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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!
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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
Jen HansardIngredients
- 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.
Recipe 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
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.
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!