Rainbow Salad With Balsamic Dressing

A hand drizzles balsamic dressing over a fresh salad containing lettuce, cherry tomatoes, corn, olives, shredded carrots, walnuts, and mozzarella balls, with a wooden pepper grinder in the background.

Rainbow Salad With Balsamic Dressing

This chopped rainbow veggie salad is packed with crisp greens and colorful vegetables, then tossed with a simple balsamic vinaigrette you can whisk up in minutes. It’s great as a side, and it’s easy to turn into lunch or dinner by adding chicken, shrimp, tofu, steak, or hard-boiled eggs. For the best crunch, keep the dressing separate until you’re ready to serve.

Course dinner, lunch

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20

Total Time 20

Servings

Calories 168kcal

Author Jere' Cassidy

Ingredients

1 cup arugula
1 cup radicchio thinly sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
1 cup bocconcini (mini mozzarella balls)
½ cup shredded carrots
½ cup red pepper diced
½ cup yellow pepper diced
corn kernels fresh or thawed if frozen
¼ cup black olives pitted
¼ cup nuts such as almonds, walnuts, or pecans, toasted
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Prepare the salad dressing

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil and balsamic vinegar to create the dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Prepare the salad

Wash and dry all the salad greens
Cut the tomatoes in half and dice the red and yellow peppers.
Toasting the nuts is optional, but it does add great flavor.
In a large salad bowl, combine the arugula, radicchio, cherry tomatoes, bocconcini, shredded carrots, diced red pepper, diced yellow pepper, corn kernels, black olives, and toasted nuts into the bowl.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad ingredients and gently toss until all the ingredients are evenly coated with the dressing.
Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed with additional salt and pepper.
Serve immediately and enjoy!

Video

Notes

Salad Notes:

You can adjust the quantities of the ingredients based on your preference or the number of servings you need.
2. For extra flavor and texture, feel free to add other ingredients like sliced cucumbers, red onions, or avocado.
3. If you don't have bocconcini, you can use regular-sized mozzarella cheese and cut it into smaller pieces.
4. You can omit the nuts or replace them with toasted seeds like pumpkin or sunflower seeds for a nut-free version.
5. Customize the dressing by adding herbs like basil or oregano, honey or maple syrup for sweetness, or Dijon mustard for extra tang.
6. you can use baby spinach or mixed greens instead of arugula.
7. You can substitute radicchio with red cabbage or endive if it is unavailable.
Instead of bocconcini, you can use feta cheese or goat cheese for a tangy flavor.

Nutrition