Sliced avocado, spinach, and fresh berries team up with an easy-to-make raspberry poppy seed dressing to create a salad that's sweet, tart, rich and earthy. It's great for a quick lunch or healthy side dish!
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🥗 Why We Love This Recipe
- Super fresh and seasonal: This salad is like summer in a bowl; it's full of fresh summer favorites like avocado, strawberries, blueberries, and spinach.
- Well-balanced: This salad combines the richness of avocado, the earthiness of spinach, and the tartness of berries to create a well-rounded flavor profile.
- Packed with superfoods: With spinach, avocados, and blueberries, this salad is full of nutrient-dense superfoods to keep you fueled throughout the day.
- Easy prep: After chopping up the fruit, all you need to do is blend the dressing and combine with the salad. It should take 15 minutes or less!
🍓 Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make this berry spinach salad:
📋 Ingredient Notes
- Poppy seeds: The best place to find these in the grocery store is in the spice aisle. If they're not there, you can check the baking aisle or the bulk section if your store has one.
- Walnuts: We used raw, unroasted walnuts in this recipe, but you can substitute with whatever nut or crunchy element you prefer. Pumpkin seeds, almonds, or sunflower seeds would all be good options.
- Cucumbers: We used mini cucumbers in this recipe - we feel that they have a crunchier texture that holds up better in a creamy dressing.
- Olive oil: We used olive oil in this dressing (not extra virgin) because it has a mild flavor that won't overpower the subtle flavor of poppy seed. You can also use another neutral oil of choice.
🍴 Equipment
We love meal prepping, but some ingredients are usually a no-go for storage and making ahead. This is disappointing because fresh fruits like avocados and berries don't usually keep well, but they make the best salads!
That's why we love using the Zwilling Fresh & Save system to meal prep with these highly perishable ingredients! It's a combination of a super durable glass storage container, a special lid, and a rechargeable pump.
It's super simple to use: just attach the pump to the lid and press the button. The pump will extract the air from the container, creating a vacuum that locks in flavors and aromas.
In an oxygen-deprived environment, food will stay fresh up to 5 times longer than it would if stored in a normal container. This makes meal prep easier and more flavorful and opens up more possibilities, like this salad!
It also helps cut down on food waste: you can store your fruits and veggies in containers or the special bags that come with the Fresh & Save, so you enjoy them over a longer period of time.
Just press the button... ...and watch it seal!
And in case you don’t believe us, here’s a comparison of how highly perishable produce (berries & avocado) held up over 5 days in our Fresh & Save containers versus regular tupperware.
Pretty amazing, right?!
The 7 piece starter set is currently on sale for $99 - we think the system ends up paying for itself. Give it a try!
When it comes to this salad, you have a few storage options. For a make-your-own-salad situation, you can prep and store each ingredient in a separate container.
Or, to cut down on prep time, store the entire assembled salad (not including dressing) in a larger container. We suggest storing the dressing separately and adding just before serving.
🔪 Step-by-step Instructions
(1): To make dressing, add all ingredients except oil and poppy seeds to a blender. Slowly stream in oil until it's smooth and creamy. Once the dressing is blended, stir in the poppy seeds.
(2): Assemble all salad ingredients in a large bowl. Toss in dressing (or serve on the side if not eating right away). Enjoy!
💭 Expert Tips and FAQs
- Keep the dressing stored separately and dress the salad once you're ready to eat. This will prevent the spinach from becoming soggy.
- Store in an airtight container to maximize freshness. Better yet, use the Zwilling Fresh & Save system to maximize this salad's freshness.
- Try to get your hands on the freshest berries possible - look for deep red strawberries that smell sweet, blueberries without discoloration, and raspberries that are vibrant and free of mush.
🍽 Related Recipes
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Print📖 Recipe
Avocado Spinach Salad
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6-8 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Sliced avocado, spinach, and fresh berries team up with an easy-to-make raspberry poppy seed dressing to create a salad that's sweet, tart, rich and earthy. It's great for a quick lunch or healthy side dish!
Ingredients
Salad:
- 1 cup raspberries
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 cup strawberries, quartered
- 1 cup diced cucumber
- 1-2 ripe avocados, diced
- ⅓ cup vegan feta cheese (or regular feta)
- ½ cup walnuts, chopped
Berry Poppy Seed Dressing:
- ½ cup fresh strawberries, quartered
- ½ cup raspberries
- 1 ½ tablespoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon lime zest
- 1 teaspoon agave nectar
- 1 ½ teaspoon poppy seeds
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup olive oil (or other neutral oil)
Instructions
- To make dressing, add all ingredients except oil and poppy seeds to a blender. Slowly stream in oil until it's smooth and creamy. Once the dressing is fully blended, stir in the poppy seeds.
- Assemble all salad ingredients in a large bowl. Toss in dressing (or serve on the side if not eating right away). Enjoy!
Notes
Keep the dressing stored separately and dress the salad once you're ready to eat. This will prevent the spinach from becoming soggy.
Store in an airtight container to maximize freshness. Better yet, use the Zwilling Fresh & Save system to maximize this salad's freshness.
Try to get your hands on the freshest berries possible for maximum storage length - look for deep red strawberries that smell sweet, blueberries without discoloration, and raspberries that are vibrant and free of mush.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Salads
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Bowl
- Calories: 277
- Sugar: 8.4 g
- Sodium: 408.8 mg
- Fat: 22.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 18.3 g
- Fiber: 5.9 g
- Protein: 4.7 g
Linda Currie - Belleperche says
Delicious, beautiful salad!!
Everyone loved it!!
Jeanne says
Loved this salad!
Dressing was amazing!