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Leigh Anne Wilkes

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Home / Latest Posts / Recipes / Course / Salads / Spinach Salad

Spinach Salad

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By: Leigh Anne WilkesPosted: 6/11/21Updated: 9/06/22

This post may contain affiliate links. Please see disclosure policy here.

bowl of salad

This Spinach Salad is the one dish that is requested at more of our family dinners than any other salad. The secret is in the dressing!

spinach salad in a bowl

Why You’ll Love This Recipe!

Today’s salad recipe is my niece Emily’s signature dish.  At Thanksgiving when Emily asked me what I wanted her to make for dinner my reply, without hesitation, her spinach salad.  It wouldn’t be a Wilkes family gathering without Emily’s salad.

The combination of flavors, taste and textures makes it perfect.

The secret to this recipe and any spinach salad is the dressing! This dressing has amazing flavor thanks to the addition of red onion.

spinach salad in a bowl

Salad Ingredients

  • Spinach. I prefer to use baby spinach
  • Romaine lettuce
  • Bacon
  • Mushrooms
  • Swiss cheese
  • Strawberries
spinach salad ingredients in a bowl

Easy Spinach Salad Dressing Ingredients

  • Canola or Olive Oil
  • White Vinegar
  • Sugar. Can also use honey instead
  • Red Onion
  • Yellow Wet Mustard. Substitute with Dijon Mustard if you prefer.
  • Poppy Seeds
spinach salad dresing in a jar.

How to Make Spinach Salad Dressing

  • Place all the ingredients in a jar and shake it all up or whisk together.
  • Refrigerate for several hours to let the flavors combine and meld together. The flavor of the red onion just infuses throughout, it is so good!
pouring dressing over spinach salad

How to Make a Simple Spinach Salad

  1. Combine spinach, lettuce, mushrooms cooked bacon and strawberries in a large bowl. I like to remove the stems from the spinach leaves.
  2. Toss with salad dressing.
  3. Add grated Swiss cheese on top.

Additional Salad Add ins:

  • Candied pecans, almonds, walnuts or any nuts you like
  • Dried Cranberries
  • Goat Cheese
  • Feta Cheese
  • Diced or shredded chicken
  • Avocado
  • Sunflower Seeds

Frequently Asked Questions

How long will salad dressing keep?

This dressing will keep for up to two weeks in the refrigerator. I store mine in a mason jar with a lid.

How far ahead can I dress spinach salad?

It is best to dress this salad right before serving as spinach will wilt after dressing is added.

Can You Prep Spinach Salad ahead of time?

You can prepare the various components of this salad ahead of time but I recommend assembling it right before serving..
You can toast or sugar your nuts, slice the mushrooms, make the dressing, slice the strawberries, fry the bacon and grate the cheese ahead of time. Just store the perishable items in the fridge with the dressing in a separate container.
When it’s time to enjoy, all you have to do is toss the salad ingredients together with the dressing and enjoy!

closeup shot of spinach salad in a bowl

Try these other delicious recipes:

  • Spinach Apple Salad
  • Spinach Pasta Salad
  • Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing
  • Chicken Sausage Pasta

Be sure and follow me over on You Tube for weekly cooking demos.

5 from 2 votes
overhead shot of spinach salad in a bowl

Spinach Salad

Recipe From: Leigh Anne Wilkes
This Spinach Salad is the one dish that is requested at more of our family dinners than any other salad. The secret is in the dressing!
serves: 12 servings
Prep:10 minutes minutes
Cook:10 minutes minutes
Total:20 minutes minutes
Rate Recipe

Ingredients

  • 20 ounces Spinach
  • 1-2 heads Romaine Lettuce
  • 3/4 cup Mushrooms sliced
  • 1/2 pound Bacon pieces
  • 3/4 pound Swiss Cheese grated
  • 2 cups Strawberries sliced

Dressing:

  • 1/3 cup White Vinegar
  • 1/2 red onion sliced
  • 1/3 cup Sugar
  • 1/2 cup Canola Oil or olive oil
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 1-2 tsp yellow wet mustard
  • 1 tsp poppy seeds

Instructions

  • Combine dressing ingredients in a jar and shake or mix well.
  • Refrigerate for two hours or longer.
  • Mix all salad ingredients together and top with dressing.

Recommended Products

Salad Bowls
Measuring Spoons
Measuring Cups

Nutrition Facts:

Calories: 304kcal (15%) Carbohydrates: 11g (4%) Protein: 18g (36%) Fat: 22g (34%) Saturated Fat: 8g (50%) Cholesterol: 53mg (18%) Sodium: 854mg (37%) Potassium: 354mg (10%) Fiber: 2g (8%) Sugar: 8g (9%) Vitamin A: 4869IU (97%) Vitamin C: 28mg (34%) Calcium: 279mg (28%) Iron: 2mg (11%)
* Disclaimer: All nutrition information are estimates only. Read full disclosure here.
Course:Salad
Cuisine:American
overhead shot of spinach salad in a bowl
Did you make this?I love seeing what you made. Be sure to share a picture and tag @yourhomebasedmom on social media!
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Originally shared January 19, 2012

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Reader Interactions

5 from 2 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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  1. Bridget says

    Posted on 6/12 at 7:57 am

    I wanted to check— Is the yellow mustard regular yellow mustard from a jar kept in the refrigerator? And not the ground mustard (spice)? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Leigh Anne Wilkes says

      Posted on 6/12 at 8:20 am

      yes, the wet, yellow mustard

      Reply
    • Bridget says

      Posted on 6/12 at 10:02 am

      Thank you so much. What a fast response-very appreciated.

      Reply
  2. Tammy says

    Posted on 10/27 at 11:59 am

    How much red onion did you use? Looks fantastic. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Leigh Anne says

      Posted on 10/29 at 8:27 am

      Sorry, guess that got left out of the list of ingredients. I used half of a medium size red onion, sliced

      Reply
  3. Adah says

    Posted on 3/9 at 11:38 am

    Hi Leigh Anne,
    I’ve been reading your blog for a while and love all the wonderful tips and recipes you post. I had this recipe bookmarked to try since my husband is a huge fan of red onions. We tried it and loved it and I’ve made it again, but adapted it a bit to our tastes. đŸ™‚ I’ve linked your recipe to my blog on of my posts. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  4. Romy Greenwood says

    Posted on 2/7 at 2:21 pm

    Leigh Ann,

    I am making this for the 2nd time. Super delicious! And that says a lot coming from someone who rarely enjoys a salad.

    Thank you Leigh Ann for sharing so much of yourself through your website!

    Reply
  5. Heather @ new house, new home, new life says

    Posted on 1/20 at 5:48 am

    This sounds great Leigh Anne. I like the thought of putting the onion slices in for a quick marinade to infuse the dressing. Think this one is a keeper. I’ll be pinning it for future reference.

    Reply
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