I’m loving the summer recipes I’ve been making recently. My last post was crostini with fresh strawberries (link here) and this post is also featuring the beautiful berry.

This recipe is a delicious and very colourful spinach salad. I’ve used a base of spinach but you could use romaine lettuce or mixed greens instead. The toppings are where the fun happens. I love fully loaded salads and this is definitely one of them.

Like I mentioned, I have some strawberries, but I also have sliced almonds and crumbled goat cheese. I feel like those 3 ingredients are such a classic and delicious combination because they work so well together. You get a variety of colours, textures and flavours. For the goat cheese, I used a cranberry variety which has dried cranberries and cinnamon, but plain would be perfect here too. I enjoyed the extra touch of fruit.

The dressing is the finishing touch that brings everything together. I used balsamic vinegar (which goes very well here), some honey and a little salt and pepper. You don’t even need oil. It’s a very light dressing that adds the perfect amount of acidity to the mix.

The crunchy almonds, the creamy cheese and the juicy strawberries make for the perfect bite. This is far from a boring salad.

Just like the crostini I made earlier this week, the ingredients in this salad are very customizable. For example, you can swap out the almonds for some walnuts or pecans. You could even go the extra mile and make candied nuts – that would add more crunch. And for the fruit, almost any would work here – peach, pear, orange, apple or other berries.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups spinach, roughly chopped
• 3-4 large strawberries, chopped or sliced
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
• 1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tbsp honey
• Pinch salt
• Pinch black pepper

Directions:

1. In large serving bowl, place spinach, followed by strawberries, almonds and goat cheese.
2. In small bowl, combine all remaining ingredients to make the dressing. Pour over salad and toss.
3. Serve immediately.