Hi everyone, today I have a very special dressing recipe for you, Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing! This dressing is made with some of my favorite ingredients: fresh strawberries, balsamic vinegar, and lemon thyme. I know some of you might not have fresh lemon thyme handy, but if you ever see lemon thyme available at your local nursery I highly recommend growing it in your herb garden. Lemon thyme has the most amazing taste and scent of lemon. Not only is this lemon thyme great in this dressing, but it’s a wonderful compliment to chicken, fish, or anything that calls for a splash of lemon.
Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
This dressing is very satisfying and compliments a spinach salad garnished with toasted pecans and homemade croutons. I can’t wait to share this goodness with you, so let’ get started!
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Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Description
Recipe Adapted From: Whole Foods Market
Ingredients
Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
- 1 cup of sliced strawberries
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
- 1 TBS honey (add a little more if needed, depends on the sweetness of the strawberries)
- 1 TBSP finely chopped shallots
- 2 tsp fresh lemon thyme or 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
- a pinch of kosher salt
Toasted Pecans
- 2 cups pecan pieces
- cooking spray
Homemade Croutons:
- 4–6 slices of bread (any bread)
- olive oil or melted butter (about 2-3 TBS, add less or more to taste)
- 1–2 tsp Italian seasoning (or to taste)
Additional Ingredients:
- chopped romaine
- baby spinach
- sliced strawberries
Instructions
For the dressing
- Add all ingredients to the blender and blend until all ingredients are combined.
For the toasted pecans:
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and evenly spread 2 cups of chopped pecans on baking sheet.
- Mist with cooking oil and toss to coat. Toast for 5-10 minutes, stirring half way through. (cooking time may vary)
For the croutons:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut bread into cubes.
- In a large mixing bowl add bread cubes and drizzle olive oil or melted butter over the bread cubes.
- Then add Italian seasoning. Toss bread cubes with tongs until evenly coated. Taste a bread cube and make sure it is seasoned to your taste!
- Add more seasoning as needed.
- Place bread cubes on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper and cook for about 15-20 minutes or until crispy, dry and golden brown (cooking time may vary).
- Stir croutons half way through cooking.
For the salad greens
- I used fresh romaine and baby spinach.
- Garnish salad with additional strawberry slices, toasted pecans, and homemade croutons.
- Next drizzle the strawberry balsamic vinaigrette over the salad and enjoy!
When making the toasted pecans I use a Misto for the cooking spray. This is one of my favorite kitchen gadgets. All you do is fill your Misto half way with your favorite oil, such as olive oil or vegetable oil, pump, and spray! I love it because there is no added chemicals and it provides a nice even spray for all my cooking needs.
Looking for more fruit filled, healthy recipes? Then you might be interested in these, click on the picture for the full recipe!
Caramelized Apple and Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad
Raspberry, Banana, Dark Chocolate Chip Smoothie
This looks like an amazing recipe! I always see lemon thyme at the nursery and I’m totally intrigued but don’t know what I will use it in. Now I can buy it! Pinning this!
Thank you, Lisa! Yay, if you love lemon, you will not be disappointed in the power of Lemon Thyme :) It is a very unique and fun herb to grow in your garden. Thank you for stopping by :)
What a gorgeous post! Just stunning. I’ve been making salads for dinner at least twice a week lately and making all kinds of different homemade dressings. Adding this one to my list to try!
Thank you, Valerie! If you ever get a chance to try this recipe I would love to know your thoughts. Thank you for stopping by, it was good to see you!
I can’t wait to try this, it looks great! I’ve been looking for a new dressing to try… I mean, I did just buy that fancy new salad dressing container. ;)
Thanks, Sara! Hope you enjoy this recipe and please come back and let us know what you think. Wishing you a wonderful week!
Sounds like a great recipe – can’t wait to try it. I have been trying to make more of my own salad dressings lately.
Do you know how long this dressing keeps?? Great recipe! :)