Strawberry Bacon Brie Salad
Seasonal berries dance with cheese, nuts, and more in this scrumptious Strawberry Bacon Brie Salad with a Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette! Plus find out how I keep my produce fresh longer!
This is no ordinary Spinach Salad with Bacon! The candied pecans, fresh strawberries, bacon, and Brie make it worthy of royalty!!!
Why You Must Make
- This is not your typical spinach salad! The complexity of sweet, salty, savory, creamy, crisp, and crunchy ingredients will thrill your taste buds. I started with fresh baby spinach greens, then piled on slices of ripe strawberries, bits of crispy bacon, rich triple creme Brie, and sugared pecan halves.
- A drizzle of salad dressing infused with strawberry jam was the final touch to pull it all together.
- This is truly a party in your mouth with each delectable bite.
Did you know May was National Salad Month? Perfect timing as the first crop of lettuces and greens are being harvested from our gardens. Plus I’ve been thrilled with the fragrant berries in the markets. You know me and berries, they are a fabulous dessert garnish, plus I love to add them to my salads all summer long!
Ingredient Notes
- Kitchen Staples – Salt, Freshly Ground Black Pepper, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Dijon Mustard
- Aged Balsamic Vinegar – I use 18-year-old, aged balsamic. It’s thick, syrupy and sweet. It makes a huge difference in the taste of your salad dressing.
- Strawberry Jam – Brings sweetness and strawberry flavor to your salad dressing.
- Baby Spinach – More tender than regular spinach.
- Bacon – Fry, drain off excess oil, then crumble or chop into pieces
- Brie – Slice or dice into bite-sized pieces. Remove the rind if that’s your preference.
- Candied Pecans – See the link in the recipe card to learn how to make them at home.
- Sliced Strawberries – Look for bright, glossy, fragrant strawberries without bruising or signs of deterioration. Slice right before adding to the salad.
How to Make an Arranged Salad
- When making a salad for dinner guests, it’s nice to attractively arrange the ingredients in a bowl or on a platter.
- Start with the greens first as a base.
- In the photo above, you can see that the rest of the ingredients were added in concentric circles. Or you can separate each ingredient on a platter of spinach greens to toss together before serving.
- Don’t add the dressing until you present the salad. This will prevent the greens from getting soggy.
Rubbermaid FreshWorks Produce Saver
Are you frustrated with how quickly your berries deteriorate after bringing them home from the market? Do you find that your raspberries have gotten moldy overnight? Yeah, me, too! Well, I’ve never been MORE excited about a new product that will help increase the life of your produce by as much as 80% longer! My berries showed no sign of new soft spots one week after my purchase date. Just transfer your produce from the grocery store packaging into these Rubbermaid FreshWorks Produce Savers (affiliate link). They really work!!
Frequently Asked Questions
Use all your senses when shopping for strawberries. Fresh strawberries should be red, without green or white patches, glossy, and the seeds should not appear brown and dehydrated. They should have a sweet, strawberry aroma, and they should be firm, not soft and mushy. Buying in season is best.
California strawberries are in season year-round. Florida strawberry season runs from March to November.
Store your strawberries in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Do not wash until you are ready to use them. If you don’t have a specialized container, put a paper towel in the bottom of the receptacle to absorb any moisture that might hasten spoilage.
You May Also Like:
- Honey French Salad Dressing
- Best Summer Salad Recipes
- Rhubarb Baby Cakes
- Fresh Blackberry Scones
- Spinach Salad with Pears, Cranberries and Candied Pecans
- Plus, if you have extra strawberries, this Strawberry, Turkey and Brie Grilled Cheese is a yummy twist on a classic.
- Plus More of my Best Salad Recipes
Strawberry Bacon Brie Salad Recipe
The perfect salad for berry season with ripe strawberries, bacon, brie and pecans tossed with spinach and a strawberry balsamic vinaigrette.
Ingredients
Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette:
- 3 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon strawberry jam
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salad:
- 5 ounces baby spinach greens
- 4 slices of bacon, sliced, fried, drained
- ⅓ pound Brie, sliced or diced
- ½ cup candied pecans*
- 1 cup sliced strawberries
Instructions
- Make the dressing by whisking together the vinegar, mustard, jam, salt, and pepper.
- While whisking continuously, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the mixture is emulsified. Set aside.
- Add spinach to a large salad bowl. Arrange the bacon, Brie, pecans, and strawberries over the greens.
- When ready to serve, drizzle with the salad dressing and toss.
Notes
* To make candied pecans, check out this Spinach Salad Recipe.
