Summer Salad
This salad is bursting with fresh flavors of veggies and fruits. Lemon dressing and pecan topping take this salad to the next level. This salad is my all-time favorite salad, and I can’t stop eating this, especially in the summers.
This summer salad recipe is inspired by the famous Panera Bread’s Lemon Poppy Seed salad. I have used paneer (a type of Indian cottage cheese) in place of chicken. Using Tofu works well for this recipe.
The dressing of this recipe is just lemon instead of lemon poppyseed. Most of the other ingredients remain the same.
This salad makes a great menu item for lunch parties, dinner, or to make on busy weeknights. Though the list of the ingredients seems elaborate, everything comes together quickly in ten minutes. I have used canned pineapple and mandarin oranges in this recipe. Berries taste the best with fresh ones. And it is not hard to find the perfectly juicy sweet berries in the summer months.
The dressing is a breeze to make and stores well in the refrigerator for more than a week in an airtight container.
PrintSummer Salad
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings
Description
This salad is bursting with fresh flavors of veggies and fruits. Lemon dressing and pecan topping take this salad to the next level. This salad is my all-time favorite salad, and I can’t stop eating this, especially in the summers.
Ingredients
Romaine Lettuce – 1 head (6 cups)
Strawberries- 3/4 cup
Blueberries- 3/4 cup
Pineapple- 3/4 cup
Mandarin Oranges- 3/4 cup
Protein:
Paneer or Tofu- 1 block (16 oz)(500 grams)
Oil- 1 Tbsp + 2 tsp
Salt- 1/2 tsp
Red Chili Flakes- 1/2 tsp
Oregano- 1 tsp
Cumin Powder- 1 tsp
Lemon Juice- 1 Tbsp
Lemon dressing:
Olive oil- 1/4 cup
White Vinegar- 1/4 cup
Lemon Juice- 1/4 cup
Salt- 1/4 tsp
Black Pepper- 1/4 tsp
Honey- 2 Tbsp
Topping:
Pecans- 1/4 cup
Sugar- 2 Tbsp
Instructions
1. Take one head of romaine lettuce and cut it into bite-size pieces. Add 3/4 cup of pineapple, 3/4 cup sliced strawberries, 3/4 cup of blueberries, and 3/4 cup of mandarin oranges.
2. Prepare the protein topping. Take 500 grams or 16 oz of paneer/tofu, and cut into 4-inch pieces. Add 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of chili flakes, 1 tsp of oregano, 1/2 tsp of cumin powder, 1 Tbsp of lemon juice, and mix well.
3. In a pan, take 2 tsp of oil and add the marinated paneer/tofu. Saute on both sides for about one minute on each side. Set it aside n a bowl until ready to use.
4. For the lemon dressing, take 1/4 cup of olive oil in a bowl, add 1/4 cup of white wine vinegar, 1/4 cup of lemon juice, 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of black pepper powder, 2 Tbsp of honey, and 1 tsp of mustard sauce. Mix everything well.
5. In a small pan, take 2 Tbsp of sugar and caramelize on a low to medium flame. This process should take less than 2 minutes. Turn the stove off, add 1.4 cups of pecans and mix well.
6. In a large salad bowl, take the romaine lettuce and add all the prepared fruits and caramelized pecans. Combine everything well.
7. In a serving bowl, add the mixed salad, prepared protein topping with paneer/tofu, and add the dressing just before serving.
Notes
Mixed greens, spinach, or any other variety of lettuce available works well in place of romaine lettuce.
Some of the fruits that go well with this recipe are mangoes, apples, pears, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, etc.
If you are not a vegetarian and want to replace the protein with chicken, follow the same method for marinating. Instead of a pan, chicken can be grilled or baked in the oven at 400 F for 30 minutes.
Lemon dressing stores well in the refrigerator for about two weeks.
- Prep Time: 15 mintes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Salads
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 142 Kcal
- Sugar: 13.12 g
- Sodium: 153 mg
- Fat: 8.02 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.038 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.031 g
- Trans Fat: 0.0004 g
- Carbohydrates: 16.17 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 3.46 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Keywords: summer salad, berries and paneer salad, easy party salad recipe, panera bread salad, vegetarian panera bread salad, easy summer salad recipe