Lemon Thyme and Ginger

Two Summer Salad Menu Ideas

No matter where you are on Independence Day, dinner needs some planning to make sure there is enough time afterwards to watch the fireworks.  Even if you are home for the holiday, it is possible to put together a summer holiday feast that makes everyone feel like they are on a vacation. With hot summer days and vacation dreams in mind, I developed two summer salad menus. One salad menu is focused around a vegetable and steak salad and a second salad menu is for a vegetarian meal. Both salad menus are perfect for 4th of July or any summer weekend at home or away.

One full meal is easily made by pairing several salads each with distinct and complimentary flavors. One perk for using a salad menu is, a good chunk of the work can easily get done in advance. Additionally, salads give you some flexibility in timing as they taste great either at room temperature or chilled.  At mealtime, all that is left are the final touches and adding fresh herbs and the dressing. Once done, you can relax and enjoy the company of your friends and family. 

Steak Summer Salad Menu

Appetizer

Fig and Prosciutto Salad

Main Course

Summer Vegetable and Steak Salad

Garden Vegetable Pasta Salad 

or 

Potato Salad with Sorrel Dressing

Dessert

Nectarine Blueberry Galette

or

Point Reyes Baby Blue Cheesecake with sliced Figs

 

Appetizer

 

Jamie Oliver refers to the Fig and Prosciutto Salad as the sexiest salad in the world. That may be true, but it is totally family friendly. Besides, wrapping a fig in prosciutto might be the only way you can get your child to eat a fig. It is a light and flavorful salad with mozzarella cheese squeezed in the middle of each fig with a drizzle of honey and lemon juice.  Also, fig and prosciutto salad is perfectly delicious and acceptable as a light dinner on those hot summer nights when you do not want to cook. Serve a green salad and a glass of chilled rosé and unwind.

Main Course

The main course for this summer salad menu is a steak dinner loaded with fresh vegetables. It is like two salads in one.  Summer Vegetable and Steak Salad is full of summer produce like green beans, grape tomatoes and peaches or nectarines and paired with grilled steak. Along with the vegetables the citrus vinaigrette makes the salad very refreshing. There are some spice notes in the citrus dressing because that is the way I like it. However, you can easily omit the sriracha if you prefer.

A creamy salad like Potato Salad with Sorrel Dressing pairs nicely with the green beans and grilled steak. Sorrel is difficult to find so substitute is with some lemon zest and juice. Serve the potato salad chilled.

If you do not want to make potato salad, an alternative is the Garden Vegetable Pasta Salad. It is a true work horse salad that everyone loves. It has the salty, creamy and fresh flavors scattered throughout the salad and satisfies those creamy cravings without being heavy.

Dessert

Galettes are really easy to make and always appreciated. I love mixing fruits together like Nectarine Blueberry Galette. For variety, you can substitute the blueberries with black cherries. Make the pie dough the night before and keep in the refrigerator, then assemble and bake the galette in the morning or early afternoon. You just want to make sure to give yourself plenty of time to allow for the galette to cool. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Another make ahead, and sophisticated dessert is sweet with a slightly savory bite from my favorite blue cheese, Point Reyes Baby Blue Cheesecakes. For a summer variation, garnish the cheesecakes with sliced figs or any summer fruit that pairs well with blue cheese. The blue cheese flavor is subtle, and well suited as either an appetizer or a dessert.

Vegetarian Summer Salad Menu

Appetizers

Muhammarra with herb pita chips

Blue cheese Dip with Caramelized Shallots

Main Course

Tortellini Salad with Basil Pesto

Green Bean Salad with Lemon Dressing

Leafy Green Salad with Lemon Cream Dressing

Dessert

Strawberry Basil No-churn Ice Cream with fresh Strawberries

and/or

Fudgy Brownies with Sea Salt and Caramel

 

Appetizers

Dips are easy to make with some dips, like these two, you can make in advance. Often, dips taste better given some time for the flavors to meld. Muhammara and Blue Cheese Dip with Caramelized Shallots are two of my favorite dips.

If you want something that is on the lighter side, make an artichoke or black olive tapenade and serve with cut up vegetables or crackers. Olive tapenade is delicious with goat cheese as well.

Main Course

For a vegetarian main course, pasta salad makes a great main course meal. Make my Tortellini with Basil Pesto recipe into a salad by rinsing the cooked tortellini under cold water to stop the cooking. Shake out any excess water and add the tortellini to a large mixing bowl along with the pesto and grape tomatoes. Omit the green beans because you will have them with the three bean salad. I prefer this salad at room temperature, but you can make this ahead then refrigerate it until time to serve. Here is a link for my pesto recipe. You will find a link for the pesto recipe with the tortellini recipe as well.

This is not your ordinary green bean salad. It is made with green beans, yellow wax beans and kidney beans, essentially it is a three bean salad. It is perfect for the summer or anytime you have vegetarian or vegan guests. The ginger in the lemon vinaigrette recipe does not pair well with the pesto so replace it with fresh basil or parsley. If you cannot find yellow wax beans, as they are not quite in season yet, substitute is with another legume like black beans or chick peas.

Dessert

Everyone loves ice cream and brownies and these recipes are real crowd pleaser. Strawberry Basil No-churn Ice Cream is delicious served alone or with some fudgy brownies with sea salt and caramel. This best brownie recipe ranks up there as one of the best I have ever had.

Lemon Cream Dressing

This recipe is from Joshua McFadden’s cookbook, Six Seasons.

Toss the green salad with any dressing you prefer, but since the green bean salad has a vinaigrette I thought it would be nice for something that was different yet compliment the other salads in the meal.  Despite the cream, Lemon Cream Dressing is very light. Infuse 4 smashed and peeled garlic cloves in a half cup (125 ml) of heavy cream for two hours in the refrigerator. Once the garlic is infused, remove the cloves and add a pinch of Kosher salt, several rounds of freshly ground black pepper, and zest from a quarter of a lemon. Whisk the cream. As soon as it starts to thicken add two tablespoons (30 ml) of lemon juice and 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of extra virgin olive oil. Continue to whisk the cream until the dressing is light and airy. You are not making full-out whipped cream, but one you can pour that has a light and creamy texture.

Final Thoughts

Each salad menu has unique and flavorful salads that compliment each other. They also create a balanced dinner filled with summer produce. The amount of  servings per salad is the same as the number of servings stated in the original recipe. Unless otherwise stated, each menu will feed a family of 4-5. Fortunately, each recipe is easily scaled up to serve any number of guests. Depending on how many guests you are planning for, you might need additional appetizers like guacamole, deviled eggs, or roasted shrimp cocktail, and desserts like Nifty Cake or peach sabayon.

Hope you get to see some fireworks. Have a delicious and happy Independence Day.

© 2018, Ginger Smith- Lemon Thyme and Ginger. All rights reserved.