Strawberry Spinach Salad

This salad comes from a friend of our family (I tweaked the amounts a little to allow for leeway) and I asked his permission before I posted it!

It's simple and light, looks beautiful, and tastes great.

This is one of those salads that someone usually wants the recipe for if we take it to a picnic, potluck, or dinner - so here it is.

I like the bright colors (and they shine very nicely with the dressing), the different textures (soft, crunchy, satiny), and flavors (sweet, sour, nutty, zingy).

It may sound a little strange, I know, but I wanted it for breakfast (so I made it for breakfast this morning).

It's great as a first course, as part of a luncheon, as LUNCH... or breakfast...

I think I'm at a lack of words today for the sole desire of wanting to post something- sorry, not too verbose at the moment.

One tip I have for this recipe: don't toss the spinach with the dressing until you are ready to serve it! Baby spinach is very delicate and vinegar begins causing the leaves to wilt as soon as it comes in contact with them.

And a warning: you may have to floss your teeth after eating this salad.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

Makes 1 large salad (8-10 side salad servings)

10-12 oz baby spinach leaves (washed, dried and placed in a large bowl)

1- 1 1/2 pt strawberries (cut in half or quarters depending on size and placed in bowl with spinach)

3-4 oz almond slices

2-3 T sugar

Mix the almonds and sugar in a Teflon skillet over medium heat. Once the sugar begins to melt, stir constantly as the sugar continues to melt fairly rapidly and you don't want to burn the sugar and almonds. Spread out onto a plate or foil to cool. When cool, break clusters of almonds into smaller pieces.

Dressing:

1/2 c vegetable oil (scant)

1/2 c sugar (scant)

1/4 c cider vinegar

2 T sesame seeds

1 T poppy seeds

1 1/2 t grated onion

1 1/4 t Worchestershire sauce

1/4 t paprika

Blend dressing by hand (or shake all ingredients in a jar). Toss dressing with spinach and strawberries. Sprinkle almonds on top and serve.