Summer heat means summer salads. Try some of our favorites.

Summer Salad Favorites

Summer is just around the corner and soon your garden, or local market, will be bursting with fresh, local, in season vegetables. After a winter of root vegetables or other vegetables imported from warmer places, summer season produce is very welcomed.

When the weather is hot and the garden is full, salads become a regular feature on our menu, sometimes becoming the meal itself. In addition to tossed lettuce salads, here are some of my family’s favorite ways to enjoy that delicious garden bounty.

Strawberry – Spinach Salad

1 package spinach leaves
1 pint sliced strawberries
½ C sugar
½ C oil
¼ C apple cider vinegar
1 TB poppy seeds

Dressing

Heat sugar, oil, and vinegar until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in poppy seeds. Refrigerate until cool.

Toss spinach and strawberries with dressing and serve immediately.

Broccoli Salad

3 bunches broccoli
1 head cauliflower
1 medium purple onion
1 lb bacon
2 C shredded cheddar cheese

Dressing

1 quart mayo mixed with 1 C sugar.

Use kitchen shears to cut bacon into one inch pieces. Fry bacon and set aside. Cut vegetables into bite sized pieces. Add bacon and cheddar cheese. Add dressing and mix well.

Pasta Salad

1 pound tri-colored pasta
3 or 4 green onions
1 large green pepper
1 bunch fresh broccoli
cauliflower
1 to 2 tomatoes (or a handful of cherry tomatoes cut in half)
1 bottle zesty Italian dressing
 
Cook, drain and cool pasta. Dice green onions, green pepper, broccoli, cauliflower and tomatoes. Toss pasta and vegetables together; add dressing and garlic salt. Toss all together and refrigerate. Best when refrigerated overnight. For variations add cubed cheese, chopped pepperoni and sliced black olives.

Freezer Cucumbers

2 quart sliced cucumbers
2 TB salt
3 medium onions sliced
Mix and let stand 2 hours. Then rinse thoroughly.

1 1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C vinegar

Heat enough to dissolve sugar. Add 1 tsp. celery seed. Cool, pour over cucumber mixture and freeze. You can also just eat this after it has chilled, but the cucumbers will store well in the freezer.

Summer is the best time for salads. The combination of in season produce and summer heat makes salads a most welcome addition to every meal, and desirable for a meal in itself. Enjoy this summer’s bounty!

About the Author

Stephanie Appleton lives with her husband and four children in the hills of West Virginia where they are learning to live simply and getting out of debt. Her ideas about cheap and healthy food appear regularly at All Foods Natural. She also writes for other web sites. See more at Stephanie's blog Stop the Ride!.