Written by Jessica Moore

 

Summer salads are a refreshing way to beat the heat, indulge in vibrant summer produce, get your much-needed greens in, and add intense color and texture to your dishes!

Salads can get a reputation for being a bit on the boring side, which honestly, I don’t understand–a mélange of vegetables, herbs, greens, and fruits on a plate has the potential for so much delicious creativity.

While it’s true that the classic balsamic vinaigrette & olive oil combo with mixed greens, for instance, is a great salad go-to, it can be a tad repetitive.

But these salads, oh my, they’re far from repetitive.

With summertime additions like beets, bell peppers, strawberries, tomatoes, blackberries, papaya, mango, apricots, and grapes, combined with tasty greens and grain textures like farro and quinoa, you’ll enjoy crisp sweet and savory combos bursting with flavor while getting the best nutrition on a hot summer day.

We absolutely cannot wait to make these beautiful green-tastic creations!

Detox Salad

source: pinchofyum.com

Pinch of Yum’s Glowing Grilled Summer Detox Salad features plump tomatoes, sweet corn, crisp grilled shrimp and romaine topped with a luscious cilantro avocado and lime dressing. This salad recipe is great for summer get-togethers over the grill.

Strawberry Caprese Farro Salad

source: abeautifulplate.com

Holy salad! To anyone in the world has ever claimed that salads are just plain boring, you haven’t looked at A Beautiful Plate’s salad masterpiece. Is your mouth watering yet?

This Strawberry Caprese Farro Salad has got it all: Italian farro, ruby red strawberries, sungold tomatoes, mozzarella pearls, and toasted pine nuts topped with a smooth basil pesto. Take this protein-packed salad to all your summer cookouts and we promise it’ll take center stage.

Avocado Onion, and Tomato Salad

source: foodiecrush.com

Do you ever crave a salad with chunkier pieces of veggies to bite into, especially when you’ve got heirloom tomatoes in your arsenal? I sure do.

Foodie Crush has joined delicious flavors in this seemingly simple yet beautifully complex Avocado, Onion, and Tomato Salad. What makes this salad stand out? The combination of fresh tarragon with champagne vinegar makes this a tangy, juicy, herbaceous salad that’s a welcome play on the classic caprese salads. You can even add a bed of spinach for some more greens if you fancy!

Summer Abundance Salads

source: halfbakedharvest.com

Half Baked Harvest’s inspirational Summer Abundance Salad looks like a farm-to-table perfection. Blackberries, blueberries, and cherries provide an inviting sweetness that offsets the crumbled feta cheese, and the spicy balsamic vinaigrette made with chipotle chili peppers in adobo sauce. With avocado, garbanzo beans, corn kernels, cherry tomatoes, and toasted nuts and seeds, what more can you ask for in a summer salad?

5-Minute Detox Salad With No-Mix Dressing

source: minimalistbaker.com

Sometimes you just need a quick and easy detox salad to reset you. The queen, Minimalist Baker, has a salad recipe that not only takes a mere 5 minutes to make but also promises that you don’t even have to mix the dressing! The dressing is a lemon tahini concoction that tastes incredible with avocado and kale.

 

Honey Lime Quinoa Fruit Salad

source: recipecritic.com

What’s a summer without fruit salad? A sad summer is what it is. This Honey Lime Quinoa Fruit Salad from The Recipe Critic has all your favorite summer fruits and fresh herbs plus an added dose of protein, fiber, and nutrients from quinoa. Quinoa also adds this delightful texture that brings the whole salad together. Topped with basil and a honey lime glaze, this sweet salad will be our go-to fruit salad when it’s hot out.

Watermelon Summer Salad

Who knew watermelon and garbanzo beans would be a match made in summer heaven? I sure didn’t, but Jenny Mustard never ceases to surprise her followers with unlikely pairings. Her Watermelon Summer Salad recipe showcases rich pink and red color palettes with watermelon, grapefruit, and red onion.

A little bit savory and a little bit sweet, this fresh salad looks so appetizing, I want to chop all the watermelons I can get my hands on and make this when it’s sweltering out and can’t bear to look at my oven.

 

Wow, greens never looked so good. If you’re a health kick, check out our favorite ways to make buddha bowls!