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.)
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.
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
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 with Tomato-Balsamic Dressing
Ingredients
- 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
Nutrition Per Serving (estimate)
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.)
mmm this looks incredible! i love salads with berries 🙂
Thanks – me too!
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!
That’s so great! Thanks for the kind feedback!
I love this salad with candied pecans. Yummy!
Amazing addition!
Can you make the dressing without the oil?
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 🙂