Salad needs to be exciting for me to want to eat it. This mixed greens salad ticks all the boxes with a bit of crunch + lots of strawberries. Don’t be intimidated by the fact that a mixed greens recipe has a little bit of everything in it… these greens all have different flavors that come together for a tasty lunch.
Who says a mixed greens recipe has to be boring? Not me!
Well, at least not me anymore. I used to cringe at mixed greens… yet I realized not all salads are created equal. Take this gem for instance.
This mixed greens recipe is filled with a nutrient-rich leafy green base, tangy green apple, creamy avocado, and crunchy almonds. Seriously, this salad is the perfect way to fuel your body with tons of plant based goodness!
Table of Contents
What to do with mixed greens
Making a salad that actually tastes good only takes a few key elements: fresh greens, toppings and a good dressing. As a result, the days of ranch on iceberg are over for good! Hallelujah!
Why are leafy greens good for you?
Did you know you can get not only nutrients, but also water, minerals and fiber from an awesome salad of mixed greens like this one? Obviously these are some pretty powerful plants!
According to a study done by Harvard, greens like kale, spinach and arugula are powerhouses when it comes to providing you with nutrients like Vitamin A, folate and Vitamin C – plus fiber, water and magnesium to help your digestion. Meanwhile, you just thought you were enjoying a yummy bowl of mixed greens topped with your fav homemade dressing. Go you!
To wash or not to wash?
There is a great deal of debate on whether or not you should wash greens before using. Haven’t we all been there? You show up to a friend’s house for dinner, excited to get in the kitchen to help – only to be mortified to see her dump a plastic box of greens into a bowl for tonight’s salad. If it’s pre-washed, then is it okay? What about organic?
Turns out, if your packaging states those lovely mixed greens have been pre-washed by a company that uses GMP or “good manufacturing processes”, you’re good to go.
That’s according to most sources, including an article published by the University of Minnesota. On the other hand, 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 ewwwie poo-ies (E. coli, etc.), chemicals and more.
After reading that, um…would you excuse me one sec while I wash up some leafy stuff for this mixed greens recipe?
How to take your salads on the go
Now, back to the reason we’re here. On with the salad! The strawberry herb dressing included in the recipe below is ah-mazing. Seriously, I could drink it.
If you want these greens to travel, then you can prep your salad ahead of time in a mason jar. It’s seriously so easy! Simply layer the ingredients in the mason jar, but store the (yummy, strawberry) dressing in a separate container. When you’re ready to eat, pour the dressing on, give the mason jar a good shake, and enjoy!
More simple salad recipes
Does this recipe have you jonesing for more fresh ways to use those mixed greens in your fridge? Yeah, me too. If you’re ready more crunch and more yummy homemade dressings, here’s a list of my favs for you!
- Pear Salad with Pomegranate
- Hearty Mason Jar Salad
- Healthy Taco Salad
- Vegan Salad with Spiralized Sweet Potatoes
- Strawberry Arugula Salad
- Berry Salad
If you give one of these or the recipe below a taste, then let me know by rating and commenting below!
Mixed Greens Salad
Ingredients
FOR SALAD:
- 2 cups mixed greens loosely packed
- ½ cup cucumber thinly sliced
- ½ green apple diced
- ½ avocado sliced
- 2 tbsp sliced almonds
FOR DRESSING:
- ½ cup strawberries diced
- 1 tbsp basil fresh, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- pinch sea salt
- pinch black pepper ground, to taste
Instructions
- Arrange salad ingredients on a large plate.
- 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.
- Lemon Vinaigrette would also be delicious on this recipe.
- Add the nuts or seeds of your choice for more healthy fats + protein.
Dressing is delicious. I couldn’t get basil or tarragon this time of year in Northern California so used mint and marjoram from my herb garden. Added some fresh strawberries. Used a carrot instead of cucumber when the one I had turned out to be rotten. Added some black beans to make more protein and used cashews instead of almonds. Just a few changes but it was a great salad that my family eagerly ate.
The dressing for today’s potato salad was good. I thought about using sweet potatoes, but wasn’t sure that would work with these flavors, but I can’t eat the regular potatoes. Ended up using a rutabaga, which seems a lot like a potato in texture and look, but with a bit of a garlicky taste. It worked well with this dressing.
Love that even though you can’t have potatoes you didn’t let you stop you. You’re rawesome!
Running a day late for this review. I tried this, but left out the walnut meet and cashew cream due to nut allergies. I had regular sour cream already, so used it. Any idea how to make the walnut meat and cashew cream with sunflower seeds or pepita’s? Otherwise, this salad was okay, but with the “meat” it is best as a side dish.
Running a day late for this review. I tried this, but left out the walnut meet and cashew cream due to nut allergies. I had regular sour cream already, so used it. Any idea how to make the walnut meat and cashew cream with sunflower seeds or pepita’s? Otherwise, this salad was okay, but with the “meat” it is best as a side dish.q
Excellent flavor. Light and love this mixture of greens!
Absolutely amazing flavour
Great salad! Dressing puts calories over the top for my meal calorie maximum.
Love this dressing and combo of flavors!! Next time I’m trying pecans. Also going to add a little blue cheese…love that bite with the sweetness of this kind of dressing. Thank you!
Very tasty and filling. Loved the dressing!
The strawberry dressing is amazing, however I prefer to leave out cucumber (somehow doesn’t work for me), and do it with arugula instead of mixed greens. I just love the combination of arugula with strawberries…
Simply delicious!
The dressing was outstanding too!
Thank you SGS for such an awesome and simple salad recipe!!
This dressing was very tasty but I did miss not having a source of much protein besides just a few almonds. It was also overall a little too sweet for me with the apple and strawberry dressing.
This salad has amazing. Did not disappoint. Flavorful, yet light. Love the dressing. Definitely going into my recipe book!
Both me and Hubby enjoyed this salad as a side dish. The dressing totally elevated everything! Liked the different textures(crunch of the apple and creaminess of the avocado).
This was fabulous! My whole fam loved it. I didn’t have almonds, so subbed toasted pecans. Delicious! A friend said she uses pine nuts, which sounded interesting. I saw one reviewer found the dressing meh. Mine was very bright, but I got THE BEST, sweetest strawberries from Sprouts and fresh lemons from our backyard, so I am sure that made it great. I also skipped the maple syrup. I just didn’t feel it would add anything to this.
Pecans would be super yummy in this recipe!
This salad was easy to make. Just a couple of things I can not have on both salad and dressing. No apple and maple syrup with out these two things both came out yummy. Dressing was good. I will make it again. My avocado was not ready I substituted it with tomatoes. I can not have apple so I put a couple of fresh strawberries instead. Also it was very filling.
Best part of it is I know I am eating healthy and I out create things I can not have.
I want to post photo sorry don’t know how yet. 🙂