The Road Trip Snack That Will Elevate Your Salad Topping Game

Some people think salads are boring, but that may only be because they make the same old setup day after day. If you're stuck in a salad rut and can't face another bowl of lettuce and tomatoes, shake up your routine. You'll want your options to be super easy so that there's no need to go shopping for extra ingredients. That said, try incorporating some trail mix.

After all, there are tons of different recipes for trail mix. However, most of them incorporate some dried fruit, roasted nuts, seeds, and some type of crunchy bread or crouton — all great toppings for a salad. On that note, if you're having trouble getting through a whole box or bag of salad greens, try tossing a handful of your favorite trail mix into the bowl before adding the dressing. You'll get a more interesting salad with extra crunch and sweet bites, plus a little extra protein to keep you feeling full.

Consider the non-vegetable toppings at the end of the salad bar; when you think about it, they're really just deconstructed trail mix, so adding a handful of your favorite combo to a bowl of greens isn't all that weird. Any combination of ingredients, like dried cranberries, raisins, sunflower seeds, peanuts, walnuts, croutons, sesame sticks, and puffed grains, are all yummy additions to any green salad.

The advantage of using a handful of pre-made mix in your salad is that you don't have to spend money on large portions of ingredients you might not use a lot of, like pumpkin seeds or dried goji berries. All ingredients are ready to eat, too, so there's no need to roast any nuts, or do any chopping or prep work. You can simply grab a handful and go for it. The only caveat is using any mix with candy or chocolate chips, which can get a little weird. Luckily, there are several candy-less mixes out there, so just be sure to read the ingredients list before you toss a bag in the cart. If you like M&M's on your salad though, by all means, seize the day.

You don't have to limit your salad greens, either. Any salad using a cooked grain as a base, like quinoa, farro, bulgur, or wild rice, is perfect with lots of savory trail mixes. If you buy pre-made rice or grains, either frozen or in a pouch, feel free to mix some olive oil with a bag of trail mix to meal prep several scoops of healthy salad in less than five minutes.

Consider using trail mix in your pasta salads as well. For this, cook up a batch of your favorite pasta salad shape, add some trail mix, olive oil, vinegar, and some cut-up fresh veggies like cucumbers, tomatoes, and sugar snap peas, and you'll have a bowl of tasty summer salad in no time.

All in all, if you buy staple ingredients that can be used for lots of different recipes, you'll never get bored. Plus, you'll save money by keeping trips to the store to a minimum. Now that you know how versatile trail mix can be, add it to your regular shopping list and keep a bag on hand. Your salads will remain tasty, and no more wasted greens will be tossed in the trash. Plus, whatever you don't use on your salad, you'll have left over for snacks.