Categories: Recipes

15 Healthy Summer Salad Recipes That Will Leave You Salivating

Healthy summer salad recipes are a great way to take advantage of the great summer veggies! Here are 15 of our favorite healthy summer salad recipes that you have to try!

1. Rosy Beet and Quinoa Salad

This isn’t your typical salad with greens! It has a great variety of ingredients to give you a healthy and delicious meal. The recipe uses quinoa and red beets as the main ingredients which are both super healthy for you and great bases for flavor. The other ingredients work together to balance out the slightly bitter taste of quinoa and the added radicchio. The addition of creamy goat cheese really brings the salad together and makes for an easy go-to on anyone’s list of healthy summer salad recipes! 

2. Chicken, Avocado, and Peanut Salad

Here’s a salad that’s really easy to make and also packed full of great flavors. The recipe should only take you a few minutes and has relatively cheap ingredients. The homemade vinaigrette is made of dark sesame oil, grapefruit juice, rice vinegar, fresh chives, and salt & pepper. The salad contains butter lettuce, grilled chicken breast, carrot, red onion, avocado, and peanuts! The great variety makes the salad really well-balanced with many great vitamins and nutrients. You’ll love every bite and easily make it a go-to of your healthy summer salad recipes.

3. Green Goddess Quinoa Summer Salad

Quinoa is an awesome base food for healthy summer salad recipes because it is not only healthy but also offers a little crunch and is able to absorb flavors really well. This recipe for the green goddess quinoa summer salad is easy to make and perfect for any occasion. It just takes quinoa, cherry tomatoes, spinach, and then the dressing- which you can choose between two. The “Magic Green Sauce” which is a vegan sauce made of avocado, parsley & cilantro, jalapeno, garlic, lime juice, olive oil, and pistachios! Or you can choose the “Avocado Cilantro Dressing” which is made of avocado, Greek yogurt, water, cilantro, garlic, salt, lime juice. Both are delicious and are great at bringing out delicious flavors in this great summer salad.

4. Super Detox Salad

We all have those long weekend nights out with our friends during the summer where we wake up the next morning regretting how late you stayed up and the numerous drinks you consumed. This recipe gives you an awesome detox salad that will help speed up your hangover recovery and make you ready for the day! It has a number of antioxidant-rich ingredients such as kale, cherries, walnuts, and artichokes that help your body in recovering faster. Of course, you don’t have to only eat this salad when you’re recovering from a hangover. It’s healthy and delicious and perfect for any occasion making it an easy go-to to remember for healthy summer salad recipes!

5. Shaved Cucumber Greek Salad

This is a quick salad recipe that should only take you about 15 minutes! First, you will shave your two cucumbers into long strips with a vegetable peeler. Then you’ll add the remaining ingredients and cover with your extra-virgin olive oil and Champagne vinegar/white wine vinegar for your dressing! A quick, healthy, and delicious salad that utilizes many fresh ingredients of the summer. An easy addition to your list of healthy summer salad recipes!

6. Chopped Salad

Some healthy summer salad recipes will take you a bit longer to make but don’t worry because that just makes it more worthwhile. This recipe is an example of that. It will take you a bit longer because you’ll need to bake your squash as well as cook a number of the other vegetables for the salad. You can, however, save yourself some time the day off and cook your squash and brussels sprouts beforehand! If you want to change your opinion on delicious healthy summer salad recipes forever, you need to give this one a try!

7. Snap Pea Salad with Whipped Ricotta

Healthy summer salad recipes don’t always use your standard kale and spinach for the main greens. This recipe uses sugar snap peas! Snap peas are high in fiber and great for your diet to help you regulate your blood sugar and your weight. They are also low in calories! The snap peas in this salad are complemented by a delicious whipped ricotta cheese mixture that you will not soon forget.

8. Lemony Herb Salad

This lemony herb salad recipe is super easy and should only take you a few minutes to throw together. Combine your sliced carrot rounds, thinly sliced red onion, and herbs (such as mint, parsley, dill). Grate your lemon zest over the salad then squeeze the juice from the lemon over your salad. Drizzle with a bit of extra-virgin olive oil and salt & pepper and toss it and mix it all up! A simple salad that won’t break your budget makes it a perfect go-to for healthy summer salad recipes. 

