Strawberry Spinach Salad with Sesame Poppyseed Dressing

This Strawberry Spinach Salad Recipe is loaded with fresh summer strawberries and is topped with a delicious Sesame Poppyseed dressing. It is perfect for a healthy lunch or a side salad for dinner. It also makes a great salad to take to a party.

I am really excited about sharing the recipe for this Spinach and Strawberry Salad with you. It is one that my family loves to eat! The salad is made up of just three ingredients…fresh strawberries, spinach, and slivered or sliced almonds!

The recipe was shared with us by a friend who caters for parties. Whenever we have a big party we ask him to cater and the one thing we always have him make each time has been this Strawberry Spinach Salad. Everyone always loves it!

It really is easy to make and it is the perfect salad for summertime. And the homemade dressing takes it over the top. We finally just asked for the recipe

Strawberry Spinach Salad Ingredients

It seems like a lot of ingredients, but it’s actually not too bad and the recipe comes together really quickly.

• Fresh Spinach
• Strawberries
• Almonds – You can toast the almonds if desired. You can also use walnuts, candied pecans, or just plain toasted pecans.
• Cheese – You can also add feta cheese, goat cheese, blue cheese, or a cubed hard cheese that your family likes.

You’ll start by making the dressing first, as it has to sit in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

Poppyseed Salad Dressing Ingredients

• Sesame Seeds
• Poppy Seeds
• Granulated Sugar
• Olive Oil
• Distilled White Vinegar
• Paprika
• Minced Onion

This is such a great summer salad with fresh strawberries mixed in! The combination of baby spinach, strawberries, and almonds along with the homemade dressing makes an amazing salad.

It is always a hit at parties. If you are making it for a party, I would at least double the recipe. This recipe as written serves 4-6 people.

How to Make the Homemade Poppyseed Dressing

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, olive oil, vinegar, paprika, and minced onion. Cover tightly and chill for one hour.

When ready to use, whisk again because the seeds may have settled at the bottom of the bowl. That’s all you need to do for the dressing!

How to Make this Spinach Salad

Use fresh, ripened strawberries for the best results. I love making this salad during the summer strawberry season with freshly picked berries. We love to make this into a main course as well, by adding some cooked, shredded or grilled chicken to the salad.

Wash the strawberries by rinsing them with water. Pat them dry or let them sit on some paper towels to dry.

Once they are dry, slice off the tops of the strawberries and slice the rest of the berry into thin slices. I usually cut the strawberries into thin slices so that they are not such big pieces of strawberries in the salad.

Keep the salad chilled in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve it. I would make it as close to serving time as you possibly can.

Add the dressing when you are serving the salad, not ahead of time. The salad will become soggy if you add it ahead of time.

Two Ways to Serve this Salad 

You can serve it in a large bowl and add the dressing to the entire salad. If you do it this way, pour the dressing over the salad and give it a gentle toss to mix it evenly.

You can also serve it on individual plates with the dressing on the side. By serving it this way, each person can add dressing to their own salad and control how much dressing they would like on their salad.

You do not need to use all of the dressing. Use however much you prefer on your typical salad. We recently made this salad for dinner and had extra dressing left over. My husband used it on salads for lunch for a few days!

Got Leftovers? 

If you have leftover salad without dressing, it can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Any salad with dressing on it should only be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. The salad may be a bit soggy the next day.

Use any leftover salad dressing quickly. The poppy seeds and sesame seeds will soften by the next day but it will still taste okay. If you are making another batch of salad for guests, however, I would make a fresh batch of dressing.

Have an Almond Allergy?

Replace the almonds with candied pecans or walnuts. If you have a nut allergy, you can use sunflower seeds.

Make the Salad a Main Course

This salad makes an easy side dish, but you can make it a meal as well! Add shredded chicken, cubed rotisserie chicken, or grilled chicken along with some cheese to make this a hearty lunch or dinner recipe instead of a side salad.

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Looking for More Strawberry Recipes? 

Here are a few of my favorite recipes for you to try…Strawberry Shortcake, Strawberry Kiwi Popsicles, Dehydrated Strawberries, and Chocolate Strawberry Ice Cream Pie!

Did you make this recipe? If so, please leave a comment and rating below. I love hearing from you.