Strawberry Spinach Salad with Sesame Seed Vinaigrette
This refreshing, vibrant Strawberry Spinach Salad with Sesame Seed Vinaigrette is a delicious retro recipe from the 1970s. It’s perfect for summer gatherings, so refreshing with sweet ripe berries and tender baby spinach.
My aunt Angela shared this strawberry spinach salad recipe with my mom when I was in high school. The simple ingredients and sweet vinaigrette made it very appealing to teenage girls.
Strawberry Spinach Salad with Sesame Seed Vinaigrette
I found an old recipe card for this spinach salad in my recipe box. Like a real wooden box with a hinged lid! I don’t think many folks have actual recipe boxes anymore.
A retro recipe from my aunt Angela, some of the ingredient amounts were rather vague, like a “bag of spinach” and “sliced strawberries.” Thankfully, the salad dressing gave more precise measurements.
When my brother-in-law and his lovely wife were visiting, I made this spinach salad with just one bag of baby spinach. There was enough dressing to over saturate the berries and greens plus enough leftover for at least another full salad. So I upped the amount of spinach to 10 full ounces on that old yellowed index card.
Tips for Making a Strawberry Spinach Salad Recipe
This super easy salad recipe can be tweaked in numerous ways!
- Like mentioned above, double the spinach and berries for a bigger crowd.
- Replace the green onions with very thin slices of red onion. I like soaking the red onion in ice water for 5-10 minutes to reduce their pungency.
- Add some cubed avocados to the mix. The creaminess plays well off the other ingredients.
- Crumbled feta or mini fresh mozzarella balls would be another tasty addition.
- Pine nuts, sliced almonds, pecans or walnuts would add some delicious crunch. Toast them first to bring out the natural oils and intensify their flavor!
- Use poppy seeds instead of sesame seeds in the salad dressing
- Decrease the sugar to 1/4 cup if you’d prefer a less sweet salad dressing.
More Tasty Salad Recipes
- Cherry Orange Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette
- Basil Brie and Strawberry Salad
- Spinach Pear and Blue Cheese Salad
- Greek Salad with Feta
- Fiesta Salad
- Spinach Salad with Grilled Peaches
- Honey Lime Fruit Salad
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Strawberry Spinach Salad with Sesame Seed Vinaigrette
A throwback recipe featuring baby spinach and sweet, ripe strawberries.
Ingredients
- 10 ounces fresh baby spinach
- 8- 12 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup champagne vinegar
- 4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup sugar (cut in half if you don't want a very sweet dressing)
- 4 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon chopped onion
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- ⅓ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Toss spinach, sliced strawberries, and green onions in a large salad bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk together the vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, paprika, onion, and sesame seeds.
- Then drizzle in the oil while whisking continuously.
- Toss with enough dressing to coat the ingredients before serving.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 257Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 62mgCarbohydrates: 42gFiber: 8gSugar: 30gProtein: 4g
10 Comments on “Strawberry Spinach Salad with Sesame Seed Vinaigrette”
Such great tips and the one about soaking red onions was new to me. This salad is pretty, refreshing and having an extra helping won’t wreak havoc on my waistline.
Simple and tasty, a great retro recipe, Liz! A great salad for summer that’s pretty also! Thanks!
The perfect summer salad! So simple to make and so good for the body.
That is a really interesting vinaigrette using Worcestershire sauce. A fun change from the usual soya sauce. Hoping your summer is going well.
What a pretty summer salad. I just love the additional options you gave at the end of the post.
I didn’t know this type of salad was popular in the 70’s. My mom wasn’t on that trend, I guess. 😉 So cool it was popular back then, too. I love using strawberries anywhere possible in the summer and this is one gorgeous display of them. ~Valentina
Love the flavor combo and how light and simple this is. Always wanted to try something like these, but never did. Definitely keeping this post 🙂
I can vouch for the flavor combo! I’ve tried a poppy seed variation, the sesame seeds sound good:@)
This may be retro but timeless! Do love the pine nuts, avocado, and feta touches. Funny we are both into fruit salads this week!
Light, simple and yum!