Balsamic Strawberry Spinach Salad
If you’re a long time reader of OCD, you know that B and I have been long distance for a very, very long time thanks to our medical training.
The first month was rather difficult, as not only was this our first time apart about marriage, we had schedules that prevented us from seeing each other (I didn’t have a single Friday, Saturday, or Sunday off for a whole month, and B’s schedule was even worse).
This month some free weekends for both of us, and it’s been nice to have time together. We’ve been cooking a lot together for our “date nights.” I’ve been on a salad kick after not being able to exercise the past month, and we’ve had a nice crop of beautiful strawberries from Costco which I had to use in a recipe.
To celebrate our first date night this month, we made a nice roast chicken (recipe to follow!), and for the appetizer, I whipped up this super easy salad using whatever was in the fridge. I’m sure you have many of these ingredients lying around already. I recommend using a fancy oil and balsamic vinegar (ours was aged 25 years, a gift from Bryan’s roommate after our wedding) to dress it up.
I brought out these Mr. and Mrs. forks that were bridal shower gifts from my siblings. If you’re looking for a great wedding gift, these were from Milk and Honey, and they have a large variety of styles and texts to choose from. These fork cuties were used for our cake cutting during out wedding (as I mentioned, we are a very dessert-centric couple).
They’ve been packaged since the wedding, so I told Bryan let’s eat with them! Appalled, he said they were “too pretty to use” and put them away, bringing out our dingy old forks instead. Now I need to find a way to display our vintage silverware if B won’t use them! Recipe by me.
Balsamic Strawberry Spinach Salad
Ingredients
1-2 bunches fresh spinach
1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
1/2 red onion sliced
balsamic vinegar, to drizzle
olive oil, to drizzles
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup roasted cashews
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Directions
Combine the spinach, strawberries, cashews, and onions in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil into the salad to coat. Serve on plate and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Top with ground pepper, cashews, and parmesan cheese. Serve with crostini or French bread. Enjoy!
That looks abolutely delishious. I am on a perpetual diet so I really appreciate interesting salad dishes.
Looks soooo good! Thanks for sharing those forks too, they're absolutely adorable 🙂
Never thought to add cashews to a salad! Yum!
This salad looks amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Kyla
Wanderlustkyla.com
so yummy and so healthy…great salad for summer
Looks great! I understand the long distance thing! Its not easy.
Your fancy oil and vinegar really make this beautiful salad special. Yum.
Looks delicious! I love a bit of fruit in my salad to sweeten it up and provide some contrast to the vinegar. Stumbling to share.
Wow that looks good!
Strawberries and spinach are such a great combo (both in taste and nutrition!). Love how easy but beautiful this is. Well-done.
Salads can get boring so I try to mix it up as well
Beautiful salad and beautiful photos. The roasted cashews really make it!
i love the forks almost as much as i love the salad combination! cashews are the best nut.
They're a great wedding present and there's non-wedding vintage spoons/forks that are a great gift in general
Yes it's always almonds or pecans in salads and I felt cashews needed a time to shine 🙂
Thanks. It's not easy, and I wouldn't wish it upon anyone, but on the bright side it really makes your relationship grow
It does! The balsamic makes the biggest difference in my opinion
It's a great mix. Thanks for sharing and hope you enjoy it
Thanks. If its pretty, healthy, and tasty – it's a keeper
Thanks! I love all roasted nuts in my salads
Thanks grace 🙂
Wow my dear, the photograph looks as good as it taste! One of the few times I will compliment a salad dish. I see this as strawberries with a side of salad