Welcome to Salad Club. The first rule of Salad Club is: you do not talk about Salad Club.

….Sorry, couldn’t help but throw out a Fight Club reference but let me assure you: Salad Club is something I definitely want to talk about today!

What is Salad Club, exactly?

Well, when I used to work downtown, my officemates and I would take turns bringing in a week’s supply of fresh, flavourful ingredients so we could quickly and easily whip together a salad at lunchtime.

My colleagues started Salad Club as a great way to promote health and wellness in the office. I joined because dining out every day was getting pretty pricey and it took the hassle out of trying to make a lunch each morning (and if you read my post on make-ahead breakfast recipes, you’ll know being organized in the AM is not my jam).

Fast forward a few years and I’m now at home with the kids (as many of us are, these days). This winter-like April weather combined with social distancing has been bringing me down a bit and I’ve been making a fewwwwwww too many subpar sandwiches, so thought I’d punch up our lunchtime routine by reintroducing the club.

How To Start Doing Your Own Salad Club

I think the key part of making Salad Club a success is ensuring your fridge is stocked with delicious and exciting ingredients that will keep your interest piqued.

Each week I change up what I purchase, but always ensure I have a few items from the following categories in my pantry and washed, chopped and ready-to-go in my fridge (unless it browns quickly, like apples or pears):

Greens: like baby spinach, romaine lettuce, arugula, red leaf lettuce, iceberg lettuce or shredded cabbage

Protein: like Lilydale® Oven Roasted Chicken Breast Strips, hard-boiled eggs, Lilydale® Oven Roasted Turkey Breast Strips, cubed ham, chickpeas, black beans or Lilydale Oven Roasted Carved Turkey Breast slices

Crunch: like fresh cucumber, broccoli, sprouts, peppers, onions, tomatoes, grated carrots, radishes, apple, pear or canned corn

Cheese: like shredded cheddar, crumbled feta, goat cheese or cubed swiss

Some fun toppings: like seeds, nuts, fresh or dried fruit, pickled beets, dried edamame, pickled asparagus or marinated artichokes

Dressings: I consistently keep my fridge stocked with Italian, Ranch and Caesar dressings and always have olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette in my pantry. But I also make a different, fresh dressing each week (and have included a recipe below)!

Making Your Salad

For the most part I’ll just whip together a quick salad each day with whatever ingredients look most appealing. However, I also find it super helpful to keep a few salad recipes on-hand.

Here are some salads I made last week that I highly recommend:

Turkey, Pear and Cranberry Salad

In a small bowl, toss together some:

• Mixed field greens
• Sliced Bartlett pear
• Dried cranberries
• Candied walnuts
• Sunflower seeds
• Shredded parmesan cheese
• Honey mustard vinaigrette
  

Top with Lilydale® Oven Roasted Carved Turkey Breast slices, sprinkle with a bit more shredded parmesan cheese and enjoy.

To Make Candied Walnuts:

Add 1 cup chopped walnuts, 1 tbsp butter and ¼ cup sugar to a skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for five minutes until the nuts are fully coated and the sugar is melted. Transfer onto a sheet of parchment paper, separate the nuts, and cool for five minutes or until the coating hardens. Also – wash your skillet stat so the sugar doesn’t harden!

To make Honey Mustard Vinaigrette, combine: 

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 1/2 tbsp garlic balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp grated shallot
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 pinch each sea salt and black pepper

Tex Mex Chicken Taco Salad

In a small bowl, toss together some:

• Shredded lettuce
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Sliced grape tomatoes
• Canned black beans
• Canned corn
• Diced avocado
• Diced green onion
• Crushed corn tortilla chips
• Dressing made by combining 1 part ranch with 1 part salsa

Top with Lilydale® Oven Roasted Chicken Breast Strips, sprinkled with Tex Mex seasoning, as well as sour cream, and a bit more cheese and green onion.

Turkey Rainbow Salad

Over a bed of lettuce, layer sliced:

• Cucumber
• Grape tomatoes
• Green pepper
• Lilydale® Oven Roasted Turkey Breast Strips
• Hard boiled egg
• Grated cheddar cheese

Drizzle with your favourite dressing (I opted for Dill Ranch) and enjoy!

A big thank you to Lilydale® for sponsoring this post (and for making delicious poultry products that are the perfect protein option for Salad Club). If you’re looking for more salad ideas, I highly suggest popping over to check out Lilydale’s recipes on their website. In particular, they have an Asian Turkey Slaw Salad and a Turkey Bacon Caesar Salad with Avocado Dressing  that sound amazing!

Have fun setting up your Salad Club – wherever it may be! And, as always, I’m happy to answer any questions in the comments below.

Xo Holly Hunka

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