Recipe report: Summer salads

Combine hot weather with a greater abundance and variety of produce, and you have the perfect storm for menuing fresh, seasonal salads. The recipes here range from light, refreshing starters to entree salads for heartier appetites.

Head chef Steve Lindner of Zone Manhattan elevates a main dish salad by using lobster as the protein and adding apricots, dandelion greens and fava beans for seasonality and color. The recipe packs in lots of nutrition—along with a mix of surprising ingredients.

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Chef Gerald Prete says this play on a caprese salad is the university’s most popular salad. “It is easy to make, and is very refreshing,” Prete says. “This salad is very bright to the eye and draws customers in immediately.” The salad features a raspberry balsamic vinegar dressing and fresh mint. Prete says any local, ripe fruit can be substituted in place of the strawberries—he suggests watermelon when it’s in season. 

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Quinoa looks and acts like a grain, but it’s technically a grass—with no trace of gluten. Chef Ehrline Karnaga of Valhalla Table in Costa Mesa, Calif., takes advantage of quinoa’s lineage by using it as a base for a hearty salad, much like one would use couscous or bulgur wheat. 

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Raw zucchini, simply dressed with olive oil and lemon, makes a refreshing brunch salad or a lively accompaniment to grilled fish, meat or poultry.

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Grilled watermelon, honeydew melon and cantaloupe combine with feta cheese and honey to create a colorful and flavorful salad.

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