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For years, I thought salads had to look a certain way—bland iceberg lettuce, salty croutons, and a thick, creamy dressing. I ate them… but I didn’t love them. That all changed when I realized how fresh, vibrant, and satisfying salads can actually be.
This strawberry mixed greens salad is one of my favorites. It’s all about the balance—crisp greens, sweet fruit, creamy avocado, and that bright strawberry basil vinaigrette that brings everything to life. This is the kind of salad you’ll actually crave. Enjoy!
Table of Contents
What is a Mixed Greens Salad?
A mixed green salad is a simple salad made with a variety of leafy greens—like spring mix, spinach, arugula, or lettuce—topped with fresh ingredients and a dressing. It’s known for being light, flexible, and easy to customize based on what you have on hand.
This recipe stands out because it’s more balanced and satisfying—with fruit, healthy fats, crunch, and a homemade strawberry basil dressing that adds fresh, vibrant flavor.
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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 Tips
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 cup 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 fresh basil fresh, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp pure maple syrup
- pinch sea salt, unrefined
- pinch black pepper, ground 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
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks! Winners announced each season in my newsletter.Common Questions
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.
It was refreshing to have something other than my usual garden salad. i cannot have hone nor maple syrup so I substituted couple of dates. It went well. Thanks.
Dates are a great substitute, Marlena! Great call!
I made the leafy green salad with the strawberry dressing. I love love loved the salad. I used roasted sliced almonds and they were so tasty and left a great crunch. I thought the dressing was okay, might have liked it better with a little vinegar, but in all honesty it was a little out of my comfort zone as far as dressing is concerned and it wasn’t bad. The combination of apple, avacado and almonds made for a tasty salad. I am looking forward to tomorrows salad.
Hooray for getting out of your comfort zone! Way to challenge yourself! #RawkstarStatus
I liked the dressing, the salad was ok. Not enough crunch for me though.
Delicious- awesome dressing, though I used a bit less basil. Makes me think of summer.
It was simply to make and very tasty, light and refreshing. There was more dressing than I needed for my salad so I used it as a snack later, and just dipped cucumbers in it. So good!
Good idea!
This is a great salad! My fav part it the strawberry dressing! I always make extra 😉
This salad is light and refreshing! The strawberry dressing is delicious. It would be a great dish to take to and share at a summer picnic! Thanks for another great recipe, Jen!
This was a hit with the whole family! This is my new go-to recipe when strawberries are just past their prime.
So delicious. This was my first time trying something like this and not only was it delicious, but it was fun and simple to make. I All I can say is yummy!
The salad was excellent! I doubled the avocado, and used Thai basil (regular fresh basil was not avilable.) I believe it is a stonger basil and would only use 1 TBS in future dressings. My dressing was not as bright as the picture either, but it had great flavor. I prepared the salad the day before.
I put lemon juice on the avocado hoping it would slow the browning. I still had some brown spots today. Any ideas on how I can keep my avocado fresh but still have it in a pre prepped salad would be welcomed.
I will double my almond measurment next time.
I think I would have given this a 5 had I not used the Thai basil. First taste I was shocked, but thoroughly enjoyed each bite more and more. It is too bad it had to end.
Delicious recipe. I decreased the salt in the dressing, but I tend to like less salt. I love strawberries and basil together and this dressing was spectacular. We added a bit of lightly sautéed diced chicken breast to add some protein.
Wow…so good!!! Made for dinner tonight and will definitely make again.
The salad was so good! I ate it once as is and then added grilled chicken the second time. Both times were really good, I needed the extra protein for my lunch. I will definitely be making this again! I may add sliced strawberries to it also!