Invent a Salad

Salads make a great side dish or a meal on their own. Try adding plenty of colors and a variety of food groups to salads. Not only do color and variety make salads tastier, they make them healthier and a great way to use foods you have on hand.

Choose one or more ingredients from the first three columns. Fruit and toppings can be added, if desired.

Leafy Vegetables	Raw Chopped Vegetables	Protein	Fruit	Toppings
Use plenty	As much as you like	1/2 cup per serving	1/2 cup per serving	1 Tablespoon/Serving
Artichoke Beet greens Collards Cabbage Chard Dandelion leaves Endive Escarole Garden cress Arugula Iceberg lettuce Kale Kohlrabi Mustard greens Romaine Spinach Swiss chard Turnip greens	Avocado Bell pepper (yellow, green, or red) Bok choy Brussels sprouts Broccoli Carrot Cauliflower Corn Cucumber Green bean Jicama Mushrooms Onion Peas Radishes Tomatoes	Canned beans Canned salmon Canned meats Chicken Cooked beans Cooked chicken Cooked pork Cooked turkey Hard cooked eggs Tofu Tuna fish	Apple Blueberries Mandarin oranges Pear Pineapple Strawberries Raisins or other dried fruit Raspberries	Chinese noodles Cheese, grated, crumbled, or cubed Cooked whole grains (brown rice, whole wheat pasta, etc.) Cracker crumbs, croutons Nuts (Almonds, walnuts, etc.) Olives Seeds (Sunflower, pumpkin, etc.)

Favorite Combinations

When putting together a salad, use what you have on hand. Be creative! Any combination of foods can be used. Salads can be easily personalized to suit every member of the family.

	Leafy Vegetables	Chopped Raw Vegetables	Protein	Fruit	Toppings	Dressing
Cobb Salad	Romaine lettuce	Tomato, avocado	Hard cooked egg, chicken	-----	Bacon bits, blue cheese	Vinaigrette
Chef's Salad	Romaine, spinach, or other leafy green	Broccoli, tomato	Strips of chicken, ham, roast beef, hard cooked egg	-----	Croutons, sunflower seeds	Your choice
Spinach Salad	Spinach leaves	Thin-sliced red onion, sliced mushrooms	-----	Sliced strawberries or mandarin oranges	Sliced almonds	Vinaigrette
San Jose Salad	Romaine lettuce	Sliced red onion, avocado	Sautéed pecans	Sliced green apples	Feta cheese	Optional: vinaigrette
Greek Salad	Romaine lettuce	Artichoke hearts, siced red onion, tomato, cucumber	Cubed chicken	-----	Feta cheese	Juice from artichoke hearts with a pinch of garlic powder or basil
Italian Style Kidney Bean Salad	-----	Chopped zucchini, tomato	Cooked kidney beans	-----	Cubed mozzarella, Monterey jack	Italian dressing

Featured Recipes

Apple Salad Wash the apple and vegetables.Collect, dice, grate, and measure all ingredients beforestarting to prepare the recipe.Toss apples with lemon juice in a bowl.Add celery, carrot, and raisins.Stir yogurt into the rest of the ingredients.Cover. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving to allowthe flavors to mix together. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours. Eat within 3 to 5days.
Simply Snazzy Salad Place greens, carrots, cranberries, and walnuts into a large mixing bowl.In a small bowl, add balsamic vinegar, olive oil, mustard, and honey. Mix ingredients together using a fork or whisk until smooth and evenly combined.Right before serving, pour dressing over the salad in the large mixing bowl. Gently toss the salad to coat all the ingredients.