Spring Salad with Strawberries and Sweet Balsamic Dressing
This Spring Salad with Strawberries, full of lovely fresh flavors, is tossed with a sweet balsamic dressing, croutons, and Parmesan cheese.
Strawberries have always seemed like little heralds of Spring for me. Their cheerful, bright red color stands out among the fruits that linger at the end of winter and their sweet-tart taste starts me thinking about warmer weather.
Of course, strawberries are in our grocery stores all year round, but when the Florida strawberry season is in full swing, the prices drop so low that I can’t resist picking up a container whenever I shop. Admittedly, I use strawberries mostly in sweet recipes, but they’re also quite appealing on the savory side of the spectrum as in this lovely, bright springtime salad I’m sharing with you today.
This tasty little salad with strawberries couldn’t be easier to assemble and goes well with nearly any entree. The strawberries, sweet peppers, and mandarin orange segments play nicely against the sweet balsamic dressing, the spring salad mix, and peppery arugula. It’s one of our favorites and I hope you like it, too.
How to Make Spring Salad with Strawberries
In a large bowl, combine the spring salad mix, baby arugula, sliced strawberries, yellow pepper strips, and orange segments. Toss well. Note: if you’re not a fan of arugula, baby spinach would be very nice in this salad in its place.
In a medium bowl, add the shallot, mustard, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Add the oil in a slow, steady stream whisking all the time. Pour the dressing over the veggies and toss to coat.
Serve shaved Parmesan cheese and croutons, if desired. You can purchase croutons, or make them yourself using my basic recipe with any bread you like.
And, yes, I did forget the Parmesan cheese in the main photo above! Oops.
🧾 More Recipes You’ll Like
- Broccoli Salad
- Shrimp and Rice Salad
- Black-Eyed Pea Salad
- Summertime Pasta Salad
- Black Bean and Corn Salad
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Spring Salad with Strawberries and Sweet Balsamic Dressing
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 4 cups spring salad mix
- 2 cups baby arugula
- 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
- 1 cup yellow pepper strips
- 11 ounces canned mandarin orange segments well drained
For the dressing:
- 1 shallot finely minced
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Pinch of salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
For serving:
- Croutons
- Shaved Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the salad mix, arugula, strawberries, pepper strips, and orange segments. Toss well.
- In a medium bowl, add the shallot, mustard, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Add the oil in a slow, steady stream whisking all the time.
- Pour the dressing over the veggies and toss to coat. Serve with croutons and shaved Parmesan cheese.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your health care provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
As a side salad, how many people would this feed?
Thanks. Really enjoy your reciepes.
Linda – It would make 6 generous servings or 8 smaller servings.
Simple, yet very tasty! My favorite kind of recipe. Love your photos as well.
strawberry is really on season, just got read strawberry recipe from one of the blogs that I followed, I think this salad taste really great because I love strawberry and the orange mandarin.
sho do like that dressing playing with this blend of ingredients – I am so into salads right now and this one will be so good…. cannot wait. Thanks Lana
Love the balsamic with strawberries! Now I just need Spring weather.
This salad would be quite at home on my table!! Just the kind of salad I love – a little sweet, a little crunchy and a little tart!!
This looks absolutely amazing. I love creative ways to spice up a salad because salads can get really boring after a while. Thanks for the post!
I just love berry-packed salads. I’ve been all about blueberry and brie salads these past few weeks. Yum.
I can feel the freshness! Unfortunately in my part of the world strawberry season is a bit far but I will keep this recipe for when we get there. Thank you for sharing.
This looks SO good :)
Thanks, Aly. It really is delicious.
So enjoyed meeting you in Orlando!