This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I can earn a small commission from items you purchase (at no cost to you).
Table of Contents
Nothing says spring quite like juicy strawberries, crisp fennel, and peppery arugula. I first made this strawberry arugula salad for my latest cookbook, and it’s been a favorite ever since. Honestly, the toppings are what made me fall in love with it—but everyone who tries it always asks about the Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette in top. It’s so simple and so good.
Ingredients You’ll Need
I know a few of these ingredients might be new to you (they were for me once, too!), but that’s part of the fun—discovering how incredible new flavors can be. This salad is packed with good-for-you plants that make you feel amazing inside and out:
- Arugula: a leafy green with a little peppery bite (it’s in the same family as kale and broccoli).
- Fennel: crunchy and lightly sweet with a hint of licorice flavor.
- Orange + berries: full of vitamin C and antioxidants, and they add bright pops of flavor.
- Meyer lemon: slightly sweeter than regular lemons and totally addictive. I use them in my Ginger Lemon Honey Tea.
How to Make Strawberry Arugula Salad
- Combine all dressing ingredients (except for the poppy seeds!) in a blender or food processor. Blend until creamy. You may need to add a bit of water to help it blend well. Hand mix in the poppy seeds, then store in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Slice the fennel bulb, Meyer lemon, strawberries, almonds and orange, then toss with the arugula and berries.
- Once you’re ready to eat, shake up that homemade vinaigrette and pour over the salad.
I won’t judge if you lick the bowl on this one. It’s ridiculously good. I love Meyer lemons so much I started growing them in my yard and eating them like apples. If this is your first time trying one then I dare you not to immediately fall in love.
Ingredient Swaps
While Meyer lemons are definitely preferred, you can swap them out for regular lemons. Just know the dressing will be tart.
You can swap fennel for yellow onion as well as the berries for any berries you have on hand.
If you need this salad to be nut-free, then swap the almonds with hemp hearts or sunflower seeds, and swap the cashews in the lemon vinaigrette with the same.
Strawberry Arugula Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups arugula
- ½ fennel bulb very thinly sliced
- 1 orange peeled and segmented
- ½ cup strawberries sliced
- ½ cup blueberries
- ½ cup raspberries
- ½ Meyer lemon seeded and very thinly sliced
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette
- 2 tbsp raw cashews soaked
- 2 tbsp Meyer lemon juiced
- 1 tsp raw honey
- ⅛ tsp sea salt, unrefined
- ⅛ black pepper, ground
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp poppy seeds
Instructions
- Combine the cashews, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Add a teaspoon of water if needed. Mix in poppy seeds and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine the arugula, fennel, oranges, berries, lemon and almonds.
- When ready to serve, drizzle dressing on top.
Notes
- If you have time, soak cashews in water for 2+ hours to get creamiest result. You can also “flash soak” by putting cashews in a bowl with boiling water. Cover with a plate for 10 minutes, then rinse and drain.
- Store dressing in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- Swap in whatever berries you have on hand.
- Hemp hearts or sunflower seeds can be swapped in for almonds in the salad and for the cashews in the dressing.
- Meyer lemons are less tart and much sweeter (and larger) than regular lemons. You can swap in regular lemons if you can’t find Meyer lemons, yet it will change the flavor of the salad and vinaigrette.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks!Common Questions
You can prep most of it ahead! Slice the fennel, citrus, and berries up to a day in advance and store them separately in the fridge. Wait to toss everything with the arugula and dressing until just before serving to keep it crisp and fresh.
Meyer lemons are sweeter and less tart than regular lemons, but if you can’t find them, you can absolutely use regular lemons. Just know the flavor will be a bit more tangy—still delicious, just a little brighter.
Soaking helps make the dressing super creamy, but if you’re short on time, do a “flash soak.” Just pour boiling water over the cashews, cover the bowl for 10 minutes, then drain and blend.
Yes! Swap the sliced almonds for hemp hearts or sunflower seeds, and use the same seed swap in the vinaigrette instead of cashews. It will still taste rich and delicious.
Store the Meyer lemon vinaigrette in a jar with a tight-fitting lid in the fridge for up to 1 week. Give it a good shake before using again.
