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  1. Midwest Living
  2. Food
  3. Salad Recipes
  4. Fresh and Colorful Summer Salads

Fresh and Colorful Summer Salads

By Midwest Living editors Updated May 26, 2023
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Summer Chicken Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette
Credit: Carson Downing

These bright, healthy salads—with veggies, fruits, hearty grains and more—are gorgeous enough to star at your dinner table or a picnic spread.

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Summer Chicken Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette

Summer Chicken Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette
Credit: Carson Downing
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Heap a platter with butter lettuce, poached chicken, green beans, avocado, berries, chives and basil. (The cooked components are easily made ahead.) Admire your creation, then douse it in berry-pink vinaigrette.

Related: Throw a Strawberry Party with These Fresh, Fruit-Forward Recipes

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Spinach-Farro Salad with Cherries

Spinach-Farro Salad with Cherries
Credit: Carson Downing
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Serve this easy, healthy salad for lunch or a light supper. The tangy goat cheese makes a nice counterpoint to the sweet cherries.

Related: Hearty, Healthy Salad Recipes

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Succotash Salad with Smoked Trout

Succotash Salad with Smoked Trout
Credit: Brie Passano
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In this delicious center-plate salad, salty smoked trout plays off the sweetness of fresh corn and a maple-laced dressing.

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Peach Panzanella

Peach Panzanella
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Make this gorgeous twist on the classic Italian salad with only the ripest summer peaches and tomatoes, so the bread soaks up all the sweet juices.

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Mexican Street Corn Macaroni Salad

Mexican Street Corn Macaroni Salad
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In Mexico, grilled corn comes coated in mayonnaise, lime, cheese and cilantro. We just added pasta, plus lots of green onion for bite. It's a macaroni salad that's anything but basic.

Related: Scrumptious Pasta Salad Recipes

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Greek to Me Tomato Salad

Greek to Me Tomato Salad
Credit: Blaine Moats
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Tuck grilled Halloumi cheese among ripe heirloom tomatoes. Scatter with quick-pickled red onion, oregano, pepper and olive oil. Dive in like it's the Aegean.

Related: Fresh Tomato Recipes You'll Love

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Grilled Watermelon and Arugula Salad

Grilled Watermelon and Arugula Salad
Credit: Brie Passano
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Two things make this grilled watermelon amazing. High heat draws out moisture and intensifies watermelon's sweetness, and the rub creates additional caramelization for even deeper flavor notes.

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Two-Bean Salad with Tarragon

Two-Bean Salad with Tarragon
Credit: Brie Passano
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Don't stop at beans. You'll want to use the lemony vinaigrette from this recipe all summer long on lettuce salads, asparagus or boiled baby potatoes.

Related: Garden-Fresh Vegetable Recipes

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Penne with Lentils and Feta

Penne with Lentils and Feta
Credit: Brie Passano
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Hearty and wholesome, this pasta salad is loaded with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, lentils, salty cheese and parsley, all cloaked in a light and bright red wine vinaigrette.

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Beet and Orange Salad With Walnuts

Beet and Orange Salad With Walnuts
Credit: Brie Passano
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Honey and orange juice boost the natural sweetness of beets. We couldn't resist adding goat cheese, but the salad's equally good without.

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Coconut Shrimp and Watermelon Salad

Coconut Shrimp and Watermelon Salad
Credit: Jay Wilde
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This fresh and flavorful salad is a perfect dinner for a hot night, especially with a glass of crisp white wine. Be sure to use unsweetened coconut for the best flavor.

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Basil Fruit Salad with Cottage Cheese

Basil Fruit Salad with Cottage Cheese
Credit: Brie Passano
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This salad is a sleeper hit. You may not have thought to put these ingredients together before now, but here's your new favorite lunch (or breakfast) meal.

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Unforbidden Fruit Salad

Unforbidden Fruit Salad
Credit: Blaine Moats
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Learn to love your melon by dousing it in lime juice, with zippy chilies, cilantro and crunchy pepitas. Can you eat it with your morning eggs? A bowl of yogurt? Fajitas? A beer? Yep.

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Green Bean Tabbouleh

Green Bean Tabbouleh on white plate
Credit: Blaine Moats
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This is a perfect summer salad to take to a picnic or potluck since it is best at room temperature.

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Greek Orzo Salad

Greek Orzo Salad
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Olives and feta give salty punch to this pasta salad from Surdyk's Liquor and Cheese Shop in Minneapolis.

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Farro and Olive Salad

Farro and Olive Salad
Credit: Blaine Moats
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This salad is a great barbecue side, or hearty enough for a stand-alone meal. At Kansas' Elderslie Farm, chef Katharine Elder likes to keep a big batch on hand to eat for lunch.

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Thai Beef and Noodle Salad

Thai Beef and Noodle Salad
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Lean flank steak, whole wheat pasta and crisp vegetables make this Asian-inspired salad a healthy choice. Ditching that time-consuming (and all-too-easy-to-forget) step of marinating the meat makes it genius.

