Crunchy bite-sized pieces of fresh vegetables, herbs, and ham, combined with a light and creamy dressing, make this ham pasta salad a standout! Be the belle of the buffet or the big wig of the barbecue with a bowl of this elevated summer standard.

Ham Pasta Salad

I’m not sure about you, but I don’t want to spend a lot of time working in a steamy kitchen when it’s hot outside. But we all have to eat, so pasta salad often becomes my go-to in the summertime.

It only takes a few minutes to boil the pasta, and once you’ve drained it, all the hot work is done. Rinse that pasta in cool water, chop up some vegetables and ham, and stir it all together with dressing. If you ask me, meat, vegetables, and pasta equals a full meal.

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Chilled cubes of watermelon tossed with lemon juice, salt, and a hint of spice are topped with thin ribbons of basil in this watermelon basil salad. Whether you eat it as is or top it with goat cheese or feta, it is destined to be a surefire summer hit!

Watermelon Basil Salad

Packing a surprising amount of flavor, this light and refreshing summer salad is a perfect choice to accompany anything grilled. And since it’s grilling season, this is a salad recipe you want in your back pocket.

This is best the day it’s made, but is still very tasty if eaten within a day or two. Wait to top with cheese right before serving for the best results.

Watermelon salad is mercifully easy to make when you know how to cut watermelon. And if you don’t know, check out that link for easy step-by-step instructions.

Basil is such a great natural pairing with watermelon. Both are fragrant and floral but the basil brings a little peppery zing to complement the sweet melon.

You can choose to scatter a little feta or goat cheese on top of the salad for a little briny deliciousness just before serving, but that’s strictly optional. I love the creamy, saltiness with the sweet watermelon.

Watermelon salads go into heavy rotation around here when it’s wa

Bright and colorful, this flavorful Asian cabbage salad is full of freshness and crunch. You’re going to turn to this again and again during grilling season.

Asian Cabbage Salad

Different from the ever popular ramen cabbage salad that has crumbled ramen noodles in it, this is a fun variation on the classic. This multi-colored riff has no ramen, but still packs plenty of texture and fun.

Asian Coleslaw

This recipe makes use of classic Asian flavors to create a slaw that is terrific with a multitude of options.

I use this salad much as I would a standard coleslaw addition to almost any meal. It is an excellent accompaniment to grilled chicken, fish, pork, and beef.

But don’t stop there! It’s great with sub sandwiches or fried chicken or fish, too!

Cabbage Salad Recipe

To make this summer staple salad, you’ll need the following ingredients:

• Napa or green cabbage
• purple cabbage
• carrots
• green onions
• sliced almonds
• sesame seeds
• Sweet Sesame Dressing

The versatile sweet sesame dressing used is the same one that goes into our Asian Salmon Salad. You can even use some of it to marinate fish or chicken to grill to go with this salad!

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Al dente tiny pasta tossed with generous amounts of cooked shrimp, crunchy fresh vegetables, and a citrus-spiked creamy dressing all combine to make this shrimp pasta salad irresistible. It’s poised to become your new summer favorite!

Shrimp Pasta Salad

Shrimp and pasta go together like peas and carrots. They’re made for each other!

And this shrimp and pasta salad is a perfect example of that harmony. The creamy mayonnaise-based dressing has a pop of fresh lemon juice to complement the shrimp’s natural sweetness. The bell pepper, celery, and onion provide the textural variety and crunch every good pasta salad needs.

While we’re talking about the shrimp, this salad can use almost any variety and size of fully cooked shrimp. Because you’re chopping it into bite-sized pieces, it doesn’t matter whether you start with small, medium, or jumbo shrimp just so long as it’s cooked and chilled.

While you technically could use extra small or salad shrimp as well, I prefer not to. The texture and taste of the larger shrimp in this salad are much nicer. Extra small and salad shrimp tend to blend in, can sometimes be a bit tough, and often lack some of the flavor of the bigger sizes.

We do a lot of shrimp meals in our family. They’re quick cooking, convenient to keep on hand in the freezer, and fairly budget friendly!

Shrimp Quesadillas are a busy weeknight go-to because they come together so very quickly. Bacon Wrapped Shrimp Kabobs are another excellent summer meal option.

And shrimp doesn’t just have to be a dish at the party, it can be the party itself! Especially if we’re talking about a dish as special as Shrimp Boil!

Pasta Salad with Shrimp

To make shrimp pasta salad, you’ll need the following ing

With flavorful salmon nestled on a bed of baby greens, fresh herbs, glass noodles, avocado, crunchy cabbage and carrots, pickled broccoli and a to-die-for chili lime dressing, this Asian Salmon Salad is a showstopper.

This is a salad to get very excited for – just ask my friends and family. I’ve been shouting about it for months, and I’m thrilled to be sharing it with you at last.

Asian Salmon Salad

Yes, I did just call this salad exciting and I truly mean it. I challenge you not to fall head-over-heels for this colorful salad with a riot of textures and flavors.

The dish starts with a bed of baby arugula and spring mix. It is then topped with toothsome noodles, shredded carrot, thinly sliced red cabbage, pickled broccoli stems, fistfuls of torn fresh basil, cilantro, and mint, and toasted sesame seeds and tossed with the most insanely vibrant Thai chili lime dressing and crowned with roasted marinated salmon.

This salad is no side dish. It is an unapologetically main-dish salad worthy of the distinction. I’m not going to lie; it takes a couple of steps and some advanced planning to make this salad because of various components that need to rest overnight, but it is so worth it.

My friend and I tackled making this incredible-looking salad during a girls’ weekend after falling in love with the idea of it while looking through my copy of Mandy’s Gourmet Salads. You do need to start this at least one day before you plan to eat it because of the marinating and cooling time for the pickles and salmon, but I promise you won’t regret it!