A classic balsamic vinaigrette has always been one of my favorite dressings, but since we are heading into strawberry season and strawberries and balsamic are a classic pairing, I thought why not make them into a dressing? When strawberries come into season, we make all the things! Some other favorite recipes featuring the ruby-hued fruit are Strawberry Scones and Fresh Strawberry Pie.
Homemade Salad Dressing
If you don’t already make your own salad dressing, now is the time to start! It’s so easy to do and the taste is way better than anything that comes in a bottle. Flavors like those of the fresh strawberries, balsamic vinegar, shallot, Dijon mustard, fresh thyme, and garlic that go into making this strawberry balsamic salad dressing recipe pair perfectly with the wonderfully mild and almost subtly sweet extra virgin olive oil. Drizzle that over the mix salad greens with sliced strawberries, candied walnuts, thinly sliced fennel, crumbled goat cheese, and red onions, and you’ve got yourself a salad that is sunshine and spring days wrapped up in every crunchy, sweet and savory bite.
Classic Flavor Pairing: Strawberries & Balsamic Vinegar
If you have never tried the classic combination of fresh, ripe strawberries with a good quality balsamic vinegar, it’s a must-taste experience to add to your list of culinary adventures. The savory balsamic vinegar actually brings out the natural bright sweetness of ripe strawberries and complements it. This homemade Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette perfectly balances the two star ingredients. This vibrant, power-packed salad dressing is something you might want to eat with a spoon. As in I was literally having to stop myself from doing that as I was taste-testing for this recipe. I tend to be pretty liberal using this particular salad dressing because the bulk of it is just fresh strawberry puree and it doesn’t keep for more than a day or two.
Making a Strawberry Spring Salad
The first step to an incredible salad is to really thoroughly wash and dry your salad greens. That’s where a handy-dandy salad spinner comes in. It really does make a huge difference in the texture of the salad when your greens are crispy and crunchy instead of waterlogged. I used both red and green leaf lettuce for this spring salad. I love the color contrast of the red leaf lettuce and green leaf lettuce, and think that their flavor and texture go great with the other salad components. Just roughly chop up the salad greens and then rinse them well and give them a spin in a salad spinner until they are totally dry. Then I just remove the basket from my salad spinner and use the bowl for serving. Top the lettuce with sliced strawberries, thinly shaved fennel, sliced red onion, crumbled goat cheese, and candied walnuts. It has a great balance of sweet and savory, crunchy and creamy soft (thanks to the crumbled goat cheese), and loads of flavor in the form of the fresh strawberry balsamic dressing. This salad tasted like something I might expect to order at a fancy restaurant. Except I made it at home in about 10 minutes.
More Delicious Salads You’ll Enjoy
Chopped Kale Salad Persimmon, Pomegranate and Spinach Salad Grilled Cajun Chicken Salad with Creamy Cajun Dressing The Most Amazing Apple Salad with Candied Walnuts and Poppy Seed Dressing
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of OXO and California Olive Ranch.
Spinach, Bacon & Egg Salad with Creamy Honey Mustard Dressing
Winter Pear, Pomegranate & Swiss Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing
Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing
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