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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.
Delicious. The dressing is really good!
I didn’t like this fruity salad as much as I loved the Bright Berry Salad.
Didn’t have arugula so used romaine and spinach combo. We put greens at bottom of our bowls, then mixed everything else together and put on top. I added pecans and a banana, sliced. Quite tasty.
Berry tasty medley of colourful superfoods
Loved this salad!! One of my new favorites! Dressing is, again, amazing!!!
This salad was really good. Especially the dressing
My boyfriend said he enjoyed this salad more than the crunchy carrot and berry bright salads.
Wonderful list of ingredients but the number if items is a bit daunting. If I do this one in the future, I will probably pare down the list. Using mixed leafy greens with mild taste for all the salads has worked for me. The challenge has inspired me to try some of the other greens in the future since they are so good for us. For now, I have a refrigerator bursting with leftover salads and dressings to enjoy for the next several days.
Whoo hoo, so glad it inspired you to try other greens in the future. Keep rawkin it!
Yummy! This salad looked beautiful, smelled wonderful, and tasted great! I loved it!
This dressing is so much better than any other poppyseed dressing. I’d rather eat my salad dry then have the sugar loaded stuff. This dressing though I could eat with a spoon and I even left out the honey. I love a Berry salad and this is no exception. I could eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Can I have it for snacks in between too?
Loved the mix of flavors. I don’t have a good blender so my cashew cream did not come out right. I ended up just adding whole cashews and mixed the remaining dressing ingredients. I added blackberries too it was vey colorful, filling, and had a great refreshing crunch ❤️
Love the lemon and fruit in this one! It makes for a very bright and refreshing salad that I will definitely make again.
I liked the contrast between the peppery arugula and the fruit. Cashew butter is a staple in our house so I used it in place of the soaked cashews. I loved the creaminess of the dressing. This is a good spring salad.
I always love a good berry salad over greens. This is a delicious treat and pairs well with steak or fish!
Great idea to pair it with chicken or fish.
I had to switch the arugula for kale in this salad because I really don’t like the taste of arugula. The flavor combination of this salad was very good.
Kale is perfect to sub in for arugula.
A pretty tasty salad. I wasn’t so sure about the fennel with the berries in the salad, but the more I ate the more the flavors blended together.
I’m so glad you stuck with it and the flavors blended together.