10/08/2020
Eat at home Thursday's, Strawberry Spinach Salad with Candied Pecans Feta and Balsamic Vinaigrette
A delicious and easy strawberry spinach salad with layers of exciting flavor! It's perfect for a light dinner with chicken or serve as dinner side salad.
Servings: 6 servings
Prep Time
15 minutes
Total Time
15 minutes
Ingredients
Vinaigrette
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (Try Messino Balsamic)
1/2 cup olive oil (Try Lidrivio EVOO)
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp honey
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Candied pecans
3/4 cup broken or roughly chopped pecans
1 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 Tbsp butter
Salad
10 oz baby spinach
1 lb fresh strawberries , hulled and sliced
5 oz . feta cheese , crumbled
1/3 small red onion , thinly sliced
Instructions
For the vinaigrette:
Add vinegar to a small saucepan, bring to a boil over medium heat and allow to boil until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Pour into a jar or bowl, add olive oil, dijon mustard, honey and whisk to blend while seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Thin with a little water if desired. Set aside.
For the pecans:
Add pecans, brown sugar and butter to a small non-stick skillet and cook over medium-heat, stirring constantly until sugar starts to melt and caramelize, about 2 - 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate in a single layer to cool.
For the salad:
In a salad bowl toss together spinach, strawberries, half of the feta, red onion and pecans. Drizzle about 1/3 of the dressing over salad then plate and drizzle remaining dressing over individual portions and top with remaining half of the feta. Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
Recipe source: Cooking Classy
Try using different berries such as blueberries.
Apples and pears are a great option instead of strawberries.
Don't have feta? Try a crumbly goat cheese instead.