Monday, May 02, 2011

Strawberry Spinach Salad

The beautiful box of strawberries intended, but unused, for our fabulous tea sandwiches was begging to be used, so I happily obliged with the most standard salad pairing: spinach! Beautiful bright green tender bunches of leaves and now that I know sorrel can be a stand-in, I will be using that as well next time. I modified a recipe from Extra VeganZa, which I haven't used much yet, but intend to soon!



Walnut Strawberry Spinach Salad
1 bunch fresh spinach, cleaned and stems removed
strawberries, stems removed and thinly sliced (for an individual serving, about 4-5 strawberries)
walnuts, coarsely chopped (untoasted) (for an individual serving, about 1/4 c.)
red onion, thinly sliced (you won't need more than 1/2 of a red onion for a large bowl of salad, for an individual serving, just a sprinkling)
*goat cheese is optional*

Dressing
1 1/2 tbs raspberry wine vinegar (red wine vinegar would also work)
1 1/2 tbs cider vinegar (used because I ran out of raspberry wine vinegar)
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs canola oil (again you can use 2 tbs of either oil if preferred)
2 tbs maple syrup
1/4-1/2 tsp seal salt
1 tbs poppy seeds
 2 tsp Dijon whole grain mustard 

Place the spinach in a large bowl (or small plate) and top with strawberries, red onion, walnuts, and optional goat cheese in desired quantities.
For the dressing, whisk together all ingredients (or shake in a lidded jar). Pour over salad before serving. Note that the poppy seeds don't really settle into the dressing, so if you're only using part of the dressing, for an individual salad, I recommend gently whisking while pouring to ensure some of the poppy seeds stay in the jar :)

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