• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Garden Grazer

  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Matcha
  • About
  • Newsletter
  • Contact

Strawberry Spinach Salad with Tomato-Balsamic Dressing

February 18, 2014 By Kaitlin McGinn 8 Comments

Fresh and FULL of flavor! This Strawberry Spinach Salad is paired with the most amazing tomato-balsamic dressing. Deliciously simple and one of our favorite salad and dressing combinations. (Vegan, gluten-free, oil-free.)

Plate of strawberry spinach salad with tomato balsamic dressing

We adore this bright & fresh strawberry spinach salad. My mother-in-law made a similar one from a recipe in her “Marshall Field’s Cookbook” years ago and I immediately fell in love. It’s been a recurring salad in our kitchen since.

Spoonful of oil-free tomato balsamic dressing

Ingredients for the Tomato-Balsamic Dressing

To make the dressing, you’ll need a blender and these ingredients:

  • Roma tomatoes
  • Shallot
  • Garlic
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Dijon mustard
  • Water to thin (or use olive oil for a smoother consistency)
  • Salt
Tomato balsamic dressing being spooned over a spinach salad

The sweet strawberries and tender spinach pair amazingly with the tangy balsamic dressing. Plus the dressing keeps for about 4-5 days in the refrigerator. I think it tastes even better the next day after the flavors mingle, so it’s something you can make ahead of time and use throughout the week. (The recipe makes enough dressing to have some leftover, so reduce/halve it if you don’t want leftovers.) Hope you enjoy this combination as much as we do.

PS – come join The Garden Grazer on Instagram and share a photo if you make or adapt this! (Also please leave a review & star rating below if you give it a try. Your feedback is greatly appreciated – thank you!)

Strawberry Spinach Salad on a plate with balsamic dressing
Plate of strawberry spinach salad with tomato balsamic dressing
Print Pin
5 from 2 votes

Strawberry Spinach Salad with Tomato-Balsamic Dressing

Fresh and full of flavor! This simple Strawberry Spinach Salad is paired with a delicious tomato-balsamic dressing.
Author: Kaitlin – The Garden Grazer
Prep Time:15 minutes
Total Time:15 minutes
Category: Salad
Cuisine: Gluten-Free, Oil-Free, Vegan
Servings:5 side salads

Ingredients

US Customary – Metric
  • 5 oz. fresh baby spinach (or a spinach/baby greens mix)
  • 8 oz. strawberries
  • 1/2 cup red onion, thinly sliced (or green onion for milder flavor)
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin + sunflower seeds (optional)

For the Tomato-Balsamic Dressing:

  • 2 medium roma tomatoes
  • 1 medium shallot (1/3 cup chopped)
  • 1-2 cloves garlic
  • 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar (or up to 1/2 cup)
  • 1-2 tsp. dijon mustard (I like 2)
  • 2 Tbsp. water (or olive oil*)
  • 1/4 tsp. salt (more/less to taste)

Instructions

  • Make the dressing: roughly chop tomato. Dice shallot, and mince garlic. Place in a blender with all remaining dressing ingredients. Blend until smooth.* Taste and adjust flavors if needed. (More balsamic, salt, etc.)
  • In a bowl, toss spinach/salad greens with about 1/2 cup dressing (more or less to taste). This gives it a nice, thorough coating.
  • Slice strawberries and thinly slice red onion.
  • Place dressed greens on a plate and top with strawberries, red onion, seeds, and another drizzle of dressing if desired.

Notes

*For a smoother, richer dressing consistency, use 1-3 Tbsp. olive oil in place of the water. We prefer ours without oil, but both ways work great.
Recipe makes about 2 cups dressing (cut in half if desired). Dressing can be covered and refrigerated for 4-5 days.
Adapted from “Marshall Field’s Cookbook”

Nutrition Per Serving (estimate)

Calories: 71kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Potassium: 399mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 2976IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 2mg
Did you make this recipe?Tag @thegardengrazer on Instagram and hashtag it #thegardengrazer. I love seeing your recreations!
strawberry spinach salad photo collage

Enjoying this strawberry spinach salad? Also feel free to check out this Kale, Sun-Dried Tomato & Chickpea Salad or Rainbow Chopped Salad! (Or this other berry favorite: Blueberry Basil Salad Dressing.)

Filed Under: Gluten-Free, Recipe, Salad, Sides, Vegan, WFPBNO Tagged With: balsamic, garlic, spinach, strawberry, summer, tomato

Previous Post: « Smoky Split Pea & Sweet Potato Soup
Next Post: Roasted Vegetable Balsamic Pasta »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. LittleMonsterx14

    February 21, 2014 at 9:13 pm

    mmm this looks incredible! i love salads with berries 🙂

    Reply
    • Kaitlin | The Garden Grazer

      February 23, 2014 at 6:58 pm

      Thanks – me too!

      Reply
  2. Liz Lewis

    February 26, 2014 at 6:07 pm

    Just found your blog and I love it! I have been a vegetarian for years and sometimes it's hard to make meals that will satisfy my carnivorous boyfriend's taste buds. We live in New Mexico and are HUGE fans of spicy Mexican food, which your blog has a ton of! Also, we love Thai food which your blog ALSO has a ton of! You rock and you just saved me from searching for meals!

    Reply
    • Kaitlin | The Garden Grazer

      February 27, 2014 at 5:40 pm

      That’s so great! Thanks for the kind feedback!

      Reply
  3. Anonymous

    March 19, 2014 at 5:37 am

    I love this salad with candied pecans. Yummy!

    Reply
    • Kaitlin | The Garden Grazer

      March 19, 2014 at 1:28 pm

      Amazing addition!

      Reply
  4. Mark Goins

    October 23, 2015 at 4:06 pm

    Can you make the dressing without the oil?

    Reply
    • Kaitlin | The Garden Grazer

      October 24, 2015 at 9:32 pm

      Hi Mark! So funny you asked that, because we’re starting to cut back on our oils and this was one of the first recipes I thought to modify because we enjoy it so much. I’ll be sure to update with the oil-free version when I test it! Thanks for your comment 🙂

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Did you make this recipe? Please rate it! (Thank you!)




Primary Sidebar

Hi, I'm Kaitlin! I share easy vegan recipes that are mostly whole food, plant-based, oil-free, & gluten-free. Learn More About Me →

Join 200,000+ followers!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2021 · thegardengrazer.com

Privacy Policy