Goat Cheese Salad with Spinach, Strawberries, Pecans, and Balsamic Dressing

Goat cheese salad with spinach, strawberries, pecans and balsamic dressing is the perfect way to celebrate strawberry season! The fresh strawberries serve two roles - an element in the salad and a surprise guest in the dressing too!

You might also enjoy this strawberry shortcake with fresh and roasted strawberries.

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Why you'll love this recipe

You’ve just bought the six-pack of strawberries at the farmers' market and you only have two or three days to polish them off before they are past their prime. What is a berry lover to do?

Aside from the obvious -- snacking on them whole or sliced -- there are oh so many ways to use them up. Desserts are the obvious direction but how about adding them to a salad?

If you think you don’t like sweet with your savory, this goat cheese salad with strawberries and toasted pecans will change your mind.

Ingredients you'll need

Both the dressing and salad use minimal ingredients. The strawberries are used in both so you get lots of strawberry flavor and it's a great way to use up that bounty!

• Fresh strawberries: Super fun way to use fresh strawberries twice in this recipe!
• Balsamic vinegar: I like the marriage of strawberries and balsamic but if you don't have any, try white wine, red wine or cider vinegar and add a touch of sugar to mimic the sweet and tangy taste of balsamic vinegar.
• Fresh herbs: My first choice of herb is basil but sometimes I don't have any availabe. I've used thyme and even some mint and had terrific results.
• Extra virgin olive oil: For salad dressing, I use the best olive oil I have on hand.

• Fresh spinach: Another green that would work great is arugula. I think butter lettuce would be really nice as well.
• Pecans: I love the flavor of pecans but walnuts, almonds, pistachios, macadamias or pine nuts would also be lovely!
• Goat cheese: Goat cheese is such a good salad addition - creamy and flavorful but not too powerful. However, feta would also be a great choice here and I've used it many times! Or try a vegan goat cheese, if you don't eat dairy!
• Strawberries: If you only had enough strawberries for the dressing, use another fruit - blueberries, peaches, nectarines, or even apples would be a delicious alternative.

Steps to make this recipe

I love to prep ahead when I can. For this strawberry spinach salad recipe, you can definitely prepare the dressing earlier in the day or even a few day before you make the salad. The nuts can be toasted ahead as well.

Prep the balsamic dressing:

1. Using a blender (pictured in the recipe card) or a food processor (pictured in this step-by-step section), add the sliced strawberries and balsamic and pulse or blend just to start the liquification of the strawberries.

2. Add the fresh herbs and some salt and pepper and the olive oil. Pulse or blend until the oil is fully incorporated.

3. You'll notice it will change color to a mauvy pink. Taste for seasoning, adjust if needed. Then store in a dressing bottle or any sealed container until ready to use.

Prep the goat cheese salad

4. Place spinach in a bowl or on a large platter. Top with strawberries, toasted pecans, and crumbled goat cheese.

5. Add some salt and pepper and then dress with the strawberry balsamic dressing.

Expert Tips and Recipe FAQs

Tips

1. If you are serving this as a main course, add chicken (store-bought rotisserie chicken on a busy weeknight will do just fine). Got leftover pork tenderloin or turkey? That would be great here too! Even some broiled or pan-fried tofu or lentils or quinoa.
2. The dressing is enough for more than one salad - get creative and try the dressing with some of the other combinations mentioned in the ingredient section - switch up the greens, the nuts, the cheese, and/or the fruit!
3. My pomegranate molasses salad dressing would be another great dressing for this salad!

FAQs

What to serve with strawberry goat cheese salad?

Almost any chicken, turkey, or pork tenderloin main course will be a lovely pairing. Or as mentioned above, use leftover proteins and turn the salad into the main course.

P.S. If you try this recipe, please leave a star rating and/or a review in the comment section below. I so appreciate your feedback! AND find more inspiration on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Signup for my email list, too!