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Salad needs to be exciting for me to want to eat it. This strawberry mixed greens salad ticks all the boxes with a bit of crunch + lots of strawberry sweetness. Don’t be intimidated by the fact that it has a combination of leafy greens… these greens all have different flavors that come together for a tasty lunch. Plus, you can buy them all at once since most grocery stores sell “mixed greens.”
According to a study done by Harvard, greens like kale, spinach and arugula are powerhouses when it comes to providing you with Vitamin A, folate and Vitamin C, plus fiber, water and magnesium to help your digestion.
How to Make Mixed Greens Salad
This mixed greens salad recipe is filled with these greens, plus tangy green apple, creamy avocado, and crunchy almonds. Seriously, this salad is the perfect meal when your sweet tooth comes calling and you’re trying to eat healthy.
1. Wash and dry greens
A recent study done by Consumer Reports says that we should all be washing any produce that comes into our cooking spaces, whether “pre-washed”, organic or otherwise. This is because even those mixed greens carefully washed by well meaning producers can still contain contaminants from E. coli, chemicals and more.
2. Chop apples, avocado and cucumber
I like to chop them all into bite-size pieces (the smaller, the better).
3. Make the Strawberry viniagarette
Combine dressing ingredients in a high-speed blender or food processor and puree into the best dressing you’ve ever had with mixed greens.
4. prepare the plate
Add the mixed greens first, and then toppings to the plate. Drizzle dressing on top and enjoy!
Make-Ahead Salad Tip
If you want this salad for work, prep it all in a mason jar. It’s seriously so easy! Simply layer the ingredients in the mason jar. Keep the strawberry dressing in a separate container until time to eat. When you’re ready to eat, pour the dressing on top, give the mason jar a good shake, and enjoy!
Strawberry Mixed Greens Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups spring mix greens loosely packed
- 1 cucumber thinly sliced
- 1 green apple diced
- 1 avocado sliced
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
Dressing
- 1 cup strawberries diced
- 6 basil leaves fresh, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp maple syrup
- pinch sea salt
- pinch black pepper ground, to taste
Instructions
- Arrange salad ingredients on plates.
- Puree the dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed.
- Drizzle some of the dressing over salad (you may not need all of it). Eat immediately.
Notes
- Swap mixed greens with the leafy greens of your choice.
- Oil-free? Omit the olive oil. It’ll still be delicious and less caloric.
- Lemon Vinaigrette would also be delicious on this recipe.
- Add the nuts or seeds of your choice for more healthy fats + protein.
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions about Mixed Greens Salad
Yes! If you have a favorite dressing, feel free to swap out my Strawberry Vinaigrette. Yet I do encourage you to make it one time like this because it’s out-of-this-world delicious!
You sure can. You can swap it for any leafy green you prefer or have on hand. You might check out our Leafy Greens Guide for more inspiration.
In all my salads, I try and use some sorta nuts, seeds or protein to help me stay full. A salad is typically a meal for me, which means it needs a variety of fiber, healthy fats, protein and carbs to keep me full until the next meal.
Overall, I thought the salad was really good. The dressing is great and I will make that again – it tastes like spring.
Made the dressing in advance. I tasted it before adding the maple syrup, liked it and opted not to add the maple syrup sugar. I refrigerated which allowed the flavors to marry. Prepping dressing in my Vitamix was super easy, clean up simple. I used 4C of OG Protein Power Greens which is a really nice mix, followed the recipe measures for all the other ingredients. Lightly toasted the almonds. I shared the salad with my spouse. We do not like over-dressed salads, so really only used a very small amount of the dressing which I drizzled along the edge of the bowl and then tossed. Had a few ounces of boneless, skinless chicken breast. Great dinner, we both loved it. Will make this salad again and again. Nice start to the challenge!!!
I loved the dressing! I have looked at this salad several times but never made it, so thank you for including it in the 10 days!
The dressing is a keeper for sure! I would probably sub spinach for mixed greens and add some feta for salt! Overall, awesome!
I had to skip the apple and almonds (allergies), but it was an excellent and refreshing salad. I’ll be making this again for sure!
There are def some substitutions you can make here. Maybe strawberries in place of apples and sunflower seed in place of almonds? – Just in case you were looking for way to bulk it back up.
The spiciness of the strawberry dressing was amazing. A smidge too much salt for me though. Really enjoyed the salad and I’ll make it again.
Loved this salad! Will definitely be making it again!
It’s goes perfect on a hot summer day!
Made the dressing in advance. I tasted it before adding the maple syrup, liked it and opted not to add the maple syrup sugar. I refrigerated which allowed the flavors to marry. Prepping dressing in my Vitamix was super easy, clean up simple. I used 4C of OG Protein Power Greens which is a really nice mix, followed the recipe measures for all the other ingredients. I shared the salad with my spouse. We do not like over-dressed salads, so really only used a very small amount of the dressing which I drizzled along the edge of the bowl and then tossed. Had a few ounces of boneless, skinless chicken breast. Great dinner, we both loved it. Will make this salad again and again. Nice start to the challenge!!!
The strawberry dressing was really good! It’s definitely a keeper and I am planning to make it often after the end of the challenge too.
Very delicious salad, strawberry and basil dressing was on point simple fast and good.
Delish! Was a hit in our family. We added a little bit of grilled salmon into it as well. Our dressing was a little thick but I honestly didn’t measure amounts when making it. Added just a splash of white wine to the dressing to thin. Will make again
Super tasty! I actually did drink some of the dressing, since it didn’t all fit in the container I chose, lol!
Great first day salad. I make this salad a lot. Berries always add freshness to the salad, and a bit of crunch , regardless of the nut used, is always an added bonus. I’m glad you added the dressing . I don’t always take the time to make my dressings , even though I know it’s better tasting and better for me.
Day 1 – I Love this Salad but I had to swap the avocado And use Edamame Instead due to food allergy. Other than that the salad is the bomb . I also loved the strawberry salad dressing . Will be making this salad and the dressing more often. Side note: this was the first time making a salad dressing ❤️
Ooooh! Edamame is a great call to use in place of the avocado!
Day 1 and I wasn’t in the mood to chop and cut and try something new… but accountability in the challenge! I subbed chopped walnuts for almonds. My mixed greens were 1:1 baby spinach and red leaf lettuce. Also left out the avocado, because mine was too hard. And the verdict… Wow! Very yummy! So glad I didn’t get lazy and pushed myself to make this! I’ll definitely repeat this. (I’m not usually a salad dressing person, but by using less oil, it was thicker and I enjoyed the flavor!)
Def a 5-star!
* * * * * Yay!!!
This salad is definitely going to be my go to salad during the hot summer days. I normally like to have some sort of cheese on my salad, however I did not miss it.
Hmmm.. have you ever tried our Vegan Parmesan Cheese?
Jan, you RAWK!! Way to meet the challenge!!
This salad was a big hit with me and my husband! Yummy-O He put pepitas instead of almonds and I put roasted garbanzos (nut/seed allergy for me)! I will definitely make this many times in the future! I could just drink the dressing by itself!!
This salad was easy to make and a big hit for the whole family. I’m thankful we doubled the recipe, because everyone took seconds!
My first salad challenge and my first salad. Also my first homemade salad dressing with my Vitamix. Mmm was the comment from my partner. We love the variety of ingredients and the exotic flavours.
Your first salad?! Way to go!!!