A good quality, aged balsamic vinegar makes the best salad dressing. It's sweet and syrupy.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 367Total Fat: 32gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 23gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 573mgCarbohydrates: 11gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 9g
60 Comments on “Strawberry Bacon Brie Salad”
I adore this salad! The mix of flavors is unexpected, but they been o to the perfect bite. 5 stars!
That dressing sounds so good! Pretty much every month is national salad month for me.
my favorite salad is chef salad.
Favorite is Caesar Salad.
I like a big tossed salad with shredded chicken, cheese and so much more on it.
I like a good Chef Salad
I like a spinach salad with grilled chicken, feta and a variety of vegetables!
My favorite kind of salad is a big Cobb Salad.
I like a cobb salad
My favorite is taco salad with grilled chicken.
Seriously,
I’d eat that salad
every. single. day.
for the rest of my life!!! x
I like salads with chicken, bacon and fruit
Once upon a time, a chef salad was my favorite. After seeing this beauty I think I have a new one.
What is it about strawberries with brie?! Beautiful salad!
I like egg salad
This salad sounds out of this world delicious. 🙂 But anything with bacon in it is a winner.
I’ve had such a craving for bacon today. This salad looks wonderful and even though there’s bacon in it the berries and greens balance it out.
I love those Rubbermaid containers, I haven’t seen those before. I’ll keep an eye out for them. Thanks.
My favorite salad is anything with brie cheese and strawberries!!! Hmmm, sounds like a Liz Berg recipe =)
What an outstanding salad. It surely has something for everyone!
I’m a fan of a seafood salad with shrimp and crab legs.
That salad looks amazing. One of my favs is caesar salad.
Cobb salad for me please! YUM!
Favorite salad is arugula, spinach, walnuts, berries and a little dressing.
I just love lettuce, cheese and ranch dressing – sometimes pickles or chicken on it.
This is such a cool recipe. Love how pretty it is and I bet the flavour is incredible.
I need to try these containers asap!!
I like a pretzel jello salad
I’m totally a bacon and brie guy! GMTA
I like a salad with berries and blue cheese crumbles.
I love salad with fruits, especially strawberries, the combination of savory and sweet is just amazing. Thanks for this amazing recipe Liz…have a great weekend 🙂
By the way, these storage containers look sharp…
My Mom would love this salad so much – I’m forwarding to her!
Shrimp Cobb
i love salads with pesto sauce
Yumm. My favorite salad is a cobb salad with extra blue cheese!
This is such a pretty salad, LIz! I love adding berries to my salads too and this looks perfect with the candied pecans!
This is totally my kind of salad. I love throwing strawberries into things (and bacon). I love that you’ve used brie cheese! Thanks for the info on keeping berries fresh – it’s so frustrating when they don’t last long. Looking forward to trying this one out Liz!
Such a pretty salad, Liz! You can never go wrong with strawberries and brie! 🙂
I really enjoy strawberries with greens. The bacon and the brie make this salad even move special. I will have to check out the Rubbermaid, I like the idea of my summer fruits staying fresher for a longer time.
Stunning salad, Liz, the Brie makes it for me…and thank goodness for Rubbermaid, my refrigerator is full of it!
I like Caesar salad!
no strawberry listed in the dressing recipe?
Thanks for catching that! I whisked in 1 tablespoon of strawberry jam (or preserves).
My favorite salad is greek salad!
I love a fresh fruit salad with big chunks of watermelon, pineapple, blueberries and lots of other fruits.
One word, Liz – YUM!!!!
Thanks for inspiring me, Sandra!!! xo
Definitely adding this to my “must try” list!
Yum! This looks perfect. I love a salad with fruit, cheese and nuts!
I like a Caesar salad.
I tend to keep my salads simple by only putting kale/spinach and some dressing.
I tried out the containers too and think they’re great. Love the idea of brie on this salad!
My favorite salad right now is the ramen noodle/broccoli slaw salad. So tasty and different
I love any salad, even jello salad but give me a fattoush or Greek salad and I’m in heaven!
Liz, this salad is screaming to me! I have bacon and strawberry in the fridge too. I am thinking I will use feta (which I have) instead of brie and this will be my lunch!
My favorite is a Greek salad with feta cheese.
This looks divine! I love the flavor combination!
Love rubbermaid, use their products all the time, but I don’t have these! Would love to win them!
I love spinach salad with avocado, strawberries, and red onion.
It’s a toss-up for me. If I’m looking for a heartier salad, I typically go for a wedge with steak and bleu cheese. If I’m looking for something lighter, then a roast beet salad with goat cheese (or even a simple caprese salad) usually fits the bill!
I have always used rubbermaid… love their products
I always love the combo of salty and sweet…this salad looks utterly delicious!