I’ve made several versions of Strawberry Spinach Salad over the years, but this by far is my favorite! It includes fresh strawberries, salty feta cheese, candied pecans, and an easy homemade balsamic vinaigrette. The textures and flavors are insanely delicious and complement each other perfectly! It reminds you of a fancy salad that you’d get at a cafe, but you can make it at home for a fraction of the cost. This is one of those “summer” salads that I could literally eat all year long!
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“I loved every part of this salad. The balsamic vinaigrette was perfect. I made mine exactly as the recipe stated and it was perfect. My husband doesn’t like feta so I left that off of his, but he loved it too. I will definitely make this again.”
Kate
Easy Strawberry Spinach Salad Recipe
The dressing for this strawberry salad is probably my favorite part…okay, it’s actually tied with the candied pecans! I started with Beth’s easy homemade balsamic vinaigrette and made one adjustment by replacing the mayonnaise with honey for a slightly sweeter taste. The results – absolutely amazing! It adds a tangy-sweet balance that brings out the sweetness of the strawberries and the saltiness of the feta in the best way.
You can certainly use a store-bought balsamic vinaigrette if you don’t have a well-stocked pantry with all the necessary ingredients on hand, but I promise this homemade balsamic vinaigrette will taste wayyy better! I highly recommend you give it a try! 😉
Budget-Friendly Tips
- If chopped nuts are a little too costly at your local store, toast up some day-old bread to use in place of the chopped pecans, similar to our Panzanella salad.
- To bulk up the salad and make it stretch a little further, add your favorite pasta like penne or bow-tie pasta.
Strawberry Spinach Salad
Servings 4 side saladsIngredients
Balsamic Vinaigrette
- ⅓ cup olive oil ($1.10)
- 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar ($0.45)
- 2 Tbsp honey ($0.50)
- ½ Tbsp Dijon mustard ($0.09)
- 1 garlic clove (minced, $0.08)
- ½ tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- ¼ tsp salt ($0.01)
- ¼ tsp black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.02)
Candied Pecans
- ½ Tbsp butter ($0.07)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.08)
- 1 pinch salt ($0.01)
- ½ cup chopped pecans ($1.15*)
Salad
- ½ lb fresh strawberries (sliced, $1.25)
- ¼ red onion (thinly sliced, $0.21)
- 2 oz feta cheese (crumbled, $1.82**)
- 8 oz baby spinach ($1.83)
Instructions
- Start by making the homemade balsamic vinaigrette dressing. Add the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, minced garlic clove, dried basil, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper to a jar, bowl, or blender. Close the jar and shake the ingredients together, whisk in a bowl, or blend until the dressing is evenly combined. Set the dressing aside.
- Next make the candied pecans. Add the butter, brown sugar and a pinch of salt to a small non-stick skillet. Heat over medium heat while stirring.
- Once the butter and brown sugar begins to melt add the chopped pecans to the skillet and stir with the brown sugar mixture. Continue to cook over medium heat, stirring every 10-15 seconds until the brown sugar fully melts (looks glossy instead of grainy) and completely coats the pecans.
- Remove the skillet from the heat immediately and transfer the candied pecans to a parchment lined baking sheet. Spread the pecans out evenly in a flat layer and allow them to cool for 10 minutes while the candied coating fully hardens.
- Now prep the strawberries, red onion and feta cheese. Remove the stems and slice the strawberries, thinly slice the red onion, and crumble the feta. Set these ingredients to the side.
- Divide the spinach between four plates. Drizzle 2 Tbsp of balsamic vinaigrette on top of each bed of spinach.
- Add sliced strawberries, red onions, a tablespoon or two of candied pecans, and a tablespoon of feta cheese to each salad. Feel free to drizzle a little more balsamic vinaigrette over the top of each and enjoy!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Jelly Jars
- Chef’s Knife
- Nonstick Fry Pans
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!HOW TO MAKE STRAWBERRY SPINACH SALAD STEP-BY-STEP PHOTOS
Make the balsamic vinaigrette: Combine ⅓ cup olive oil, 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, 2 Tbsp honey, ½ Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 garlic clove minced, ½ tsp dried basil, ¼ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper in a jar, bowl, or blender. Add a top to the jar and shake, whisk in a bowl, or blend until all the ingredients are evenly combined. Set the vinaigrette dressing aside.
Make the candied pecans: In a small non-stick skillet, add ½ Tbsp butter, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, and a pinch of salt. Heat over medium heat while stirring just until the butter and brown sugar begin to melt. Add ½ cup of chopped pecans and stir to coat in the brown sugar mixture. Continue to cook for 2-4 minutes or until the brown sugar is fully melted (looks glossy, not grainy) and completely coats the pecans.
