Every night I make a side salad for my family to eat before dinner.  We generally have one about 15-20 minutes before we eat our dinner.  I try to mix them up so that they are a bit different each night so no one gets bored with the same old salad.

Now that I have everything set up in my refrigerator to grab each night it take less than 5 minutes to make four salads, each a bit different as my son does not like nuts and my daughter does not like onions, and you can pack your lunch for the next day too if you want to add a salad to lunches!

Here are some things we incorporate into our salads:

Greens:

• Baby Spinach
• Iceberg Lettuce (this is where my family started and now they will eat just about anything)
• Romaine
• Arugula
• Mixed Greens such as Mache, Mizuna and Frisee
• Kale, (tough stems removed)

Crunch and Color:

• Sliced Peppers – Red, Green, Yellow and Orange
• Cucumbers
• Carrot slices
• Thinly sliced red cabbage
• Radishes
• Pea Pods
• Red Onions
• Sweet Vidalia Onions
• Mushrooms
• Celery
• Broccoli Florets

Fruits:

• Diced Apples
• Sliced Strawberries
• Diced Pears
• Avocado slices

Cheese/Nuts/Others (a little goes a long way):

• Feta
• Sharp Cheddar
• Parmesan
• Blue Cheese Crumbles
• Almonds
• Cashews
• Sunflower Seeds
• Pepitas
• Peanuts
• Chow Mein Noodles
• Croutons
• Craisins

These lists are just the beginning.  You can mix and match as your family likes.  Try different homemade dressings, other fruits and vegetables.  What are you going to add to your salads?