Strawberry Spinach Salad
Strawberry spinach salad recipe packed with strawberries, crunchy nuts, and tangy blue cheese, and raspberry vinaigrette for a crisp, sweet flavor explosion. Perfect as a refreshing lunch or summer dinner side salad on the back porch.
Prep Time15 minutes mins
Total Time15 minutes mins
Course: Salad
Cuisine: Southern
Servings: 4 large salads
Calories: 324kcal
Salad
- 10 oz Spinach mix I use a spinach spring mix
- 2 cups Radicchio, chopped Optional, For bright purple color
- 1 lb Strawberries
- 4 oz Danish Blue Cheese Crumbles
- 1 ½ cup Chopped Walnuts
- 1 cup Cucumber slices
Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing
- 6 oz raspberries, fresh or frozen thaw if frozen, rinse if fresh
- 1 ½ tablespoon honey more to taste if you prefer or rasberries aren't as ripe
- ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar regular or white balsamic vinegar is fine
- 2 tablespoon quality olive oil
- pinch Salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
For dressing, rinse the raspberries. In a blender, puree the raspberries. Place in a cheesecloth and crush through the pulp to remove most of the seeds. If you do not have cheesecloth, you can use a mesh strainer. You should yield about ¾ cup of raspberry puree.
Take the ¾ cup of strained pulp and mix with honey, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, lemon, and salt. Chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours to allow flavors to meld.
Wash and spin salad greens. Wash and slice strawberries. Top greens with strawberries, cucumber slices, walnuts, and blue cheese crumbles.
Serve raspberry vinaigrette dressing on the side.
Salad Dressing Tips
- Raspberries tend to dry out in the store or refrigerator, so the amount of juice can vary. If the raspberries look a little dry or wilted, use a bit more.
- If you can't get ¾ cup, *in a pinch* add a little water and mix through the cheesecloth/puree.
For thinker dressing
Add up to 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, starting with a teaspoon at a time. In a small bowl, mix equal parts cornstarch and dressing until the cornstarch is well mixed in a slurry. Then mix the slurry thoroughly into the rest of the dressing.
Additional topping options and substitutes
- Blue Cheese - substitute Feta or Goat Cheese.
- Grape Tomatoes, Avocado, Apple Slices, or Red Onions make great additions if you would like to try them out.
- Radicchio - a bright purple lettuce, this is a great addition for both color and a crunchy lettuce texture.
Serving: 1salad | Calories: 324kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 3.4g | Fat: 18.4g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Potassium: 84mg | Sugar: 2.4g | Calcium: 650mg | Iron: 0.2mg