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The unofficial start of summer is here: Memorial Day Weekend!Stay nourished as you gear up for the social season with healthy Memorial Day recipes, keeping you energized for all the summer activities! Whether you're on the grill or winning the side dish game, this lineup will provide plenty of inspiration for your Memorial Day menu.
When the sun starts shining, get a hit of refreshing salads with these summer salad recipes! Your BBQ will be the most popular in town with these healthy summer grilling recipes.
Table of Contents hide
What do Americans eat on Memorial Day?
Memorial Day side dishes
Memorial Day mains
Memorial Day desserts and drinks
Healthy Memorial Day Recipes Index
It's the season of summer entertaining, weeknight grilling, weekend BBQs, and picnic gatherings! We've got you covered with these healthy Memorial Day recipes. When life gets busy, it's easy to forget about nutrition, but this collection of recipes is not only easy to prepare and simple to make, but they're also totally delicious!
What do Americans eat on Memorial Day?
Memorial Day is about honoring military personnel who lost their lives protecting the country. Because Memorial Day is celebrated on thelast Monday in May, when warm weather arrives, most Memorial Day food is centered around BBQ and summer foods. This is great news if you want some healthy Memorial Day recipes as there are many options for healthy BBQ and sides!
Memorial Day side dishes
The side dish game is serious business, and we've got some winning recipes for the summer season. Incorporate fresh, seasonal fruits like bright peaches, bursting fresh berries, abundant greens, broccoli salad, and fresh herbs.
Tossing fruit into your salads is a refreshing way to celebrate the sunshine. This blueberry coleslaw recipe packs a punch with broccoli, cauliflower, blueberries, and chopped almonds. Nothing says “SUMMER IS HERE” like a grilled peach salad – it'll steal the show! These fresh salads work as appetizers or side dishes.
Corn on the cob is a Memorial Day classic, and our chili lime corn on the cob recipe adds chili, lime, and fresh herbs. Summertime is about freshness, and this broccoli coleslaw understands the assignment. Herby grilled potato salad will have the whole family going back for seconds.
Blueberry Coleslaw Recipe
Ditch the store-bought coleslaw mix and enjoy a variety of fresh tastes and textures with this easy blueberry coleslaw! Crisp raw veggies, crunchy roasted almonds, and fresh (or frozen) blueberries are tossed in a creamy homemade dressing. It's the perfect side salad for picnic season, and it's ready in just 15 minutes!
4.96 stars (45 ratings)
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Grilled Peach Salad Recipe
Grilled peach salad is the ultimate summer side dish recipe. The peaches are grilled until smoky and extra sweet and served with arugula, blueberries, candied curry pecans, and a honey vinaigrette. Add some goat cheese or diced avocado and you've just made the best salad ever.
4.87 stars (51 ratings)
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Chili Lime Grilled Corn on the Cob Recipe
When corn makes its short seasonal appearance, you'll find us in our backyard making this chili lime grilled corn on the cob on repeat. It's smoky and sweet, with a little heat, and dripping with the flavors of chili-infused butter, fresh lime, and cilantro. It's easy, delicious, and takes only 20 minutes to make!
5 stars (34 ratings)
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Broccoli Coleslaw Recipe
This classic (and healthy!) broccoli coleslaw recipe is made with fresh chopped broccoli and loaded with cranberries and slivered almonds and dotted with red onions. The lightly sweet and tangy lemon buttermilk dressing is easy to make and crazy delicious. You definitely want to make this!
4.98 stars (39 ratings)
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Grilled Potato Salad Recipe
This mayo-free grilled potato salad is tossed in a homemade scallion pesto. It's herby, full of flavor, and perfect for the summer grilling season. It's easy to make and it's ready in just 45 minutes!
4.96 stars (22 ratings)
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Memorial Day mains
Now it's time for the star of the show: the main meals! These healthy Memorial Day recipes taste so divine that you'll forget they're good for you. Grilled chicken, juicy burgers, refreshing tacos, and smoky hot dogs, coming right up!
Impress your guests with the best grilled chicken breast – perfecting something simple is an art, and this recipe comes out perfect every time!
The best burgers are so juicy they burst out of the fresh buns, and this guacamole burger celebrates fresh avocados and is ready in just 20 minutes! Nothing says summer like pineapple, and these Hawaiian hot dogs marry succulent smokey with tropical sweetness.
We've got seafood protein, too! For hand-held bursts of flavor, whip up these crowd-pleasing baja fish tacos. Or for the ultimate way to prepare salmon on the barbecue, wow your guests with this grilled cedar plank salmon with avocado peach salsa.
