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This easy spinach salad recipe contains just four ingredients and a tangy blackberry salad dressing. Perfect for when you want a quick, yet tasty and nutritious meal, side dish, or appetizer. Plus, this recipe is gluten-free, keto, vegan, healthy, and can even be made vegan!
I don’t know about you – but I think of blackberries as the dark horse of the berry world. Perhaps I’m wrong – but I thought that I’d show this humble but incredibly nutritious berry a break by swapping out the usual spinach salad and strawberry combination for sweet-tart and flavorful blackberries instead. This blackberry salad is super simple but still packed with flavor – just the way I like them.
Plus, with just 4 base ingredients (plus the blackberry dressing), there are tons of ways to dress up this salad, depending on the occasion.
You might think that the simplicity of this dish surely couldn’t lead to anything that special but; I definitely disagree. Combining the flavor of spinach with salty goats cheese, creamy rich walnuts, fresh blackberries, and a tart dressing hits multiple flavor and texture types for a simple spinach salad that is anything but boring!
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The Health Benefits
While simple, this blackberry salad also manages to pack a nutritional punch, containing ingredients that are bursting to the brim with nutritional health benefits.
Blackberries: Are one of the healthiest berries ( and foods) . Packed with Vitamin C, K, and Manganese. These berries are also high in fiber and can improve gut and brain health.
Note* Blackberries flavor can change depending on where you source them. Supermarket vs farmers market vs. wild picked blackberries all have different ‘tartness’ levels. Experiment to find your favorite level ( mine are farmers market sweeter ones).
Baby Spinach: Is absolutely loaded with healthful nutrients and antioxidants, while remaining very low calorie. Spinach contains high levels of Vitamin C, K, iron, calcium, and carotenoids as well as plant compounds. Definitely an ingredient worth including in your diet often.
Goat Cheese: Not only is goat cheese a great source of calcium, but it also contains lower lactose than cow dairy and lots of healthy fats. Plus a goat cheese salad packs tons of flavor too.
Walnuts: Are another great source of healthy fats as well as a vegetarian source of omega-3. Walnuts also contain high levels of iron, calcium, zinc, Vitamin E, retc. Plus, they contain one of the highest levels of antioxidants of all nuts, too and can improve gut health and heart health.
The Dressing: This simple blackberry lemon salad dressing contains heart-healthy olive oil and Vitamin C rich lemon, to add even more healthful properties to the dish. Plus, there are options to turn this dressing into a blackberry balsamic vinaigrette too, if preferred.
The Method
This spinach salad is the epitome of simplicity as it’s finest. Apart from rinsing the spinach leaves ( which isn’t always necessary either), this entire recipe is basically just combining all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently to combine.
Serve alongside the Blackberry salad dressing. Pour over the salad just before serving. Plus, feel free to add a little salt and pepper, if required.
How To Store
This salad is best eaten immediately, though can be prepared 3-4 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Make sure not to mix the dressing with the salad until serving. Otherwise, this will make the salad soggy and massively reduce the shelf life.
Recipe Add-ins & Variations
- To veganise, omit the cheese entirely for avocado. Or swap it for a plant-based cheese alternative like this Herby Vegan Feta Cheese, Mozzarella, or Smoky Vegan Cheddar.
- For a nut-free version, use pepitas ( pumpkin seeds) or sunflower seeds.
- You can also swap out the goats cheese for other dairy cheese. For instance, blue cheese or feta.
- You can combine the spinach with other leafy greens or swap the spinach for kale. If using kale then massage the dressing into the leaves.
- For a heartier meal (i.e. as a main) then you could add some cooked grains (quinoa, bulgur), legumes (i.e. chickpeas, kidney beans), or tofu.
- Other possible add-ins include avocado, cucumber, red onion, mangetout/sugar snap peas, etc.
- Add in some micro herbs for additional nutrients and flavor.
- You can also add in additional berries such as strawberry slices or blueberries.
- You can swap the dressing for a raspberry dressing or Strawberry dressing.
More Summer Recipes
- Summer Spinach Strawberry Salad
- Tropical Mango Salad
- Traditional Tabbouleh Salad (Tabouli Salad)
- Sauteed Dandelion Greens/Spinach and Caramelized Onions
If you try this blackberry salad recipe, leave a comment below Also, I love seeing your recreations so feel free to tag me on Instagram @AlphaFoodie.
Easy Spinach and Blackberry Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup blackberries
- 2 cups baby spinach
- ½ cup goat cheese or blue cheese, or vegan cheese alternative.
- ½ cup blackberry salad dressing
- ¼ cup walnuts or pepitas, if going nut-free
Instructions
- Begin by rinsing the spinach leaves (though this isn't always necessary). Then combine all of the ingredients (except the dressing) in a large bowl and toss gently, to combine.
- Serve alongside the Blackberry salad dressing. Pour over the salad just before serving. Plus, feel free to add a little salt and pepper, if required.
How To Store
- This salad is best eaten immediately, though can be prepared 3-4 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Make sure not to mix the dressing with the salad until serving. Otherwise, this will make the salad soggy and massively reduce the shelf life.
Video
Notes
- To veganise, omit the cheese entirely for avocado. Or swap it for a plant-based cheese alternative like this Herby Vegan Feta Cheese, Mozzarella, or Smoky Vegan Cheddar.
- For a nut-free version, use pepitas ( pumpkin seeds) or sunflower seeds.
- You can also swap out the goats cheese for other dairy cheese. For instance, blue cheese or feta.
- You can combine the spinach with other leafy greens or swap the spinach for kale. If using kale then massage the dressing into the leaves.
- For a heartier meal ( i.e. as a main) then you could add some cooked grains ( quinoa, bulgur), legumes ( i.e. chickpeas, kidney beans), or tofu.
- Other possible add-ins include avocado, cucumber, red onion, mange tout/sugar snap peas, etc.
- Add in some micro herbs for additional nutrients and flavor.
- You can also add in additional berries such as strawberry slices or blueberries.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
