Meet my go-to side salad recipe. I hope it becomes yours, too. This simple salad features fresh arugula and the world’s easiest homemade balsamic salad dressing.

This salad truly could not be more easy to make. In fact, it’s so easy that I’ve hesitated to share it with you. It’s hardly a recipe, but one that I make constantly. It’s about time that I bring this method to your attention, you say?

Side salads should be easy to prepare, and this one is so delicious that it doesn’t taste like an afterthought. It goes with just about everything—think Italian entrées like lasagna, sandwiches, scrambled eggs, and even holiday meals.

You can use this salad formula with any type of leafy green, but arugula is my favorite. You’ll eat more healthy greens if you keep this recipe in your back pocket. Here we go!

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This roasted beet salad with greens is exactly what I’m craving right now. It’s hearty, fresh and spring-y, which is perfect as the weather turns from downright arctic to patio-worthy. Cookie and I couldn’t be more excited about the warmer temperatures and sunnier days! I bet you can relate.

This salad was inspired by the beet salads at my favorite local French restaurants, Westport Café and French Market. Over the past year, I’ve really missed sipping wine in their establishments and soaking up their vibes. You should know that I’m constantly daydreaming of a French vacation.

Both restaurants offer beet salads with pistachios and goat cheese, yet they each have their own unique spin on the combination. I always order the beet salad and French fries, naturally!

This recipe incorporates my go-to method for roasting beets, which yields amazing flavor. I used arugula as the base, which contrasts nicely with the earthy flavor of the beets.

Then I added goat cheese and pistachios, plus some radish and green onion for extra freshness and some crunch. The zippy, Dijon-forward vinaigrette brings it all together. Serve this salad as a side dish or enjoy a large portion for a satisfying but light dinner.

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Have you made this salad before, by chance? I pulled this recipe from the archives and updated the photos to catch your eye. This stunner just might steal the show at your Thanksgiving feast, and for good reason. Glittering pomegranate arils and golden squash taste just as good as they look.

Delicata squash is a lovely winter squash. It’s unique because its skin is so, well, delicate that you don’t need to peel it before roasting. The maple-balsamic dressing, arugula, pomegranate and goat cheese go great with the squash, of course, but also with apples and pears. If your oven is full, try sliced fruit instead, or simply roast the squash the day before.

When I revisit older blog posts, I’m always amazed by the parallels in my life over the years and the seasons. When I originally shared this post seven years ago, I was dreaming of a better living/work space. Since that time, I’ve upgraded from my tiny apartment to a little rent house where I made the cookbook, then to a new apartment with a functional kitchen. Then we got married and I moved into my husband’s cozy home, which we’ve outgrown.

We’re actually in the process of purchasing our dream home now. It’s everything we could ever hope for, including a recently renovated kitchen that’s so pretty, I can hardly stand it. We’ll move in time for Christmas and I’m looking forward to setting up our tree and sitting by the fireplace.

To be honest, all I really care about now is keeping Cookie healthy, but our new home is a bright ending to an acutely difficult year. I’ve left my original sentiments below just to show the hard work it took to get here. I hope you are staying well and cozy out there.

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We have a surplus of tomatoes this summer, and it’s glorious. I dreamed up this simple tomato salad recipe to make use of the excess. I simply sliced ripe tomatoes into bite-sized pieces, then I added some crisp red onion, lots of fresh basil, and drizzled it all with olive oil and good balsamic vinegar.

The end result is so delicious! This salad really lets raw, peak-season tomatoes shine. The recipe is also quite versatile, so you’ll never tire of it. Try adding some cucumber, mozzarella, avocado, arugula or even peaches.

Serve this tomato salad as a fresh, healthy side salad to any summer meal. It’s best when it’s freshly made, so I recommend cutting the recipe in half if you’re not serving a crowd.

I grew heirloom tomatoes from seed for the first time this spring. It was a fun process that proved easier than expected. In fact, I underestimated how many of the seeds would sprout. I grew so many tomato plants that we filled our family’s three garden plots and passed along the extra to friends.

Strangely enough, our growing tomato plants have provided a sense of continuity and hope during a tumultuous year. I’ll do it all again next spring, but maybe leave some room for more peppers and cucumbers. Or maybe I need a bigger garden plot. I think I’m hooked!

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Have you had your fair share of peaches this summer? I certainly have not. I’m remedying that with my friend Erin Clarke’s vibrant peach, avocado and arugula salad. Erin rounds out the flavors with salty gorgonzola cheese, crisp toasted almonds, and a zippy lemon dressing.

This simple summer salad is more than the sum of its parts. It’s a combination I wouldn’t have come up with on my own, and it’s so lovely. I couldn’t stop going back for more.

Perhaps you know Erin from her blog, Well Plated. Erin has been working hard on her first cookbook for several years now, and I’m so excited to share that it’s finally here! The Well Plated Cookbook (affiliate link) offers over 130 fast, healthy recipes you’ll want to eat.

