Strawberry Spinach Salad with Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing

This is the perfect summer salad, with fresh berries and a light lemon poppy seed vinaigrette! It is a great addition to any summer BBQ and is easy to throw together. I have been making this salad for awhile now, but over the last few years made a couple changes to the recipe to clean it up. Instead of using refined sugar in the dressing I use just a little bit of honey to sweeten it. Also make sure to choose a healthy oil, if you do not have avocado oil, you could use olive oil. If you are avoiding sweeteners all together, you could easily leave out the honey and the dressing would still be great!

While I used strawberries and blueberries in this recipe, I have also added in raspberries and mandarin oranges as well in the past. The red and blue colored berries in this salad make it a great side dish for a Memorial Day or 4th of July BBQ!

RECIPE

Dressing Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 1 tablespoon avocado oil

• 1 teaspoon poppy seeds

Directions:

Combine all ingredients until well blended. Cover and chill until needed.

Salad Ingredients:

• 6 oz package baby spinach

• 1 cup strawberries, sliced

• 1/2 cup blueberries

• 1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced

• 1 cup cucumbers, sliced

• 1/4 cup almonds, toasted (I have used marcona almonds and also sliced almonds in this recipe)

Directions:

In a small pan place the almonds over medium heat until they are lightly toasted, stirring occasionally. Set aside until ready to use. In a large bowl first place the baby spinach, then top with onion, cucumber and berries. Sprinkle nuts on top just before serving and toss together with the dressing.