Best Summer Salads

With the hundreds of wonderful things that can be said of summer, there are hundreds of converse statements that can be said of the hot, sticky season.

For starters, summer can drain your energy if you don't stay cool and it's easy to fall into poor eating habits when it is hot and you don't feel like spending hours in an even hotter kitchen.

Therefore, salads can be an easy go-to for any summer evening, barbeque, picnic or other outing where you want something good to eat without expunging any more energy than you have to. These are some extremely simple salad ideas that take less than 30 minutes and all ingredients can be found easily at any grocery store. Many of these ideas call for very similar ingredients. This makes for an easier shopping trip and multiple ideas to use throughout the week.

Pasta and Pepperoni Salad
Store List: 1 box of bowtie pasta (or any pasta you like), one package of pepperoni slices (or salami - whatever you prefer), mozzarella cheese, Italian dressing, spinach leaves, tomatoes
Time: 30 minutes
What to Do: Heat a pot of water until it is boiling. When the water is boiling, put in your bowtie pasta. As the pasta is heating up, slice up your mozzarella cheese (sliced), pepperoni (halved) and tomatoes (sliced). Also, take the time to wash your spinach leaves (if they didn't already come washed). When the pasta is done cooking (around 10 minutes), drain and run under cold water. Throw all of your ingredients in a serving dish with the Italian dressing. If you want to skip the dressing, just mix some extra virgin olive oil and sea salt in the bowl of ingredients. This tastes great as a stand alone meal with a side of toasted garlic bread.

Colorful Veggie Salad
Store List: Green and red bell peppers, yellow zucchini, tomatoes, sea salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice
Time: 30 minutes
What to Do: Slice your bell peppers, zucchini and tomatoes. Toss all of your vegetables with the salt, pepper and olive oil. Then throw everything on the grill (or a skillet) for about five minutes on each side. Then put all of your ingredients in a serving dish and add a little bit of lemon juice for some tangy taste. I think this a really great salad to serve at a barbeque where you already have the grill out and heated and it goes well with burgers.

Bleu Cheese and Walnut Salad
Store List: 1 bag of walnut halves, block of bleu cheese, romaine lettuce, olive oil vinaigrette (try Newman's Own dressing)
Time: 15 minutes
What to Do: Clean your lettuce and then pat dry. Make sure the lettuce is entirely dry before chopping it up. Once that is done, place the lettuce in a serving dish. Crumble bits of blue cheese with your fingers into the serving dish. With the walnuts, melt a small dab of butter on a skillet. Then put toast the walnuts on the skillet for a couple of minutes before adding them to your salad. Mix your salad with the vinaigrette and you are good to go. Serve with some toasted sourdough bread as a nice lunch to eat outside on the patio.

Tomato Slice Salad
Store List: Steak tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil and mozzarella
Time: 10 minutes
What to Do: Slice your steak tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. Arrange on a serving platter alternating the tomato slices and cheese. Then drizzle with the olive oil. You can use spinach leaves as a garnish. This is a very simple side dish to serve with sandwiches or burgers for a picnic or barbeque.

Tangy Shrimp Salad
Store List: Shrimp (pre-cooked makes your life easier), spring mix of lettuce (comes pre-packed with radicchio, spinach, greens and baby lettuce), sea salt, pepper, 2 limes (or lime juice)
Time: 20 minutes
What to Do: Heat a skillet (or grilling is tastier) adding a dime-size amount of olive oil to the pan. When the pan is hot, place your shrimp down. (If your purchased raw, you'll want to de-vein and pull off the tails). Heat each side for about three minutes.

In a serving dish, empty the contents of your spring mix, place your cooked shrimp into the bowl, and sprinkle some sea salt, pepper and lime juice. Mix your ingredients and serve as a great side salad dish to a barbeque.

Corn Salad
Store List: 2 cans of corn (or you can use fresh; it just takes more time), one bag of pine nuts, mozzarella cheese, Italian dressing
Time: 20 Minutes
What to Do: Drain your corn and place the corn in a serving dish. Heat a skillet on low heat with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil. When the pan is hot, place the pine nuts on the skillet and toast them for a few minutes. When that's done, mix the pine nuts with the corn, crumbled mozzarella and the Italian dressing. This can be served cold or hot and is great for a picnic with some turkey sandwiches served on crusty French bread rolls.

Iceberg Chicken Salad
Store List: 1 head of Iceberg lettuce, chicken breasts, salt, pepper, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, olive oil
Time: 30 minutes
What to Do: Heat a dish of water to boiling. When the water starts boiling, place your chicken breasts in the water with some salt and pepper sprinkled in. Cook the chicken for about 10 minutes (and always test the chicken to make sure it's cooked thoroughly by cutting it in the center). While the chicken is cooking, either cut or tear the iceberg lettuce into pieces.

For the dressing, place half a cup of olive oil in a small bowl. Then add the Dijon mustard and lemon juice to taste, adding a tablespoon of each until you've reached the desired taste you want.

When the chicken is done cooking, allow it to cool before tearing the chicken into bite-size strips. Add the chicken to the lettuce and then toss with your dressing. This salad is good as its own meal, and I love the tanginess that the lemon adds to the dressing.