Winter is one of my favorite times of year to eat. (Let’s be honest, it’s always a good time to eat.) With all the root vegetables and comfort dishes available, it’s easy to enjoy your favorite comfort cooking from November through March. The thing is, sometimes we need a little something green. But if eating salads when it’s cold outside gives you the creeps (same), then you need to add some comforting winter salads to your meal prep rotation. Trust me, “comfort” doesn’t mean this is actually just a list of pasta salads.
While you may miss fresh, juicy tomatoes and crisp cucumbers and all those bright, spicy summer flavors, there are plenty of delicious winter produce to enjoy in salads. Root vegetables like carrots, beets, and sweet potatoes can easily liven up a dish, while enriching a salad with grains like roe and lentils can make it super hearty and filling. These are not just small side salads or frustrating salads without any texture. These cozy winter salads pack some major crunch, some creaminess, some tangyness, and more flavor into one bowl.
So pick a few up to try throughout the winter and prepare your taste buds for a real explosion of flavor. Because once you eat roasted beets and goat cheese on a salad, you’ll never look back.
Seven-layer Beet Salad
Nothing says “winter salad” more than this tangy seven-layer beet salad from Pinch of Yum. With lots of delicious textures, like the crunch of pistachios and the softness of ricotta, this is one of those star power salads that’ll keep you warm and cozy all winter long.
Winter Farro Salad
Farro is one of those grains I forget about until winter and I want to add something to my bowl. This winter farro salad from Gimme Some Oven perfectly incorporates that ingredient into a hearty, comforting mix with lots of flavor from the orange-ginger vinaigrette, sweetness from the pears, and plenty of goat cheese to give it a creamy texture like texture. It was so good and so easy to throw together.
Roasted Beet and Chickpea Kale Salad
Kale is probably my favorite winter salad base (which is a good thing since it’s the star of many salad bases), and it looks great in this Spicy Perspective Roasted Beet and Chickpea Kale Salad gorgeous. Topped with beets, sweet potatoes, and a creamy yogurt-vanilla dressing, this salad is hearty and comforting.
Apple Cranberry Pecan Salad
Apples and cranberries are always a winning combination, so what about when you add pecans? Oh man, you’ll be glad you did. This Apple Cranberry Pecan Salad from Damn Delicious is an extra crunchy salad full of bright, tangy flavor that’ll help you shake off your darkest winter blues.
Grilled Sweet Potato Salad
Want a salad that tastes like a warm hug? Then you’ll want this Grilled Sweet Potato Salad from Averie Cooks. It’s a salad in the same way we call potato salad a “salad,” but that doesn’t mean you should exclude it from your winter salad rotation. It’s hearty, full of flavor and texture, and the sweet potato—the queen of root vegetables—is the star of the show.
Lentil Salad with Butternut Squash
Making a winter salad versus a spring or summer salad will obviously depend on the produce available, but adding grains to your salad will definitely make you feel winter-ready. This Lentil Salad with Butternut Squash from Cook Nourish Bliss is so easy to throw together, and let’s be honest, we don’t give it enough love beyond just mashing the butternut squash into soup.
Rejuvenating Winter Broccoli Salad
If you’re in need of a pick-me-up after all the delicious treats in December but still want something to tantalize your taste buds, this rejuvenating winter broccoli salad from Half-Baked Harvest is perfect for you. Broccoli is so genius as a salad base, and this salad is truly customizable with lots of options to make it a bright, flavorful, and comforting meal.
Wilted Spinach Salad
Spinach is always great in salads, but winter spinach can feel a little less hearty and a little more, well… like you’re a rabbit. But this wilted spinach salad from Budget Bytes offers a lot more than you think, like bacon and beans and, of course, wilted spinach for the ultimate comfort winter salad.
Winter is all about feeling good and finding those bright spots wherever possible—hopefully at least one of the salads on this list will give you a warm feeling.
