Strawberry spinach salad is delicious and classic with juicy strawberry slices, creamy feta cheese, and crunchy candied nuts with a bright lemon poppy seed dressing!
Welcome to Valentine’s Week! I have some amazing, amazing recipes this week that will amaze and impress your date this year. Hope you enjoy them!
Back in RTC Great Lakes, I refused to eat salad. I was 18, and I was traumatized! I had tried a salad once at a restaurant before being shipped off to boot camp and…Ugh, it was not pleasant.
I’m a meat and potatoes type of girl, for me greens are cooked…usually with lemon, butter, garlic, as a side dish.
I went out on a whim when Brian took me to the Melting Pot for our 7th wedding anniversary in December. We love going there for date night, there’s just something about fondue dates and sort of playing with your food that’s just so fun.
Anywhoo, so part of the meal is the salad course, and I usually skip it but I saw the strawberry spinach salad and went for it. I like spinach, I like strawberries, and candied pecans? Yes, please!
It seems like such a small thing, but trust me, everyone is cackling at me right now because the words “I don’t eat rabbit food” came out of my mouth every time someone said anything about my plate of food. No amount of shaming would make me eat salad.
But this strawberry spinach salad? I thoroughly enjoyed it, especially with the lemon popyseed citronette.
What’s a citronette? It’s a vinagrette, without the vinegar. Instead, the acid is from citrus, in this case, the lemon.
Sweet strawberries, tartness from the lemon juice, the feta adds this great creamy aspect and added salt for more dimension and, of course, the candied nuts added crunch. Really, a perfect salad for a beginner salad eater.
It was a great addition to our date night dinner. And since it’s Valentine’s Day season, I figured this salad would be a perfect recipe to bring to y’all for your Valentine’s dinner.
It’s really simple, it’s baby spinach, sliced strawberries, some nice feta cheese crumbles, and candied nuts. It classically has pecans but I still had some candied walnuts on hand from my spiced peach shortcakes last week, and it worked perfectly for this salad.
You can really customize this to your liking: add spring mix to your spinach, use goat cheese instead of feta, add red onion for some punch, candy whatever nut you fancy, or add some rotisserie chicken to make it a meal!
When I served this to my family with dinner everyone loved it, even my five year old, Greyson. He loves strawberries and cheese (and the word ‘candied’) so he gobbled up this salad like it was his favorite meal.
So if you’ve got a picky non-salad eater or you want a salad on point with your Valentine’s themed dinner, give this a try! And if you’re pulling out all the Valentine’s Day dinner stops, subscribe to Sweet Tea and Thyme because I’ve got Million Dollar Chicken coming later this week!
In a medium sized bowl, whisk oil, poppy seeds, mustard, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt. Whisk vigorously until well combined and allow flavors to meld at room temperature for at least 5-15 minutes.
Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add in the nuts and brown sugar, stirring wit ha silicone spatula to coat. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar begins to caramelize (about 3 minutes). Spread out candied nuts on the parchment paper lined baking sheet to cool.
In a large salad bowl, toss spinach, strawberry slices, candied nuts, and cheese together. Serve with the dressing, don't pour it on until ready to serve.
This salad looks amazing and is perfect for Spring! I love the melting pot and that now I can make this delicious salad at home too!
I never thought of adding poppy seeds in the dressing. Such a clever idea! The flavor combo of this salad is so fresh and delicious.
This recipe makes me so excited for spring! I love when the strawberries start growing. I want to try your lemon poppyseed dressing. It sounds perfect!
Is it okay to love EVERYTHING about this salad? Because I do! Super YUM 5 stars all the way!
This salad is too pretty to eat! Just kidding, I will definitely be eating this one over and over again. That dressing sounds amazing!
I love Salads and always happy to have it for my Dinner time . This looks so crunchy and healthy. Seasonal fruit like strawberry and Spinach makes it more nutritious and special.
I love all the vibrant colour and fresh flavours in this salad! Looks like a great healthy option!
Oh yes, that’s work for me! Only a few more months till strawberries are in season over here!
I love green salads with fruits – looks so delicious and colorful. Perfect for a balanced healthy meal.
Loving this salad with the strawberries and candied nuts. This would be perfect any time but it definitely has Valentines Day special all over it.
What a fun salad to try. My kids will love the fruit in it.
This Strawberry spinach salad is a perfect addition to a Valentine’s Day date night in dinner! Looks so pretty and delicious!
Those strawberries look so luscious! I can’t wait for them to come in season here!
This citronette sounds amazing! Can’t wait until strawberries are back in season here in Wisconsin – definitely pinning this for later!