Best Salad Recipes to Try This Holiday Season

If you trying to avoid unhealthy foods this holiday then prepare the healthiest and tastiest salads at home. Now you will not miss out on good food this holiday.

Salads are one of the most fulfilling, satisfying, and healthy food options even at the time of holidays. During this time of the year, we all tend to eat many unhealthy foods. Sugary food items are one of the biggest types of food that everyone consumes. Everyone likes to eat whatever they want to but forgetting about the healthy foods in the holiday wouldn’t be a great idea for your health. If you want to enjoy the holidays in a healthy way, then you can try including a little bit of salad in your food. It will be really useful to keep your health better in every possible way. Here are a few excellent salad recipes that you can try to make at home-

1. Caesar Salad:

Ingredients-

• Romaine lettuce
• Croutons
• Olive oil
• Dijon mustard
• Garlic
• Parmesan cheese
• Pasteurized egg yolks
• Red wine vinegar
• Lemon juice
• Anchovy paste
• Hot pepper sauce
• Worcestershire sauce

Method-

To prepare a delicious Caesar salad, first you need to make the dressing. To make the Caesar dressing, you need to take the egg yolks, anchovy paste, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire in a blender. Make a smooth paste to create the most delicious dressing. You can also add hot sauce according to your taste if required. After making the dressing, take a pan, add some oil, heat it up grate the parmesan cheese and melt it properly. Combine both of them and keep it aside to get chilled. Then take the lettuce in a large bowl and drizzle some dressing to coat it up properly. Before serving it, add a little more sauce, croutons, and shaved cheese on the top. Your freshly made Caesar salad is ready.

2. Garden Chickpea Salad:

Ingredients-

• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped tomato
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup canned garbanzo beans or chickpeas
• 1 small zucchini, julienned
• 1 medium carrot, julienned
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced radishes
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 3 cups spring mix salad greens
• 3 tablespoons chopped walnuts

Method:

If you want to make the perfect garden chickpea salad, then first roast the cumin seed on medium heat and then keep it aside in a small bowl. Then, mix tomato, oil, lemon juice, garlic, cayenne pepper, and salt. Mix all this well to prepare a better dressing for the salad. Then take a big bowl, then add the chickpeas, zucchini, carrot, parsley, green onions, walnuts, radishes, and cheese. After doing this, mix both mixtures properly and that’s it. The garden chickpea salad is completely ready.

3. BBLT Chopped Salad:

Ingredients-

• 6 ounces (about 9 cups) fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch broccoli
• 1 package (2.52 ounces) ready-to-serve thick-cut fully cooked bacon
• 2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup Miracle Whip
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar

Method-

First, take a big bow, then add the baby spinach, broccoli, grape tomatoes, and bacon. Mix them well and keep them aside for some time. Then take another small bowl, pour vinegar, miracle whip, and sugar, and blend all the ingredients thoroughly. Then add both the mixture in a way so the dressing would forms like a coat on the spinach and other vegetables. It is one of the healthiest salad recipes that you can prepare this holiday.

4. Penne Pasta Salad:

Ingredients-

• Penne pasta
• Green pepper
• Cherry tomatoes
• Olives
• Green onions
• Italian salad dressing
• A seasoning of dill, lemon, pepper, dill, and garlic salt

Method-

To prepare this salad, first, you need to boil the penne pasta. While boiling the pasta, add a little bit of salt and boil it as per the directions given on the packaging. Now, it is time to make the dressing for the salad. After that, take the boiled pasta, in that same pan, and add tomatoes, onions, green pepper, and olives. Stir all the ingredients so each of the flavors will come out properly. In a separate bowl, add the Italian dressing and the other seasonings together. Give it a good mix and pour it on the prepared pasta. After doing it, keep the pasta in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. Serve the salad by mixing all one last time. Your delicious penne pasta salad is all ready to serve.

5. Barbecue Pork Cobb Salad:

Ingredients-

• 1-1/4 cups barbecue sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1-1/2 pounds pork tenderloin
• 3 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 12 cups chopped romaine
• 2 avocados, peeled and chopped
• 1 medium sweet red or green pepper, chopped
• 2 small carrots, thinly sliced
• 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 3 hard-boiled large eggs, chopped
• Salad dressing of your choice

Method-

Barbecue pork cobb salad is a particular salad recipe, which takes a little bit more time than other salad recipes. To prepare this, first, you need to slow-cook the barbecue sauce along with paprika and garlic powder. After doing so, add the pork and coat the meat with the sauce. Keep this covered on low heat for nearly 4-5 hours. You need to cook until the pork has turned completely soft. After doing so, shred the pork pieces into bite-sized pieces. After doing so, take a big bowl, and arrange the romaine, shredded pork, avocadoes, tomatoes, carrots, eggs, and chopped pepper. Then on top, add some grated cheese and drizzle some more dressing. That’s it, your barbecue pork cob salad is all ready to be served.

