Healthy Lettuce Recipes

This vegetarian take on a traditional Niçoise salad omits the fish and piles on plenty of vegetables.

This gorgeous and healthy summer vegetable salad is loaded with pretty produce, including golden beets, avocado, corn, microgreens and radishes. Chickpeas and edamame add substance, and an herb-filled buttermilk-avocado dressing makes this salad really special. Serve it on its own for a light vegetarian meal or add grilled chicken for an easy weeknight dinner.

Take taco night to a new level with sweet potato taco "shells." Tender sweet potatoes pair perfectly with spicy taco meat, creamy cheese and crisp lettuce. Let everyone customize their taco potato with their favorite toppings.

In this spin, we coat this blackened chicken with spices common to Cajun cooking, like dried thyme and cayenne pepper. Then, instead of using the traditional method of searing in a cast-iron pan, we take advantage of the warmer weather by grilling outside.

We love the retro vibe of these egg salad lettuce wraps. Iceberg lettuce makes a perfect low-carb swap for bread to serve the egg salad.

This hearty vegan salad is loaded with plant-based power ingredients: chickpeas, quinoa and hummus. We love the crunch of the sunflower seeds and the unexpected flavor of roasted peppers.

Topped with Parmesan cheese and pine nuts, this tasty green salad is perfect for any barbeque or picnic.

This healthy chopped salad is a great way to use up leftover cooked chicken. You can reserve the remaining hard-boiled egg half for a snack.

This single-serving recipe for Cobb salad swaps chicken in for bacon, which makes it a great source of protein for lunch. If you prefer another salad dressing, feel free to use that instead of our honey-mustard vinaigrette.

A blend of whole-wheat panko and fine cornmeal gives this healthy chicken recipe the perfect amount of crunch even though it's not deep fried. Making an easy homemade buttermilk ranch dressing recipe means you can skip bottled, which may have additives and stabilizers.

Prep four days' worth of high-protein vegan lunches using just four easy ingredients from your local specialty grocery store, including a veggie-heavy salad mix as a base. Because this salad mix is hearty, you can dress these bowls up to 24 hours before serving to allow the flavors in this healthy chopped salad to marry. If you can't find a hearty mix, go with broccoli slaw or shredded Brussels sprouts.

Quick, simple and packed with satisfying protein and fiber, this salad makes a perfect lunch or easy one-dish dinner.

Cubed deli turkey takes the place of chicken, while Cheddar replaces blue cheese in this easy Cobb-inspired salad. The protein-rich turkey and cheese, plus eggs and bacon, gives the salad staying power, so you won't get hungry an hour after you eat. Feel free to swap out the turkey for cooked chicken or chickpeas to mix things up. Serve the salad right away or pack it up in individual containers and you'll be set for lunch for days.

For a nutrient-packed twist, this healthy Caesar salad features spinach and kale in addition to romaine. But it's the Parmesan crisps that make this salad holiday-worthy. Serve it for Thanksgiving or any other special meal.

This vegetarian nacho recipe is a fun combination of two favorites--nachos and Greek salad. It uses whole-grain pita chips instead of the tortilla chips used in traditional nacho recipes, and it's loaded with the classic fresh vegetables in Greek salad as well as creamy hummus and salty feta cheese. And it doesn't even need the oven! Easily doubled, this makes a great appetizer or light dinner.

Remember back when dousing some iceberg lettuce with ranch dressing was considered healthy? We know better now, but a lackluster vinaigrette makes us want to skip the salad altogether. Without the buttermilk and mayo, is it even worth it? This dressing, made with creamy avocado and tangy umeboshi vinegar, will show you the possibilities. You can make it as-is or substitute whatever herbs you have on hand: parsley, basil and cilantro are all great options. The salad itself is a colorful, texture-rich antidote to the stereotypical boring salad, and it's also customizable. Here we use a base of romaine because it's crunchy and sturdy enough to stand up to a creamy dressing, but you can use kale, mixed greens or any blend of greens your heart (and fridge) desires. Same for the add-ins: You can sub in green beans for the asparagus, use black beans instead of chickpeas, or mix in additional veggies you have available like cucumber or shredded carrots. If you want to get extra fancy with it, try grilling the corn for an added smoky flavor. While this salad can be eaten as a side, it's strong enough to star as the entree.

This hearty salad comes together with little effort, since the squash and chicken can roast together on the same sheet pan. Prep the dressing and the salad greens while the chicken is roasting.

This easy Caesar salad subs creamy Greek yogurt and buttermilk for the traditional egg yolks and olive oil and mixes in mildly bitter radicchio in addition to classic romaine. Using just a small amount of flavorful Parmigiano-Reggiano shaves calories and sodium too.

Grilled lettuce? Definitely! Romaine lettuce, seasoned with lemon juice and olive oil, is grilled quickly, topped with balsamic-marinated beets and served with tender flank steak in this crowd-pleasing recipe.

Upgrade your work lunch with these tasty Caesar salad lettuce cups. This Caesar salad recipe gets a healthy makeover, thanks to homemade dressing made with Greek yogurt.

These healthy multi-grain wraps are filled with mixed greens, chopped cucumber, tomato and red onion, as well as feta cheese and a homemade cilantro hummus. As a time saver, the hummus can be prepared up to 3 days ahead, and chilled until you're ready to make the wraps.

These chicken lettuce wraps are crunchy, light and perfect for a flavorful meal. The sweet, anise-like flavor of Thai basil pairs well with the bold taste of the peanut sauce, but regular basil—or even mint or cilantro—works well too.

If mixed salads fail to fill you up, try this hearty Greek salmon salad recipe, which calls for bulking up a traditional bed of mixed greens with roasted vegetables and protein-rich salmon. Leftovers make it a breeze to put together this delicious Mediterranean salad. Here we suggest two recipes you could meal-prep ahead of time--Lemon-Roasted Mixed Vegetables and Sweet & Spicy Roasted Salmon--but you can use whatever roasted veggies you have on hand and pick up a precooked salmon fillet from the deli counter at your grocery store. This healthy salad would also be good with chicken. Serve it for an easy dinner or pack it up for lunch.

This healthy version of a deli salad combines hearty quinoa and chickpeas with small amounts of ham and mozzarella, so you get all of the flavor without overdoing it on the sodium. This healthy quinoa salad is great as dinner and doubles as a delicious lunch the next day.