It is hard to find ways to make meals from scratch. And that is on a good day. Add the craziness of summer (late night baseball practices, camp schedules, vacations) and it is pretty much frozen meals for us. Yet, I stumbled across a recipe from Whole Foods that took in account the veggies of summer, minimal cooking required, and yet a hearty meal that, if need be, can be packed into container and taken on the go.

I even found ways to make it easier and faster to make, which I note below. Here are the ingredients you need for four best summer salad servings:

• Boneless chicken breast for four people (Note: you can buy pre-cooked chicken breast or even buy chicken breast strips so you don’t have to prep the chicken.)
• One cup of chicken broth (if cooking the chicken as cooking chicken in broth gives it extra flavor and moistness.
• 4 slices of bacon (Note: or use bacon bits you get in the spice section.)
• 2 hard boiled eggs (Note: can buy these already made or make a batch of them and set aside some for egg salad sandwiches for another night.)
• Lettuce (Note: or buy a pre-washed, pre-packaged salad mix)
• 1 avocado
• 1 large tomato (Note: or buy small grape tomatoes so you don’t have to slice and dice)
• 1 cup of blue cheese crumbles
• Balsamic vinaigrette to taste

If need be, cook the chicken in a skillet in the chicken broth. As that is cooking, prep the bacon in another pan and the hard boiled eggs in another (if making them.) Once everything is cooked (or simply pulled out from the fridge), just assemble. Place the shredded lettuce in a salad bowl, top with sliced avocado, sliced hard boiled eggs, and tomatoes. Then add bite-sized bacon, blue cheese and sliced chicken. Drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette. Optional – add some fresh red onions too, if you like a little extra ‘kick’.

What I love about this salad is that it has so much flavor and texture – from crunchy bacon to creamy avocado, from potent blue cheese and eggs to crispy lettuce and tangy dressing. It’s also packed with ingredients that you can get from the local farm, in addition to the farm stand or grocery store. It’s something that the kids eat too. Even if they just pick out the parts they like the most, it gets them to eat the same thing as the rest of the family.

Summer win!