This Spinach Berry Salad is perfect for the height of berry season. It can be made with any combination or single berry of your choice. It’s packed with flavor and veggies, and it’s super easy to make as well.
One of my favorite parts about the beginning of summer is when our local Farmer’s Market floods with various berries. I usually get carried away buying everything in sight. And that’s exactly how we started making this Triple Berry Salad!
You definitely don’t ‘need’ 3 kinds of berries by any means. But if you get carried away during berry season too, this recipe is for you! I’ve also made this salad with just 1 kind of berry, and I really can’t say which one is best. Each berry is great in its own way, so I’d encourage you to use whatever you have.
The same principle goes for the ‘greens’ part of this salad. By no means do you need to use spinach. It just happens to be really tasty with berries. But you know what… arugula, romaine, and mesclun mixes are all really great too.
I always have difficulty narrowing down an ‘actual’ recipe for salads like this. It’s probably because I rarely make something the same way twice. But I really wanted to give you some options because the combination of berries and nuts/seeds over greens is endlessly delicious. (Be sure and check out below for all my favorite variations broken down.)
Now let’s make my Spinach Berry Salad
First up for the dressing, it comes together in the blender . The strawberries are puréed right in for a super flavorful dressing. But if you don’t have a blender , see the dressings options below for more selections. My go-to would be the balsamic vinaigrette .
Time Saving Tip: As mentioned you can use however many berries you’d like in this salad. When I know I have very little time, I use berries that don’t need to be cut up like raspberries and blueberries. This saves you a bit in the time department not having to hull and slice strawberries!
Let’s talk substitutions/variations
- Berries: as mentioned above, use any combination or single berry you like. Also when stone fruits come in season, try combinations like peach-strawberry or nectarine-blueberry, again the possibilities are endless.
- Pumpkin seeds: any nut or seed you like is great here. But to be specific, we love walnuts, pecans, cashews, and sunflower seeds with berries.
- Avocado: something creamy is a good substitute or add-on for avocado. Crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese, or blue cheese are my go-to’s in berry salads.
- Spinach : any green you love the most is great here, arugula, romaine, mesclun mixes, and baby kale.
- Dressing: 2-Ingredient Balsamic , Honey Mustard Basil Dressing , Creamy Ginger Dressing , Fennel Vinaigrette , and Creamy Chia Vinaigrette are all great options to take this salad in a new direction.
I hope you’ll enjoy this salad as much as we have! If you make it, I hope you’ll leave me a comment/rating below. And I always love hearing from you here. Or over on Instagram where you can tag me at #getinspiredeveryday with your photos.
INGREDIENTS1x2x3x
Berry Vinaigrette:
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup sliced strawberries - 3-4
- 1/3 cup avocado oil
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
Salad Ingredients:
- 12 cups baby spinach - or mixed greens, arugula, or chopped romaine
- 2 cups strawberries - hulled & sliced (1 pound total berries of your choosing)
- 1 cup raspberries
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken - grilled and sliced or diced, 2 breasts or 4 thighs
- 1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
- 1 ripe avocado - sliced or diced
- Optional: 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion - and or chopped/slivered basil
INSTRUCTIONS
- For the dressing, place the lemon juice, sea salt, mustard, and strawberries into the blender . Blend until smooth. Then, with the blender running at low speed (3-4 on a Vitamix ), add the oil slowly in a thin, steady stream until all the oil is incorporated, and the dressing is emulsified.
- Transfer to a container/or jar. Then stir the chia seeds in by hand and let sit to thicken for about 10 minutes.
- While the dressing sits, place the spinach in a large serving bowl. Then top with the grilled chicken, berries, pumpkin seeds, and avocado.
- Serve the salad and dressing together, or toss to combine before serving.
NOTES
nutrition facts
Spinach Berry Salad
Ingredients
Berry Vinaigrette:
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup sliced strawberries 3-4
- 1/3 cup avocado oil
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
Salad Ingredients:
- 12 cups baby spinach or mixed greens, arugula, or chopped romaine
- 2 cups strawberries hulled & sliced (1 pound total berries of your choosing)
- 1 cup raspberries
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken grilled and sliced or diced, 2 breasts or 4 thighs
- 1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
- 1 ripe avocado sliced or diced
- Optional: 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion and or chopped/slivered basil
Instructions
- For the dressing, place the lemon juice, sea salt, mustard, and strawberries into the blender. Blend until smooth. Then, with the blender running at low speed (3-4 on a Vitamix), add the oil slowly in a thin, steady stream until all the oil is incorporated, and the dressing is emulsified.
- Transfer to a container/or jar. Then stir the chia seeds in by hand and let sit to thicken for about 10 minutes.
- While the dressing sits, place the spinach in a large serving bowl. Then top with the grilled chicken, berries, pumpkin seeds, and avocado.
- Serve the salad and dressing together, or toss to combine before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
The recipe Spinach Berry Salad appeared first on Get Inspired Everyday! on May 26, 2020
https://getinspiredeveryday.com/food/triple-berry-spinach-salad/
