Vinegar.
  • Salt.
  • Pepper.

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, combine arugula, peaches, tomatoes, feta and nuts.
  • Drizzle with olive oil (I count to 5 and then stop).
  • Drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper.
  • Toss and taste to check seasoning.
  • If needed, drizzle with extra olive oil or add another splash of balsamic vinegar.
  • Serve immediately.

Notes

  • If you can't find peaches, nectarines are a great substitute.
  • I love adding Sahale nuts (most grocery stores carry this brand of mixed nuts and fruits) to this salad. The pecan mixture is my favorite!
Have you made this recipe?I'd love to know! Leave a comment or recipe rating and tag me @amenuforyou on social media!

The other weekend, I made a big green salad with tons of veggies (carrots, cucumbers, avocados, radishes and tomatoes). and wasn't feeling like making my usual vinaigrette.  So I made this creamy dressing and added fresh herbs from my garden.  We practically licked the salad bowl clean.  It's one of those dressings that will work just as well drizzled over grilled chicken or fish, as it does in a salad.  It's also ridiculously easy to make because everything goes in a blender.  No chopping required.  I would recommend making it a day or two ahead of when you want to serve it to allow all the flavors to meld together.

Creamy Herb Dressing

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Cook Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 2 Cups

Ingredients

  • 1 cup full fat Greek yogurt.
  • A couple of spoonfuls of sour cream.
  • Handful of Italian parsley, roughly chopped.
  • A few sprigs of tarragon, leaves only, roughly chopped.
  • A handful of cilantro, roughly chopped.
  • a few leaves of basil, torn.
  • 2-3 tablespoons of white vinegar.
  • 1-2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice.
  • Salt and pepper.

Instructions

  • Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until completely smooth.
  • Taste and adjust seasonings.
  • If you want extra tang, add a dash more vinegar and/or more lemon juice. More creaminess? Add another spoonful of yogurt and/or sour cream.
  • Refrigerate until ready to use. Should keep in the fridge for up to a week.

Notes

  • The magic of dressing is all the herbs, so be generous with your handfuls.
  • If you are not a fan of cilantro, use extra parsley.
  • Other herbs that would work are mint, chives and oregano.
  • To mellow the flavor , if needed , add more yogurt.
Have you made this recipe?I'd love to know! Leave a comment or recipe rating and tag me @amenuforyou on social media!

Take a photo of your Summer salads and tag #amenuforyou so I can see what's on your table this Summer!

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