Party Salads!

Sarah

My top picks for potluck-pleasing party salads that have it all when it comes to maximum deliciousness, eye appeal and crowd-size portions.

Are you a salad person? If I am being honest, I don’t really looovvvveeee salads. I tend to enjoy them more when I am eating out but rarely make them at home, at least the leafy green variety!

Party salads on the other hand are a whole different ballgame and I am a huge fan. Even better if they don’t really resemble a salad in the first place! If you’ve been to a Minnesota potluck, you know what I am referring to…pasta salad, potato salad, Jell-O salad, Snickers Salad, Cookie Salad—the salad table at some of our social get-togethers tends to be a smorgasbord of sweet and savory, delectable dishes that are often a bigger draw than many of the main dishes or even the dessert table!

This got me thinking, what exactly is a “party salad?” There are no rules, but three “considerations” include:

  1. Crowd Control: The party salad should fill a large bowl, preferably Tupperware with a sealed lid, and be large enough to feed about 20 people. Don’t be bashful about doubling (or tripling) a recipe if you have to!
  2. Deliciousness Overload: Don’t feel confined to any preconceived notion of what a salad is. Choose delicious and hearty over healthful ingredients that can stand up and endure whatever dressing you choose. Leafy greens are not required. Bonus points for using ingredients that offer different textures for optimal crunch or chewiness! Fruit and vegetables are allowed but consider adding something indulgent and unexpected such as roasted nuts, marshmallows, crispy bacon, candy bar bites, cookie pieces, Dorito’s—the sky is the limit.
  3. Eye Appeal: Consider ways to make your salad a true showstopper with the addition of garnishes etc. (see Gam’s Ring Mac Salad) to make your dish stand out and shine on the salad table and make people more eager to try it.

My Picks for Potluck Pleasing Party Salads

I recently added a new “salad” recipe to my website that certainly fits the above criteria and it is Supreme Spaghetti Salad. It’s a vintage recipe (of course!) found in one of my thrifted recipe boxes. It was attributed to a “Toots” and well, how can you go wrong with a recipe from someone named Toots?!

A “supreme” pasta salad featuring a medley of fresh vegetables seasoned with Salad Supreme and tossed with spaghetti noodles bathed in zesty Italian dressing.

This is probably the best pasta salad you will ever have for its combination of fresh vegetables flavored with “Salad Supreme” seasoning and pasta marinated with Italian dressing. It’s a versatile dish where you can use different vegetables or pasta, add extras like black olives, pepperoni or cheese. It may sound familiar to you as pasta salads are a dime a dozen, but believe me, it’s the salad seasoning that makes this a standout dish!

Check out some of my other favorite Party Salads that would be great to enjoy during these last weeks of summer!!

Snickers Salad

Snickers Salad can be served as a dessert or a side, like it at many Midwest gatherings. It includes cut-up Granny Smith apples and little bites of Snickers bars, mixed together with cream cheese and Cool Whip.

Ring Mac Salad

a yellow bowl with ring mac salad and a flower made of sliced eggs
Our family’s go-to pasta salad, Ring Mac Salad comes from the recipe box of our sweet Gam and is made with small ring pasta, hard-boiled eggs, minced onion and a dressing of mayo and mustard. Use a few extra eggs to make a decorative daisy on top!

Frog-Eye Salad

Frog eye salad in a mason jar
Similar to Glorified Rice, Frog Eye Salad is pretty, potuck-pleasing salad featuring Acini de Pepe pasta with pineapple, mandarin oranges and marshmallows all folded into a light and creamy, slighty sweet base.

Ede’s Fruit Salad

Luxurious lemon pie filling is the base for Ede’s Fruit Salad that includes a mix of fruit cocktail, pineapple chunks, bananas and mini marshmallows. It’s like sunshine in a bowl

Taco Salad

Dorito’s Taco Salad is a salad version of a taco that includes seasoned ground beef, Iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, green onion, shredded cheese–all mixed together with Doritos.
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