Spring Spinach Strawberry Pasta Salad (Printable Page)

Tender bow-tie pasta tossed with baby spinach, fresh strawberries, almonds, and homemade poppy seed dressing.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 8 oz bow-tie (farfalle) pasta

→ Salad

02 - 3.5 oz baby spinach, washed and dried
03 - 7 oz fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
04 - 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
05 - 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
06 - 2 tablespoons fresh basil, thinly sliced (optional)

→ Poppy Seed Dressing

07 - 3 tablespoons olive oil
08 - 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
09 - 1 tablespoon honey
10 - 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
11 - 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
12 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
13 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

# Step-by-Step Guide:

01 - Cook bow-tie pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package instructions until al dente. Drain through a colander, rinse under cold water, and set aside to cool completely.
02 - In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, poppy seeds, salt, and black pepper until well combined.
03 - In a large salad bowl, combine cooled pasta, baby spinach, sliced strawberries, and toasted almonds.
04 - Drizzle poppy seed dressing over salad ingredients and toss gently to coat all components evenly.
05 - Top with crumbled feta cheese and fresh basil if using. Serve immediately while pasta is cool and ingredients are fresh.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together faster than most people can decide what to order for lunch, yet tastes like you spent all morning in the kitchen.
  • The poppy seed dressing is the kind of thing you'll start putting on everything, trust me.
  • It works as a light main dish or a side that actually disappears before the main course even hits the table.
  • Strawberries and pasta might sound odd until you taste how the sweetness plays off the savory elements, then it just makes perfect sense.
02 -
  • Always rinse your pasta under cold water after draining or it will turn your salad into a warm, wilted mess instead of a crisp, refreshing bowl.
  • Toast your almonds even if the package says they're already roasted, those extra two minutes in a skillet make them taste like a completely different ingredient.
  • The dressing separates if it sits too long, so give it a quick whisk right before you pour it over the salad.
03 -
  • Use a vegetable peeler to shave the feta into thin ribbons instead of crumbling it, it looks elegant and melts a little into the warm pasta.
  • If your strawberries aren't perfectly ripe, toss them with a pinch of sugar and let them sit for ten minutes before adding them to the salad.
  • Double the dressing recipe and keep the extra in a jar in the fridge, it's incredible on plain greens or drizzled over roasted vegetables.
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