Grilled Chicken Breast Recipe
This is the BEST grilled chicken breast recipe! The chicken breasts are marinated in an easy to make wet rub using pantry staple spices then grilled until juicy and crazy delicious. With a few tips, learn how to grill chicken breast so it is juicy and delicious every time.
4.98 stars (39 ratings)
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Guacamole Burger Recipe
You can't beat a homemade guacamole burger! These delicious burgers are grilled to juicy perfection and then loaded with guacamole and pepper jack cheese. They're easy to make with just a handful of ingredients, and they're ready in 20 minutes!
4.94 stars (15 ratings)
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Hawaiian Hot Dogs Recipe
These delicious Hawaiian hot dogs with grilled pineapple and teriyaki mayo are the perfect summer meal. They're sweet, smoky, and as spicy as you want them to be. They're also easy to make and ready in just 20 minutes!
4.91 stars (22 ratings)
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Baja Fish Tacos Recipe
Keep things fresh and flavorful with this healthy take on Baja fish tacos. Perfectly seasoned white fish is tucked into warm tortillas, with a colorful southwest slaw, and creamy avocado dressing. This healthy weeknight dinner is simple to make and ready in 30 minutes!
4.98 stars (37 ratings)
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Cedar Plank Salmon Recipe
This cedar plank salmon recipe is the ultimate way to prepare salmon on the barbecue. It's cooked low and slow and results in fish that's moist, smoky, and full of flavor. We top it with an avocado peach salsa for an easy summer meal that's ready in just 35 minutes!
4.95 stars (20 ratings)
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Memorial Day desserts and drinks
These healthy Memorial Day recipes are perfect for when your sweet tooth is calling but you want a healthier approach. Coconut raspberry popsicles and coconut lemon ice cream both use coconut milk for a lighter touch, and this banana nice cream is made from a base of frozen banana.
Sip away on this refreshing homemade blackberry lemonade, which is ready in just ten minutes and can easily be doubled or tripled for a crowd when entertaining.
Coconut Raspberry Popsicles Recipe
Lightly sweetened coconut milk is sandwiched between two layers of tangy, fresh raspberry puree, creating bliss in the form of coconut raspberry popsicles! Tart raspberries and creamy coconut is a delicious combo and an elegant, adult way to enjoy a frozen treat. No doubt the kids will like 'em, too!
4.83 stars (23 ratings)
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Coconut Lemon Ice Cream Recipe
This homemade coconut lemon ice cream is creamy, refreshing, and completely dairy-free. It's naturally sweetened with honey and makes the most delightful healthy treat on a hot day. It's simple to make and uses just six ingredients!
4.88 stars (25 ratings)
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Banana Nice Cream Recipe
Here's a healthy nice cream recipe that keeps things simple while satisfying your sweet tooth. It's smooth, creamy, and tastes just like chocolate soft serve. Plus, you only need three ingredients and 5 minutes to make it!
4.96 stars (46 ratings)
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Blackberry Lemonade Recipe
This homemade blackberry lemonade is the perfect refreshing cold drink for a hot day. It's a fun twist on lemonade using ripe summer blackberries that the whole family will love. It's a visually pretty drink with deep purple hues that takes just 10 minutes to make, and can easily be doubled or tripled for a crowd.
4.84 stars (31 ratings)
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Healthy Memorial Day Recipes Index
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The unofficial start of summer is here: Memorial Day Weekend!Stay nourished as you gear up for the social season with healthy Memorial Day recipes, keeping you energized for all the summer activities! Whether you're on the grill or winning the side dish game, this lineup will provide plenty of inspiration for your Memorial Day menu.
Recipe Index
Memorial Day Side Dishes
- Blueberry Coleslaw
- Grilled Peach Salad
- Chili Lime Grilled Corn on the Cob
- Broccoli Coleslaw
- Grilled Potato Salad
Memorial Day Mains
- Grilled Chicken Breast
- Guacamole Burger
- Hawaiian Hot Dogs
- Baja Fish Tacos
- Cedar Plank Salmon
Memorial Day Desserts and Drinks
- Coconut Raspberry Popsicles
- Coconut Lemon Ice Cream
- Banana Nice Cream
- Blackberry Lemonade
© Author Kristen Stevens
For more inspiration, check out all of our summer recipes!
Kristen Stevens
Hi, I'm Kristen! I LOVE everything to do with food: making it, taking pictures of it, and (the best part) eating it. ♡♡♡
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Posted: 05/26/2017 Updated: 11/18/2023
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