How to make everyone want to eat salad? Add blueberries! This blueberry salad with spinach, feta, and a balsamic dressing is a total crowd pleaser.
It’s not summer until we’ve picked blueberries in Michigan. And this year: man, did Alex and I come into a haul! A 5 pound bag of blueberries, in fact. Have you ever seen 5 pounds of blueberries all together? (We hadn’t.) It’s one HUGE bowl. Though we froze some blueberries, we had plenty of fresh bluebs to use up. A few batches of blueberry pancakes and blueberry waffles later, we were craving something fresh. Enter: this blueberry salad. It’s classic, fresh, and tangy sweet from the creamy balsamic dressing. It complements every meal. And it’s absolutely what you need in your kitchen repertoire.
How to make blueberry salad
We’re always looking for side dishes that are easy to make and versatile, and this spinach blueberry salad is both. It fits in with baked salmon or creamy goat cheese pasta with ease. In fact, there’s not much that it wouldn’t go with! It’s pretty quick to make: all you’ll need to do is whip up the balsamic dressing and slice the onion.
Here’s what’s in this blueberry salad:
- Ripe blueberries (local, if possible!)
- Mixed baby greens (or any lettuce mix)
- Pistachios (we like the bright green color, but you could use any nut)
- Feta cheese crumbles
- Balsamic vinaigrette: made with balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, and olive oil
How to make balsamic vinaigrette dressing
The balsamic dressing is what carries this spinach blueberry salad. The flavor is zesty and bright, tangy from the balsamic vinegar and balanced with a touch of maple syrup.
To make an emulsion for this balsamic vinaigrette recipe, do the following:
- Use a medium-sized bowl to allow for enough movement of the whisk. Trust us, we’ve done it in small bowls before and it’s almost impossible to get the oil and vinegar to meld!
- Whisk the ingredients by hand. Start with the balsamic, Dijon mustard, and maple syrup.
- Add the olive oil as gradually as you can: we typically add it tablespoon by tablespoon and whisk in between until the oil fully incorporates.
Using Dijon mustard in the dressing also helps to form and lock in the emulsion. We’ve used this technique in our other vinaigrette recipes, like our Classic Vinaigrette and Italian Dressing.
Finding local blueberries
Do you have local blueberries in your area? There are only a few U Picks here in Indianapolis, so when we’re looking for fruit we venture up to Michigan. Each summer we head to the South Haven and Saugatuk area. And we’ve found the best U Pick around (called Dee’s Farm), where the blueberries are just $1 a pound. It’s an absolute steal.
When we step into the rows of blueberry bushes, there’s a sense of magic. Something about the purple berries weighing down each branch makes my heart beat faster, yet at the same time makes me feel grounded and calm. This year we took my sister, and she had the same feeling. We watched Larson frolic through the blueberry bushes, eating as many as he put into his basket.
Suffice it to say: if you can find a way to pick blueberries: DO IT! It’s become a favorite summer activity in our family and has resulted in so many delicious recipes, like this blueberry salad. When we returned to our kitchen, the first recipe we made was Favorite Blueberry Waffles with Quick Blueberry Sauce, and man they were incredible! You’ve got to try these too — oh and our Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes. And Healthy Blueberry Muffins…
Yeah, we’re a little blueberry obsessed around here. Enjoy!
All the blueberry recipes!
If you’ve got fresh blueberries on hand, we’ve got lots of blueberry recipes for you to choose from! Here are a few favorites:
- Favorite Blueberry Waffles
- Easy Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes
- Quick Blueberry Sauce
- Blueberry Scone Recipe
- Vegan Blueberry Pancakes
- Best Blueberry Smoothie
- Blueberry Cake
- Banana Blueberry Muffins
- Easy Blueberry Crisp
- Chocolate Blueberry Smoothie
- Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Easy Blueberry Cobbler
- Cherry Blueberry Champagne Sparklers
This blueberry salad recipe is…
Vegetarian and gluten-free. For vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free, omit the feta cheese.
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Blueberry Salad with Balsamic Dressing
(5 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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Prep Time: 15 minutes -
Cook Time: 0 minutes
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Total Time: 15 minutes
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Yield: 4
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Pin RecipeDescription
How to make everyone want to eat salad? Add blueberries! This blueberry salad with spinach, feta, and a balsamic dressing is a total crowd pleaser.
Ingredients
- 1/2 recipe Best Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1/4 small red onion
- 8 cups mixed baby greens (we used baby spinach and arugula)
- 1/3 cup chopped pistachios
- 1/3 cup feta cheese crumbles (omit for vegan)
- Fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Make the Best Balsamic Vinaigrette. (*For the nutrition analysis, we’ve calculated 1 tablespoon dressing per serving. We recommend making the entire dressing recipe and saving leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator; bring to room temperature prior to serving.)
- Wash the blueberries. Thinly slice the red onion.
- Place the greens on plates, then top with blueberries, red onion slivers, feta cheese crumbles, and pistachios. Drizzle with the dressing and serve.
Category: Salad
Method: Raw
Cuisine: American
Keywords: Blueberry salad, Salad recipe, Balsamic vinaigrette, Balsamic dressing, Spinach Blueberry Salad
A Couple Cooks - Healthy, Whole Food, Vegetarian Recipes
* This article was originally published here