Remove the skillet from the heat immediately to prevent the brown sugar from overcooking and burning. Transfer the candied pecans to a parchment-lined baking sheet and spread out in a flat layer. Allow them to cool for 10 minutes, and the sugar coating will fully harden.
Prep the remaining salad ingredients: Wash and slice ½ lb. of strawberries, thinly slice ¼ of a red onion, portion out 2 oz. of crumbled feta cheese, and gather your cooled candied pecans.
Assemble the salad: Divide 8 oz. of spinach between four salad plates (roughly 2 oz. per plate), or you can add all of the spinach to a larger serving bowl. Add 2 Tbsp of the balsamic vinaigrette to each salad plate or drizzle ⅓ cup of the dressing over the bowl of spinach. Reserve the rest of the dressing to add right before serving.
Divide the toppings (sliced strawberries, sliced red onion, 1 Tbsp of crumbled feta, and 1-2 Tbsp of candied pecans) between the four salad plates or add the toppings to a larger salad serving bowl. Drizzle each salad with a little more of the balsamic dressing and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
This salad makes a great lunch meal by itself. We totally gobbled it up at the test studio, but you can also add some shredded chicken or grilled shrimp on top for a more filling meal. This salad also pairs well with other leaner proteins like baked cod and pan-seared chicken.
How To Store Strawberry Spinach Salad
Strawberry spinach salad stores well in the fridge for up to 3 days. In order to keep the spinach from wilting too much, it’s best to store the strawberries and the dressing separately and add them to the salad right before you’re ready to serve.
More Easy Salad Recipes
Our Strawberry Spinach Salad recipe was originally published 7/31/23. It was retested, reworked, and republished to be better than ever 7/30/25.
My family has loved this recipe for years! I always get nuts on sale during the winter holiday season when Aldi’s has really good buys. I make plenty of glazed pecans, but since they never last the year, I have some of my Christmas priced pecans in the freezer just for summer salads! While this balsamic vinaigrette is a fave, I also make an almost identical dressing with very inexpensive apple cider vinegar, less sweetener, and a neutral oil. Strawberries have been particularly plentiful, inexpensive, and yummy this summer, so we’ve been eating lots in a variety of ways. This salad would also work with watermelon. Although I’m a giant Feta cheese fan, I can recommend inexpensive Queso Fresco from Aldi’s as a sub–similar crumbly texture and salty taste. I view these 2 cheeses as interchangeable.
made this recipe for a group class and it was a hit! the vinaigrette was delicious. I even made it at home for dinner! Excited to get feedback from the group next month. I always forget to snap a pic but I remembered this time. Thanks!
Just made this for dinner tonight. Strawberries are in season in Florida. So good. Made grilled chicken breasts that I marinated in Italian dressing, served the salad as a side. A perfect match. Definitely making it again and probably again.
I loved every part of this salad. The balsamic vinegrette was perfect. I made mine exactly as the recipe stated and it was perfect. My husband doesn’t like feta so I left that off of his,, but he loved it too. I will definely make this again.
Omg YUM YUM YUM. I’ve been eyeing this recipe for a while and I finally made it last night. It was absolutely fantastic! Sweet, but good for you. I honestly felt like it was something I could have ordered in a restaurant. Doing the candied pecans was a little tricky for me (user error lol) and I almost burned them, but we got there eventually!
I couldn’t believe it actually came out of my kitchen lol. I added half an avocado it was outstanding. Everyone went for seconds and I know we’ll be making it again soon. 5/5 stars!
I’ve been making something similar year round for, well, years. I had to try your dressing–delicious. Your description of “insanely delicious” is no exaggeration!!! Your candied pecans are also easier than the recipe I’ve been using.
Thank you Janet. I love strawberry salads! Another variation that I love includes Mandarin oranges, strawberries, chopped walnuts, and raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Delicious!
Served this at a dinner with friends. Everyone wanted the recipe. The dressing in particular is amazing!
Healthy and delicious
I’ve made something very similar in the past, and hubby was raving about how it could be a fancy restaurant dish (never underestimate the *wow* factor in making candied nuts!) Excited to try this version, as the dressing looks to be lower sugar than my old recipe.
I suggest eating with plain pecans not candied ones for healthier version.
Yum!!!!! Can’t wait to try this one!
This looks delicious! On another note, I’m a long time lurker, first time commenter (though I have emailed and commented twice on Instagram). As much as I love Beth’s recipes (Hi Beth!), I’m loving all these new, diverse ones. Thank you Marsha! (And Monti, et al!) :)
Thanks, Taylor! We appreciate you!