6. Veggie Nicoise Salad:

Ingredients-

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
• 1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed
• 1 pound small red potatoes (about 9), halved
• 1/2 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
• 1 jar (6-1/2 ounces) marinated quartered artichoke hearts, drained
• 6 hard-boiled large eggs, quartered
• 12 cups torn romaine (about 2 small bunches)
• 1/2 cup Nicoise or kalamata olives

Method-

To make this salad, you need to make the vinaigrette first. Take a bowl, then add olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, thyme, garlic clove, Dijon mustard, ground pepper, and salt. Mix all the ingredients to create a magnificent taste. Then take another bowl, put the kidney beans along with the onion, and add 1 tablespoon of vinaigrette. After doing this, take a saucepan and add the potatoes. Keep it covered with water for some time. Then boil the potatoes for 15 minutes on medium heat. After boiling the potatoes, drain it completely and then add 1 tablespoon of vinaigrette. After that, boil some more water to cook the asparagus. Follow this process for 2-4 minutes. As it gets a little bit soft, put them in the ice water immediately. Remove them from the ice water and pat them dry it get them to the best state. Then in the same boiling water, cook the green beans for 3-4 minutes and follow the same process. Now all you need to do is assemble the salad. Serve the asparagus along with the green beans and 2 teaspoons of the vinaigrette. Then make the plate even better, put the kidney bean mixture and chopped boiled eggs on it. At the end, drizzle some olive oil on top of it.

7. Kale Quinoa Salad:

Ingredients-

• Quinoa
• Tomato juice
• Olive oil
• Onion
• Garlic
• Kale
• Crushed red pepper
• Dried currants
• Pine nuts
• Lemon juice
• Balsamic vinegar
• Lemon zest

Method:

If you want to make kale quinoa salad, then you need to take a large saucepan and add water and tomato juice. Boil it for some time and add the soaked quinoa. Keep the flame low and cook it covered. You need to cook it until the water gets dried. It might take nearly about 20 minutes. Once it is done, remove it from the heat and mix it with the help of a fork. After doing it, take a pan, heat up some olive oil on medium heat, put onions, and cook it until it gets softened. Once it is done, put pepper and garlic. Cook it for a minute and then put kale into it. You need to cook it for four minutes. Then add the currants and pine nuts. Stir the mixture gently to keep the texture ideal. Cook for two minutes and not more than that. Mix the quinoa along with the dressing and add vinegar, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Mix all well and then remove from the heat. The ideal way to serve it is at room temperature.

8. Tabbouleh:

Ingredients-

• Tomatoes
• Onion
• Bulgur
• Mint
• Parsley
• Olive oil
• Lemon juice
• Pepper
• Salt
• Cayenne

Method-

To make this salad, first, you need to cook the bulgur according to the directions given on the packaging. Then take a bowl and put all the remaining ingredients. Mix the ingredients thoroughly. After mixing it properly, pour the cooked bulgur and mix it well for one more time. If you want to have your Tabbouleh chilled, then keep it in the fridge for a couple of hours and then serve it.

9. Summer Harvest Grilled Panzanella Salad:

Ingredients-

• 1 medium eggplant
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1 medium red onion
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes
• 3 cups cubed ciabatta bread
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or thyme
• 1 can (14 ounces) large water-packed artichoke hearts
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Method-

To prepare this salad, first, you need to brush eggplant, zucchini, ciabatta bread, red onion, tomatoes, and artichoke hearts with oil. Then put the artichoke hearts, onions, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, and bread into the grill. You need to grill all these ingredients for 4-6 minutes on medium heat to cook them properly. After grilling all the items, take the eggplant zucchini aside to a cutting board. Cut them in a bit-size piece and place them in a big bowl. Then put the other grilled items along with basil, pepper, and salt. Do not try to mix the items with any hard objects. Toss the mixture gently to keep the pieces properly. Then take a small bowl and put in the red wine vinegar, olive oil, minced garlic clove, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Mix them well and preparethe best salad dressing. Then drizzle some dressing from the top and make a coat of it before serving.

10. Mango Peach Caprese Salad:

Ingredients-

• 2 medium peaches, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 carton (8 ounces) fresh mozzarella cheese pearls
• 1 cup chopped peeled mango
• 2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 fresh basil leaves
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Method-

Take a big mixing bowl and put the peaches, tomatoes, mango, cheese pearls, cilantro, and basil. After that, for the dressing, put vinegar, honey, salt, basil, and pepper in a blender. Blend all the dressing ingredients well and while doing so, add some olive oil gradually. It will make the dressing even smoother for the salad. Then mix it all together with the previously cut ingredients. Make a coat on the fruits and vegetables. You do not need to do anything to make the salad. Now keep it is the fridge for a couple of hours before serving it.