I found this colorful salad on page 116, titled, “Book Club Salad (A Great, Green Party Salad).” Erin’s headnotes are witty, warm and encouraging, just like she is in real life. Here’s what she had to say about this recipe:

“My friend Erika once brought this salad to our monthly book club, and now, five years later, we still won’t let her bring anything else. We refer to it as ‘The Salad,’ and its presence at the table is more mandatory than actually reading the book. This stellar green salad is sized for a crowd, tastes better than any salad I’ve eaten in a restaurant, and is beautiful and adaptable for the seasons…”

She inspired me not only to make ‘The Salad,’ but to join a book club when we’re able to get together again. In the meantime, this salad recipe is easily halved and perfectly suited for any summer dinner.

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Some of my recipes start off with a strong concept or challenge, while others are designed to satisfy a craving. This lentil salad falls into the latter camp. It’s exactly what I’ve been craving lately.

This salad is tangy, crisp-tender, a little spicy, and quite satisfying. The earthy lentils and carrots ground the more bold flavors, so they’re not too overwhelming.

Dill, tahini and pepperoncini peppers aren’t everyone’s favorite ingredients, I know. I love them—the more, the better. If you’re not a fan, you’ll find some options to change up the recipe in the notes.

Better yet, try my Greek lentil salad with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, or my lemony lentil and chickpea salad with mint. Those are both safer bets!

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Would you look at those colors?! This roasted beet side dish is the prettiest recipe I’ve made in a long time, and the leftovers look like an abstract Easter basket.

This recipe comes from a new cookbook called Eat What You Want by Gaby Dalkin. You may know Gaby from her blog, What’s Gaby Cooking. I love Gaby’s fresh, California-style cooking and boundless enthusiasm for all things food-related!

The funny thing is that I’ve never met Gaby in person, but I feel like I know her after watching her on Instagram over the years. We share an affinity for fresh herbs and flaky sea salt, and I turn to her blog and cookbook for inspiration often. When she offered to send me a copy of her cookbook, I said yes, of course.

Her newest book features “125 recipes for real life” and I had a hard time choosing just one to share with you. I’ve been on a beet kick lately, so beets won the draw. This recipe also gave me an excuse to make Gaby’s go-to basil vinaigrette, which I’ve been meaning to try for ages.

This dish features roasted beets over thick yogurt (I used Siggi’s “skyr” instead of labneh), with fresh basil vinaigrette, avocado wedges, and a heavy sprinkling of fresh herbs. Even my husband, who’s not a fan of beets, went back for more.

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This green goddess dressing is exactly what we need right now. It’s creamy, tangy, and fully loaded with fresh, herbal flavor. I’ve savored it by the spoonful while imagining sunny days ahead.

The Green Goddess is going to carry us through to spring. We’re going to make it. I can feel it.

I put some soup recipe development on hold when I finalized this dressing. I’ll figure it out soon enough (hint: it’s also green). I’m too busy drizzling this versatile dressing over anything and everything.

The funny thing about this green goddess dressing recipe is that it’s so very simple. I tried adding lemon juice and olive oil, and they only distracted from the beautiful combination of good Greek yogurt and fresh herbs.

In fact, you can use any combination of fresh herbs for this recipe. That leftover parsley and cilantro in the fridge? Let’s use ’em up.

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Ginger lovers, this salad dressing is for you! It’s warming and bright, but not too fiery. I’m trying to eat more greens between the holidays, so it seemed like the perfect time to share.

This salad dressing recipe is easy to whip up and keeps for a week or longer in the fridge. You’ll need olive oil, apple cider vinegar, a touch of maple syrup, and fresh ginger.

The flavors in this ginger dressing play so well with this season’s fresh produce—think pears or apples, pomegranate, and roasted sweet potato or butternut. Feta or goat cheese, pecans or pepitas would all be nice accents. I can’t think of a green that wouldn’t benefit from a drizzle of it.

You’ve perhaps seen this dressing in my sweet potato, arugula and wild rice salad and pomegranate and pear salad, which are two of my favorite hearty winter salads. If you’re looking for a gingery dressing that would complement a meal with Asian flavors, I’d recommend trying my carrot ginger dressing instead. Please let me know how you like this dressing in the comments!

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Healthy, attainable, feel-good recipes—those are my favorite. Take this simple green salad, which has been my go-to holiday salad for five years now.

I’ve brought it to too many Friendsgivings to count, and my family has enjoyed it at Thanksgiving as well. It’s beautiful, easy to make, and a guaranteed crowd pleaser.

This salad features fresh spring greens, tart Granny Smith apple, sweet dried cranberries and creamy goat cheese, tossed in a simple apple cider vinaigrette (recipe included).

I usually try to outdo myself when it comes to salads, but I kept this one simple. It’s the perfect side salad for all of your cool-weather meals.

Make it for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any meal in between!

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