The Salad You'll Make All Summer

salad in white striped bowl.jpg

This is the season for COLOUR and CRUNCH! With gardens, stores and markets bursting with fresh, seasonal food this is the best time to find ingredients to toss together for an easy, delicious and colourful dish. This salad is great as a side dish, but you can easily add something hearty to make it a meal.


Here are some simple tips for getting kids involved and excited about making and eating salad:

  • Invite kids to pick out a food in their favourite colour to include. If you can't take them shopping, let them pick something from photos in the grocery store flyer.

  • Read flyers together and notice which foods are local. Talk about what grows near you. These items tend to be on special, so they'll help you stay on budget too!

  • Little hands can help tear lettuce, cut soft foods with a child-safe knife, or break apart veggies like cauliflower and broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Encourage your little chefs to taste as they go!

  • Invite kids to think of the salad as a work of art - think about colours, shapes and textures, and build it to appeal to their senses! Find a fun or colourful platter or bowl to serve it in.

  • Let kids think of “add-in’s” to make the salad their own. Try croutons, nuts or seeds, dried fruit, cooked chickpeas or beans, diced ham, chicken or grated cheese. Anything goes! See what original flavour combos your kids come up with.

  • You don't always have to start with lettuce as the base for your salad. Change things up and just use lots of chopped veggies, or use cooked grains or pasta as the base.

Easy Dressing Ideas:

  • Drizzle your salad with olive oil and the juice of half a lemon and sprinkle it with salt & pepper. Toss it all together right in the bowl!

  • Make a simple vinaigrette by adding the following to a jar. Let your kids shake it up!

    • 3/4 cup oil (olive, canola or any neutral oil)

    • 1/4 cup vinegar (regular is great, but try red wine or raspberry vinegar!)

    • 1/2 teaspoon mustard (Dijon, powdered or whatever you have on hand!)

    • 1/2 teaspoon salt

    • 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

  • Bottled Dressing - this is always a simple and convenient option! Try some different types and compare the flavours.

Snap a photo of your Rainbow Salad creation and share it on social media! Don’t forget to tag us @rainbowplate and #myrainbowplate

Enjoy! 🌈

Janet Nezon1 Comment