Absolutely. Use whatever berries you have on hand—strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, or raspberries all work beautifully.
I love that this salad has a recipe for salad dressing
I can make it from scratch and the poppy seeds give it a pop and I can use it as a sauce for meat
I know have so many options for salads
It’s not just lettuce with tomatoes
Thank you
You’re so welcome. There are some super tasty salad options.
This is an amazing salad and so, so easy to make — no chopping!! The combination of flavors is incredibly unique. Serve this at a dinner party and your friends will think you are a culinary genius. A definite keeper!!!
A party sounds like a plan to me! Thanks for taking the time to post a comment.
So good! I loved the combination of the arugula and fennel with the berries and orange. So fresh and different! The dressing complimented everything perfectly. So much better than the store bought poppyseed dressing
We love that you liked it so much. And yes, fresh dressing is the best. Keep rawking it!
Absolutely delicious! This is the best one yet! Can you tell I like sweets? I used Romaine instead of Arugula (because my refrigerator isn’t working & I wanted to use up what I had), blackberries instead of raspberries because of oxalate, left out the fennel because expensive and the almonds because of oxalate, used lemon juice/maple syrup dressing and used hemp seeds instead of poppy seeds.
Way to pivot to make it work for you, Stephanie.
Strawberry Arugula salad
This is my very favorite salad! I love arugula’s bitterness and all the berries and orange make it so fresh and colorful. The fennel is wonderful too!
I used whole walnuts and almonds and my neighbor has Meyer lemons which made it so good.
Love the dressing but I don’t use oil
Agree. The colors on this salad are bright and fun!
Good, colorful with fresh ingredients. My dressing was not very creamy and didn’t seem to have a lot of flavor. I also didn’t have poppy seeds so not sure if that’s what gives the dressing more flavor or not. Otherwise, I enjoyed the sweetness of the fresh fruit, tartness of the lemons and crunch of the almonds.
Yes, the poppy seeds add good flavor. If you try it again with the poppy, let us know what you think,
So tangy and fresh! Loved! I made adjustments again for ingredients I had on hand. I used iceberg lettuce, fennel, carrot tops, lemon, blueberries and raspberries. I forgot sliced almonds, skipped the oil and honey, and didn’t have poppy seeds so didn’t make the cashew dressing, just drizzled with lemon juice and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Always amazing flavour combinations from SGS! 🙂
Thanks for trying the recipes. Keep rawking it, Grace.
Wow! What a great way to wrap up two weeks of delicious salads. The Strawberry Arugula Salad is a beautiful combination of sweet and tangy. I loved it and will make it again and again.
We love it, too. The more strawberries, the merrier. Rawk on.
I’m not a fan of arugula, so I swapped organic baby spinach. Very tasty. Thanks for having the salad challenge! I enjoyed both the smoothie challenge and the salad challenge.
Yay! We love that you enjoyed them. Thanks for participating!
This is a gorgeous salad! Spring strawberries are at the store and they will only get better in the summer, so I plan to keep making this salad. The dressing was creamy and I loved the poppy seeds.
Agree! Strawberries and poppy seeds are winning combo! Thanks for commenting, Amanda.
Very good. I love the peppery flavor from the arugula mixed with the fruit!
100%! A little spice on the sweet is a win. Keep rawking, Stephanie.
I love this dressing! So full of flavor. I made this one twice!
And I hope you loved it both times! Thanks for sharing, Aflohr.
Love arugula and fennel in a salad. The dressing is fantastic. I used less fruit and added some cucumber for more veggies. Thank you for putting together the salad challenge.
Thank you for participating, Kristen. Hope you to see you in future challenges, as well.
Tasty and colorful salad! Loved the fruit with the poppyseed dressing.
Pretty food is fun to eat, eh? Glad you loved the combo, Angie.
What can I say! Summer is coming! This very special occasion salad hits all the points – it is fresh, bright, beautiful and the flavors are divine. The poppy seeds in the creamy dressing finish the salad perfectly!
I like the taste of fennel as I am being newly introduced to it through these challenges. I think it goes well with the arugula as well as the fruit. The fennel almost seems as if it has a light citrusy flavor. Nice and light lunch salad!