Change up those traditional salads with these delicious, Mediterranean diet inspired, Fall Salads that you’ll be wanting all fall and winter long. Featuring lots of seasonal produce and full of flavor dressings.
Making Fall Salads with Seasonal Ingredients
It took me a long time to come to the realization that you can’t use the same produce in winter as you do in summer. Actually, let me correct myself a little bit. You can use the same produce but you shouldn’t. Have you ever had a tomato in January? They don’t even come close to the flavor of an August, vine ripened tomato.
Seasonal ingredients are the best for making salads. They are often more flavorful, fresher, and a better price. Plus it’s a great way to try new foods.
Check out this October Seasonal Produce Guide to find out what yummy fruits and veggies are in season this month.
Some of our personal favorite for salads include Brussels sprouts, pumpkin, and squash.
Tips for Building a Fall Salad
Fall is tricky when it comes to meals – the days are colder and seem busier. We love creating salads that are hearty, have different textures and don’t remind you of summer. Sorry cucumbers, you are outta here.
Some other tips we love when building fall salads –
- Try a new dressing, like this Pomegranate Salad Dressing to add new flavors
- Switch up your traditional lettuce and try heartier greens like spinach, kale, Swiss chard or mustard greens
- Adding roasted veggies bring a whole new flavor to salads. These Greek Roasted Vegetables are a current favorite
- Add texture with nuts and seeds like pistachios, walnuts, sunflower seeds or pepitas
- Fall fruits like grapes, pomegranates, cranberries, or persimmons add flavor, color and sweetness
- Experiment with herbs and spices for warmth and flavor. We love rosemary garlic infused olive oil, curry dressings and sumac
8 Fall Salads We Love
We rounded up 8 of our favorite fall flavored salads. These are tried and true recipes that we make personally over and over again.
Winter Apple Brussels Sprouts Salad
This salad has it all – fall crisp apples, almonds for crunch, shaved Brussels sprouts in place of lettuce and an amazing Pomegranate Dressing. The perfect side for any fall dinner or a lighter lunch.
Apple Almond Spinach Salad with Sumac Dressing
This salad seems simple – apples, almonds and spinach. The key is the sumac dressing. It adds so much flavor in a simple vinaigrette.
Vibrant Raspberry Walnut Salad
This beautiful salad offers one of fall’s greatest combo’s, berries and walnuts. We served this last year for Thanksgiving and it was a hit. Easy to make and every bite is bursting with flavor.
Fall Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
Roasted veggies are the perfect addition to fall salads. They are a warmth and allows you to use heartier vegetables – like sweet potatoes and squash. This salad uses curry and turmeric to flavor the veggies and wild rice for heartiness.
Mediterranean Tuna Pasta Salad
While this isn’t a traditional “salad”, it has the word in it’s name so we are going with it. This hearty pasta salad features canned tuna, sun dried tomatoes and olives. It makes a fantastic lunch or works great as a soup and salad dinner combo.
Rosemary Chicken Salad
Chicken Salad always reminds me of fall. It’s hearty and filling with crunchy texture thanks to walnuts and crisp apples. This lighter version features creamy Greek yogurt in place of mayo. I love making a batch of this for quick fall lunches.
Chopped Kale Salad
This gorgeous salad works great for holiday parties, thanks to the gem colored pomegranate seeds. The key is to finely chop the kale so it’s not so fibrous when eating.
Mediterranean Bagged Salad
This is probably one of my most used recipes, at least in my house. Take a simple bagged salad (quick, convenient) and add some specific ingredients to create a well balanced, filling meal. Perfect when time is short!
Homemade Dressing Ideas
No salad is complete without a delicious dressing. If you are looking to make your own at home, here are some of our personal favorites.
More Fall Recipe Ideas
Check out these other great fall recipe collections –
- 11 of our Favorite Fall Family Dinners
- Fall Cheese Board
- Thanksgiving Side Dishes for Small Gatherings
