Recipe: Strawberry Spring Salad with Sesame Vinaigrette (Vegan, Gluten Free)

 

Once upon a time, my favorite salad was the Strawberry Field Salad in Anne Byrn's Dinner Doctor (2003). I made it on repeat. I took it to potlucks and other people also raved about it. I ate big portions with crusty bread spread with soft cheese and called it dinner.

And then I went vegan, and the bleu cheese in the salad and honey in the dressing rendered it off limits. And I found other salads to love, and largely forgot about it. At least, I did until I saw this:

Vegan bleu cheese crumbles? This changes everything. Strawberry salads began whispering to me in the aisles of Wegmans. But I did not make it for quite a while.

And then I had a coupon for spring mix. And I took a staycation. And my birthday was coming. So I decided to take a trip down memory lane, for all of those reasons.

This salad is everything I remembered. The dressing is amazing as ever, and the crunch of the pecans and the sweetness of the strawberries and the saltiness of the cheese all compliment each other beautifully. But now it is vegan.

To me, this is a special occasion salad, but it's ridiculously easy to make, so you can really have it anytime you want. I hope you enjoy it!

Strawberry Spring Salad with Sesame Vinaigrette (Gluten Free)
Serves: 4

For the vinaigrette:

1/4 cup bottled Italian salad dressing of choice
1 tablespoon vegan honey, maple syrup, or agave syrup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

For the salad:

1 bag (5 oz.) spring mix
1 1/2 cups strawberries, halved or quartered (about 1 pint)
1/2 cup vegan bleu cheese crumbles
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1. Whisk together all the vinaigrette ingredients. Set aside.

2. Put the spring mix, strawberries, cheese crumbles, and nuts in a large bowl. When ready to serve, pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Serve immediately.