This past week I decided to challenge myself with making a different salad every day for lunch. Pre-quarantine I rarely spent much time on my lunch. Most days I would grab a smoothie, couple pieces of turkey, cheese stick and/or an avocado. That menu doesn’t really work for my husband and my boys, so I’ve had to change things up a bit.

A salad is healthy, easy to make, and allows me to make use of our leftovers. You can’t mess a salad up and can throw together something great with whatever you have on hand. All you really need is a protein, greens, a few toppings and a dressing. I often roast extra vegetables or grill extra protein when I make dinner so I have some for salads the next day. Here is a list of ideas you can stock your fridge and pantry with to keep your menu from getting boring.

Different types of lettuces: Spinach, romaine, butter, and arugula

Herbs: mint, dill, basil

Nuts for crunch: pine nuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pecans, pistachios

Dried fruit: cherries and cranberries

Cheese: cheddar, blue cheese goat cheese, feta and parmesan

Raw veggies: Peppers, cucumbers, carrots, beets, zucchini, tomatoes, avocado, fennel

Fruit: strawberries, apples and blueberries, grapefruit

Jars of olives, peppers, artichoke hearts, hearts of palm

Cans of tuna

Pickled red onions

Any roasted veggie: butternut squash, brussel sprouts, carrots, beets

Beans: chick peas, navy, chickpeas

Protein: rotisserie chicken, anything grilled, tuna, turkey, shrimp

For a dressing I make a vinaigrette with a base of lemon juice, tablespoon of dijon mustard, EVOO and a vinegar of choice. Balsamic, champagne, rice wine or sherry vinegar all work well dependent on what style of salad you plan to make. Throw in a minced shallot, honey, or herbs to mix it up a bit. The three salads I made last week are below. I post a photo with ingredient list on my Instagram stories every day. Hope you will follow along!

Arugula, Spinach, Romaine, Mint, Tuna, Dried Cherries, Artichoke Hearts, Walnuts, Parmesan, Champagne Vinaigrette 

Spinach, Dill, Roasted Beets, Carrots, Couscous, Feta, Red Wine Vinaigrette 

Spinach, Romaine, Flank Steak, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Pecans, Blue Cheese, Chimichurri Vinaigrette