9. Porcini, Artichoke, and Parsley Salad

Some healthy summer salad recipes, like this one, really take advantage of fresh summer veggies. This salad uses wild porcini mushrooms and artichokes which are in season from late spring to early summer. This recipe might take a bit of extra time and preparation but you won’t regret a thing once you take that first bite! 

10. Pea and Prosciutto Salad

Here is a recipe that makes a delicious and healthy salad that even has tasty prosciutto on top! You’ll need to boil your green peas and sugar snap peas for about two minutes, and then immediately transfer them to a bowl of ice water to set their color and halt the cooking. You’ll really feel like a professional chef doing this. You will also make a homemade vinaigrette with lemon juice, mustard, olive oil, and salt & pepper to taste. You can even replace the sugar snaps with snow peas, or use them both if you want!

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11. Green Goddess Carrot Salad

As brought up previously, the healthy summer salad recipes that require a little extra time to prepare almost always taste so good you won’t even mind. This recipe needs you to bake your carrots for about 20 to 25 minutes to get them crispy with a slightly caramelized edge. These taste so good you might just eat a few before finishing your salad! You’ll also prepare a delicious “Green Goddess Dressing” that you will very likely make again for many different salads. 

12. Whole Grain Salad with Jammy Eggs and Shallot Yogurt

This is a really well-balanced salad that will leave you feeling full for hours! The recipe uses whole rye berries (or farro or wheat berries), shallot, Greek yogurt (whole milk), chopped mint, lemon, mixed greens (arugula, baby mustard, mizuna, etc.), Jammy Soft-Boiled Eggs, and salt & pepper. You’re probably wondering just what “jammy soft-boiled eggs” are. There’s a link to the recipe on the salad recipe but it’s pretty straightforward. You just need to take your eggs and boil them for about six and a half minutes at a gentle boil. Then, immediately transfer the eggs to ice water and chill them for just about two minutes. Gentle crack and peel them for a delicious topping for this and other healthy summer salad recipes!

13. Baja Salad

This recipe for the Baja salad makes a great healthy meal that’s really filling. You’ll be making a homemade Cilantro dressing made of cilantro, garlic, lime juice, liquid from pickled red onions, and olive oil. You will need a food processor in order to finely chop up the ingredients for your dressing. It’s got a number of fresh spring/summer vegetables as well as a delicious dressing. An easy go-to for healthy summer salad recipes when you’re trying to choose what to make! 

14. Greek Tomato and Cucumber Salad with Farro

Healthy summer salad recipes are a great way to stay on your diet and keep that summer beach body you’ve worked so hard for, or are working towards! This recipe for a greek salad with whole-grain farro is a great combination of tasty flavors and lots of veggies. The homemade dressing is made of grated lemon rind, lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano, and salt & pepper. The use of whole-grain farro as the base of this salad makes it a much heartier salad that will keep you full for hours! 

15. Chopped Dinner Salad with Crispy Chickpeas

This might be one of the top-tier healthy summer salad recipes that you definitely need to try! This recipe for the chopped dinner salad with crispy chickpeas is the perfect combination of healthy veggies, protein, and great flavors. The wide variety of veggies can be easily swapped out for your favorites or whatever you have lying around. The homemade vinaigrette dressing is also so good you’ll be making it for many different salads as well. The perfect combination of fresh vegetables, protein, and delicious flavors makes this well-balanced salad great for any occasion.

What are your favorite healthy summer salad recipes? Share them with us in the comments below!

Featured Image Source: Photo by Prudence Earl on Unsplash
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Samuel Anderson

I have a passion for helping others and see journalism as a great way to reach and impact many people. Born in Texas but raised in the San Francisco Bay Area! Then with a short detour in Boulder, Colorado to get my bachelor's in Journalism with a minor in political science. I'm a determined, motivated individual striving to make a difference in this world. I have hopes to play a role in the continued development of journalism and in maximizing efforts to inform and inspire the public. Check out my articles on Society19!

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