11. Cornbread Salad:

Ingredients-

• Cornbread or muffin mix
• Mayonnaise
• Sour cream
• Vegetables
• Ranch salad dressing
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Pinto beans
• Bacon

Method-

To make this salad recipe, you need to prepare the cornbread mix according to the directions given in the package. Then bake it in a big pot. When the cornbread is cool, crumble it. Then take a bowl and put the mayonnaise, sour cream, and salad dressing mix. Mix all these three ingredients properly. Then take another bowl and add the peppers, tomatoes, and chopped green onions. After making the dressing, take a big glass bowl, and put half a bowl of cornbread, tomato mixture, beans, bacon, cheese, corn, and the dressing. Repeat the same process by adding green onions from the top and the remaining dressing. Then put the glass bowl in the refrigerator and serve it cool.

12. Chef Salad:

Ingredients-

• Salad greens
• Deli turkey
• Ham
• Hard-boiled eggs
• Cabbage
• Radish
• Carrot
• Green onions
• Salad dressing
• Garlic powder
• Pepper
• Salt

Method-

To make this salad, you need to season all the vegetables first. Take a big bowl, and add tomatoes, eggs, turkey, ham, cabbage, carrots, green onions, and radishes. Mix them well, then add pepper, and garlic powder, and give it a good toss. After following this process, you need to serve the vegetables and put on the dressing. Create a good coat on the vegetables and serve to enjoy the best Chef Salad.

13. Chicken Taco Salad:

Ingredients-

• Chicken breasts
• Chicken broth
• Romaine lettuce
• Chilli powder
• Cumin
• Salt
• Pepper
• White pepper
• Oregano
• Paprika
• Chipotle pepper
• Pepper flakes
• Avocado
• Cheddar cheese
• Tomato
• Cherry tomatoes
• Green onion

Method-

Take a small bowl, then make a mix of cumin, salt, chili powder, pepper, chipotle pepper, white pepper, oregano, paprika, and red pepper flakes. Now, blend it all together to make the perfect taco seasoning. Then take the chicken breast pieces and put the previously made taco seasoning all over it. After that, put the chicken in a slow cooker with the chicken broth. Cover the pot and cook the chicken until it is completely soft. Shred the chicken with the help of two forks. Then mix the shredded chicken along with avocado, cheese, green onions, and tomatoes. Mix it properly to make the best chicken taco salad. You can also put a little bit of your preferred salad dressing on top of it.

14. Spinach Pasta Salad:

Ingredients-

• Penne pasta
• Tomatoes
• Spinach
• Cheese
• Green onions
• Olive oil
• Olive
• White wine vinegar
• Garlic
• Dijon mustard
• Salt
• Pepper

Method-

To make this salad, cook the penne pasta according to the given directions on the package. After boiling and cooking the pasta, drain the water and run it under cool water. Then prepare the salad with the help of olive oil, white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, cheese, oregano, garlic, pepper, and salt. Mix it all together and keep it aside for later. Then take a large size bowl, put the cooked pasta, spinach, tomatoes, green onions, olives, and a little bit of feta. Then add the previously made dressing and give it a good mix. Your spinach pasta salad is all ready to be served.

15. Kale Caesar Salad:

Ingredients-

• Kale
• Romaine lettuce
• Parmesan cheese
• Croutons
• Mayonnaise
• Lemon juice
• Dijon mustard
• Anchovy paste
• Worcestershire sause
• Minced garlic
• Pepper
• Salt

Method-

Make a delicious Kale Caesar Salad easily at home. Take a big bowl, and add chopped kale, romaine lettuce, croutons, and shredded parmesan cheese. Mix it all well and keep it covered for later. Then take a bowl, and put mayonnaise, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, anchovy paste, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and salt. Mix it all together and prepare an aromatic dressing. Mix the kale mixture along with the dressing and serve it immediately. You can add some more shredded cheese and croutons on the top before serving it.

16. Tex-Mex Potato Salad:

Ingredients-

• 2 medium ears sweet corn
• 1 large sweet red pepper
• 2 pounds small red potatoes
• 1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• 2 green onions, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream or fat-free plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup salsa
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons chopped pickled jalapeno slices
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• Dash cayenne pepper
• Fresh cilantro leaves

Method-

To make this exquisite salad, you need to first pre-heat the oven to 400°. Then, put in corn and red pepper on a pre-greased baking sheet. Then roast the ingredients for 20 to 25 minutes. Then keep them aside to cool down. After it gets cold, peel off the skin, stem, and seeds from the pepper. Cut them in half and keep them for later. Then take a large saucepan, put potatoes in it along with water, and boil it. Keep the flame low after it gets boiled and keep it like that for 12 minutes to make it tender completely. Then drain the water and cut them in half. In a bowl, put the roasted corn and pepper along with tomatoes, avocado, and green onions. Right after that, take sour cream, mayonnaise, lime juice, salsa, vinegar, salt, and jalapenos in a blender to prepare a good dressing. Then mix all the ingredients together well and coat the potatoes with the dressing. Keep it covered in the fridge until it chills. While serving, sprinkle a few cilantro leaves on the top.

For the holidays, you can try some of these salad recipes. Each of the salads is extremely healthy for you. Now you will get to eat tasty yet healthy foods even in the holidays.