Strawberry Spinach Salad (with Poppy Seed Dressing)

This simple strawberry spinach salad is made with baby spinach, sweet strawberries, red onion, toasted almonds, goat cheese, and a creamy poppy seed dressing. It’s perfect for spring and summer!

If you love spinach salads try this Strawberry Chicken Spinach Pasta Salad and Roasted Beet Spinach Goat Cheese Salad.

Why You’ll Love This Strawberry Spinach Salad

Simple and delicious – There aren’t that many ingredients in this salad, but the combination of sweet and tangy flavors paired with crunchy, crisp, and creamy textures makes it a winner!

Perfect for spring and summer – This salad is ideal to make in spring and summer when strawberries are in peak season. Since strawberries are a main ingredient, you want them to taste their best!

Great salad for brunch, dinner, or barbecues – This salad is always a hit for gatherings. It goes great with egg dishes, grilled chicken, fish, or steak. If you’re taking it somewhere be sure to wait until just before serving to top it with the dressing.

Ingredient Notes

Spinach – Baby spinach is best and most convenient for this salad. Grab a bag or box of pre-washed baby spinach to save time.

Strawberries – Look for strawberries that are bright red without any white on them. More importantly, smell them. They should smell sweet like strawberries.

Red onion – To minimize the harsh flavor of red onion, slice it then let the slices sit in cold water for 10 minutes before adding it to the salad. You’ll still have the onion flavor, but without that aggressive raw onion bite.

Goat cheese – Creamy, tangy and pairs perfectly with strawberries.

Almonds – Sliced almonds or slivered almonds that are toasted give the salad a wonderful nutty flavor and crunch. For something extra special, use marcona almonds.

Poppy seed dressing – My homemade poppy seed dressing is a creamy Greek yogurt based salad dressing that’s sweet with a touch of tangy flavor.

Substitutions and Variations

• Swap spinach for mixed greens or arugula or baby kale if you prefer a more bitter green.
• Use crumbled feta instead of goat cheese.
• Use a variety of berries. Blueberries or blackberries would work well.
• Instead of almonds use toasted pecans. You could also do candied pecans if you want another sweet element.
• Swap the poppy seed dressing with this creamy balsamic dressing or the balsamic vinaigrette that I used with this grilled chicken salad.
• Add protein to the salad. Grilled chicken or steak would be delicious!

What to Serve with Strawberry Spinach Salad

This salad goes great with any protein, I especially like serving it with grilled meat. Try it with Grilled Pesto Chicken Skewers, Asian Flank Steak, Grilled Shrimp with Romesco Sauce, or Grilled Chicken and Asparagus Pesto Pasta.

If you’re serving this salad with brunch, it goes great with this Spinach Bacon Cheese Strata, Crustless Vegetable Quiche and Everything Bagel and Lox Breakfast Pizza.

Storage

If the salad already has the dressing on it, it’s best eaten the day it’s made. If the salad is undressed it will keep for 2-3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

More Recipes Using Strawberries

If you’ve got a box of strawberries you need to use, I’ve got a recipe to add them to!

If you’re in the mood to bake, try these Strawberry Banana Muffins or Strawberry Greek Yogurt Cheesecake Bars.

Try using them in a sweet and savory dish like these Grilled Salmon Tacos with Strawberry Avocado Salsa or Strawberry Poppy Seed Chicken Salad.

And if you’re headed to a party take this Strawberry Mango Salsa, it’s sure to be a hit!

Did you make this strawberry spinach salad? I’d love if you’d leave a recipe rating and review below.