Colorful Winter Tossed Salad (with Fruit!)

Try this easy, family-friendly recipe for colorful winter tossed salad made with Italian blend lettuce, oranges, apples, craisins, almonds and shredded cheese!

We often make New Year’s resolutions, and for a lot of people (including myself) one of those is getting healthy.

One of the concepts of healthy eating, to me, means including as many whole and colorful foods as possible and getting my kids to enjoy eating this way as well!

Last winter,  my mom served a really delicious salad that I’ve made several times since. My kids (4 and 6) love it, and even my 20 month old will eat some of it (he usually just plays with the lettuce, but hopefully that will change).

While it’s great to use lettuce that’s fresh from the garden and apples picked right from the tree, I don’t have that option during wintertime in this cold climate. So, I use the next best thing; because even when lettuce comes in a bag or fruit comes in a can, it’s much better to eat them that way rather than eating processed junk.

This salad is healthy and easy to make, as well as full of color, which is great for getting vital nutrients in the wintertime.

Colorful Winter Tossed Salad

1 package 10 oz Italian Blend Salad Greens or similar

1 package 5 oz Spring Mix Greens or similar

1 can mandarin oranges

1 to 1 1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 medium red apple, chopped

1 cup chopped almonds

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 bottle or 8 oz organic raspberry vinaigrette (or similar homemade dressing)

Toss all ingredients in a large salad bowl and serve. I would suggest adding the vinaigrette directly before serving, otherwise the salad will get very soggy. This recipe makes approximately 12 servings.

How Kids Can Help Make Salad

I like to get my children involved in prepping food in the kitchen. I think it really helps them to feel a sense of choice about what they’re eating, while still allowing me to teach them which foods are healthy for them. Plus, I want them to be good helpers around the house!

Young kids can tear the lettuce (first demonstrate how big you want the pieces of lettuce to be), mix ingredients together with a wooden spoon and sprinkle on the cheese.

Choose a large bowl to prep so that when your young children stir, all of the ingredients don’t fall out (ask me how I know, ha!).

Outside of the holidays, enjoy this salad with your family alongside a bowl of delicious chili and some Parmesan bubble bread.