Chopped Vegetable Caesar Salad

Caesar Salad Recipe

Caesar salad is a classic recipe that is enjoyed by many. A thick and rich salad dressing makes just about any vegetables delicious. From a classic tossed romaine salad to this fantastic Roasted Caesar Asparagus, you can’t go wrong.

• Roasted Caesar Asparagus

Greek Yogurt Salad Dressing

Unlike the classic Caesar dressing that is incredibly rich, we are opting for a lighter Greek Yogurt Caesar dressing. It still has all the great flavors of Caesar dressing with Parmesan, garlic, lemon and Dijon, but we cut back on the mayonnaise and substitute most of it with plain Greek yogurt.

One of the biggest pitfalls of salads being a healthy meal is salad dressings loaded with calories and fat. If you take just a few minutes to make homemade healthy salad dressing recipes, you can make a veggie salad a truly wholesome and healthy meal. You also get to control the sodium and preservatives!

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good bottled salad dressing in a pinch as much as the next person. It’s just that homemade salad dressings really are easier to make than most people anticipate. The flavors and ingredients are better, so it really is worth the minimal effort it takes.

• Greek Yogurt Caesar dressing
• homemade healthy salad dressing recipes

Vegetable Caesar Salad

Caesar salads are great, but they are usually short on veggies. A classic Ceasar just contains romaine lettuce along with dressing, shaved Parmesan and croutons. For this chopped Caesar salad, I wanted to add in some vegetables for a more filling and nutritious salad.

Vegetable to add to Caesar Salad

I added in peeled cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, but the possibilities are endless when it comes to adding vegetables to your Caesar salad. Here are just a few more that would be great

Avocados

Chickpeas

Grilled Zucchini

• Leftover Roasted Carrots

Vegetarian Caesar Salad with Quinoa

Often times I will add some meat to a salad to amp up the protein and heartiness. Whether that is some smoked chicken breasts or thinly sliced steak, a vegetable salad all on it’s own usually isn’t overly filling.

Instead of adding meat to this Caesar Salad Recipe, we opted to add quinoa, one of our favorite superfoods. This seed is a great source of fiber and also has some protein. It makes the Caesar salad much more robust and adds a nice crunchy bite that you would otherwise get from croutons.

• smoked chicken breasts

Whole grains to add to salad

If you don’t have any quinoa in your pantry or aren’t a fan, any whole grains are a great option for this Vegetarian Caesar Salad. Here are just a few options

Brown Rice

Barley

Wheat Orzo

• quinoa

Why it is so good!

Every good meal needs some protein, carbs and healthy fats. We hit on all of those things with this vegetarian salad. The Greek yogurt provides protein and healthy fats and the quinoa is full of whole grain carbs and fiber. The vegetables fill this meal up with lots of additional micro nutrients!

Vegetarian Chopped Dinner Salads

A chopped dinner salad is a quick way to toss together a healthy dinner in 15 minutes or less. Here are some of my favorite vegetarian salads with amazing flavors that are loaded with veggies. They make for a great dinner salad or a hearty side dish to serve along with your favorite cut of meat.

Chopped Mediterranean Salad

• Baked Honey Feta Squash and Brown Rice Salad
• Roasted Squash and Cranberry Salad
• Roasted Carrot and Honey Feta Salad
• Strawberry Gorgonzola Walnut Salad

Serving: 1 g | Calories: 322 kcal | Carbohydrates: 33 g | Protein: 16 g | Fat: 15 g | Saturated Fat: 4 g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10 g | Cholesterol: 19 mg | Sodium: 447 mg | Fiber: 6 g | Sugar: 8 g