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Bacon, Blue Cheese and Nectarine Salad

Bacon, Blue Cheese and Nectarine Salad
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Nectarines appear twice in this irresistible rainbow of a salad: sliced on top for pretty summer punch and pureed in the dressing for fruity tang and silky smoothness. (Note: The dressing can be made ahead and chilled for up to 3 hours; if possible, return the dressing to room temperature before serving.)

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Arugula Salad with Brioche Croutons

Arugula Salad with Brioche Croutons
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Any crouton is delicious, but a crouton made with buttery brioche? Divine. It's a luxe addition to this simple lemon-dressed salad from Epicure Catering in Michigan. (This recipe makes a generous amount of croutons; store extras in an airtight container for a day or two.)

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Greek Salad with Halloumi

Greek Salad with Halloumi on right side of white platter
Credit: Blaine Moats
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Halloumi is a salty Greek cheese that you can grill with delicious results--like a fried mozzarella stick that showed up at a barbecue. Find it at Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and some supermarkets. Try halloumi in our Pesto Veggie Gyros, too. 

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Quinoa Salad with Roasted Zucchini, Almonds and Feta

Quinoa Salad with Roasted Zucchini, Almonds and Feta
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You could make a meal of this dish: caramelized zucchini, crunchy almonds, salty cheese and hearty quinoa, all dressed in honey-basil vinaigrette. The recipe comes from Columbus, Ohio, chef Cara Mangini.

Related: Easy Zucchini Recipes

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BLT Salad

BLT Salad
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We took a summertime staple (a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich) and made it a main-dish salad. Creamy mustard dressing is the perfect topping.

Related: How to Cook Bacon Like a Pro

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Rice and Red Bean Salad

Rice and Red Bean Salad
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Chili powder and cumin flavor this hearty, nutritious Tex-Mex dish from The Spice House in Milwaukee.

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Boston Lettuce Stacks with Grilled Peaches, Feta and Pecans

Boston Lettuce Stacks with Grilled Peaches, Feta and Pecans
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This easy summer salad pairs the textures and flavors of buttery, slightly sweet and crisp Boston lettuce with grilled warm peaches and crunchy nuts.

Related: Our Best Sweet-and-Juicy Peach Recipes

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Watermelon, Feta and Mint Salad

Watermelon, Feta and Mint Salad
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Discover the savory potential of watermelon in this five-ingredient salad.

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Orange Tabbouleh

Orange Tabbouleh
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This hearty, healthy salad combines juicy fruit, flavorful fresh herbs and warm spices. Even people who are skeptical of the nutritious bulgur wheat will be surprised how much they like it.

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Creamy Spinach-Basil Pasta Salad

Creamy Spinach-Basil Pasta Salad
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Fresh basil in the dressing lends a hint of pesto-inspired sophistication to this mayo-rich pasta salad.

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Bavarian-Style Potato Salad

Bavarian-Style Potato Salad
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Serve this tangy vinegar-based potato salad with bratwurst and sauerkraut for a meal worthy of a German beer garden.

Related: Potato Salad Recipes Your Guests Will Love

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Broccoli Grape Salad

Broccoli Grape Salad
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Salty bacon flavors juicy grapes and crunchy broccoli. The classic potluck star comes from a South Dakota bed and breakfast.

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    1 of 29 Summer Chicken Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette
    2 of 29 Spinach-Farro Salad with Cherries
    3 of 29 Succotash Salad with Smoked Trout
    4 of 29 Peach Panzanella
    5 of 29 Mexican Street Corn Macaroni Salad
    6 of 29 Greek to Me Tomato Salad
    7 of 29 Grilled Watermelon and Arugula Salad
    8 of 29 Two-Bean Salad with Tarragon
    9 of 29 Penne with Lentils and Feta
    10 of 29 Beet and Orange Salad With Walnuts
    11 of 29 Coconut Shrimp and Watermelon Salad
    12 of 29 Basil Fruit Salad with Cottage Cheese
    13 of 29 Unforbidden Fruit Salad
    14 of 29 Green Bean Tabbouleh
    15 of 29 Greek Orzo Salad
    16 of 29 Farro and Olive Salad
    17 of 29 Thai Beef and Noodle Salad
    18 of 29 Bacon, Blue Cheese and Nectarine Salad
    19 of 29 Arugula Salad with Brioche Croutons
    20 of 29 Greek Salad with Halloumi
    21 of 29 Quinoa Salad with Roasted Zucchini, Almonds and Feta
    22 of 29 BLT Salad
    23 of 29 Rice and Red Bean Salad
    24 of 29 Boston Lettuce Stacks with Grilled Peaches, Feta and Pecans
    25 of 29 Watermelon, Feta and Mint Salad
    26 of 29 Orange Tabbouleh
    27 of 29 Creamy Spinach-Basil Pasta Salad
    28 of 29 Bavarian-Style Potato Salad
    29 of 29 Broccoli Grape Salad

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