Healthy Salad Recipes

Roasted Sweet Potato Kale Salad with Quinoa is a nutrient-dense meal for when you’re craving something clean, or a side dish for the family.

Cod salad with basil-walnut pesto is so easy to make and a quick and delicious dinner that can be prepared any night of the week. This healthy recipe is all-things low-carb, low-FODMAP, paleo, keto, and Whole30.

As we all know, I’m a major salmon lover. Just check out my extensive salmon archives! 

In spite of the fact that I can put my Teriyaki Salmon Bowls, Mediterranean Salmon, and Pesto Salmon in Parchment Paper on repeat over and over, I’ve made it my mission to branch out to the other fishies.

Enter: Cod.

It’s no salmon, but it’ll do 😉

What I love about cod is it absorbs flavor of marinades really well, as it has a subtle, buttery flavor. For this recipe, I whipped up an easy coconut milk-based marinade using full-fat canned coconut milk, fresh basil, ginger, and lemongrass.

The result is magnificent! If you have your own favorite marinade, you can always whip that up instead, or just drizzle the fish with some avocado oil and lemon juice and a sprinkle of sea salt and call it bueno.

Serving the cod salad  with cherry tomatoes, avocado, and roasted pumpkin seeds, along with a homemade basil-walnut pesto as the dressing takes this fishuation (<- get it? fish…situation…buhdumching…??) up another 17k notches.

So let’s do it already!

Light and healthy Paleo Chinese Chicken Salad with sesame ginger dressing soy-free, sugar-free, canola oil-free. Refreshing and nutritious!

A quick, easy and filling spinach salad recipe with baked chicken, radishes, cucumber, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, carrot and feta. This low-FODMAP salad is a gut-friendly healthy meal.

Nutritious, filling roasted sweet potato kale salad with avocado, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, and a 6-minute egg. A delicious vegetarian dinner recipe!

Roasted carrot spinach salad with feta and roasted pumpkin seeds make for a hearty salad that can be enjoyed as a light main dish or side dish. This clean meal is primal and keto for those looking for low-carb meal options.

Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad with roasted sweet potato, carrots, butternut squash, walnuts, and maple-cider vinaigrette. This colorful, hearty salad is a marvelous side dish for fall and winter.

A warm  shredded brussel sprouts salad with kale, quinoa, crispy bacon, avocado, pear, walnuts, and a warm bacon-cider vinaigrette. This nutritious salad is inviting during the cold weather months.

I created this recipe for The California Avocado Commission. You can skip to the recipe HERE or continue reading.

How do you feel about warm salads? I’ve gotta say, I absolutely love them!

If you’re a salad fiend, you may have noticed raw vegetables can be a bit tough on your digestive system. All it takes is a quick steam or saute to soften up the fibers so that your GI tract processes them easier so that they don’t cause GI upset and the nutrients are better absorbed.

I find lightly sauteed hearty greens like kale and brussel sprouts make for a filling salad that is easy on the digestive system and so cozy and inviting during the fall and winter months. With fall rapidly approaching, I’ll be whipping up warm salads regularly for lunches and dinners.

This salad is loaded with goodies! Shredded brussels sprouts, kale, quinoa, California avocado, sliced pears, and toasted walnuts make up this nutritious texturally-pleasing dish. The whole thing is tied together with a simple bacon-cider vinaigrette for a straightforward yet comforting and nourishing meal.

Essentially, it checks all the boxes!

How do you like your hamburgers? These burger bowls with chipotle sauce, mixed greens, sauerkraut, pickled beets, carrot, and avocado are a colorful, healthful, clean approach to your classic burger. Change it up with your favorite bowl add-ins!

Burgers are a fairly frequent event in my household, although my approach isn’t quite traditional. While I’m definitely up for a gluten-free bun from time to time, I actually prefer my burger in a bowl with all sorts of other goodies, or in a lettuce wrap with a side of Crispy Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Dipping Sauce.

For this particular burger bowl, I used mixed greens, pickled beets and sauerkraut (both store-bought, but you can easily make your own at home!), carrots, avocado, green onion, and those sweet potato fries with a drizzle of chipotle sauce. This bowl is so packed with flair and flavor, you’ll want to put it on repeat.

Light, flavorful pesto quinoa salad with avocado, walnuts, feta cheese, asparagus, and kale. This nutrient-packed dish is perfect for packing up and taking for lunches or to barbecues and picnics.

Light and flavorful quinoa salad with mango, edamame, bell pepper, flaked coconut, roasted almonds, and basil. This super nutritious salad is perfect for summer picnics and barbecues!

Fresh, vibrant California Cobb Salad with a spicy chipotle avocado ranch dressing. Loaded with protein and fresh veggies for a filling meal.

Crunchy superfood hormone-supporting kale and quinoa salad with raw walnuts, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, dried cranberries and apple. This super simple, nutrient-packed salad is perfect for putting on repeat throughout the week. Make it in big batches and take it to work!   One of the biggest topics in the health community today is hormone …

Easy tuna salad made with three basic ingredients. This mayo-free tuna salad recipe takes less than 5 minutes to make, is packed with healthy fats and protein, and is perfect for work lunches. I almost didn’t post this recipe on account of the fact it’s so easy. After a little back and forth, I reasoned …

Fresh, vibrant winter roasted beet salad with citrus, pistachios, hemp seeds, and avocado. This vitamin-packed salad will leave you feeling energized and glowy.