Bright, Fresh Arugula Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette

Strawberries

It’s the beginning of  strawberry season here on Vancouver Island and mine are doing really well.  I don’t have a huge garden but I’ve been able to pick about 1 cup at a time if I can beat my husband and daughter to it! And to top that off, my arugula is still producing, though a little slower this year than last.  Today’s recipe is inspired by my strawberries, arugula and one of my bff’s, Crystal.  Recently she asked for a quick salad dressing recipe and we came up with something similar but with the blackberries she had.  So I decided to test it out using my fresh strawberries.  Yummy! Fresh, bright and healthy, this salad can be a lunch on its own and won’t weigh you down.

If you’re in the mood for sweet, check out my Strawberry Rhubarb Muffin recipe made with oats and greek yogurt.

Arugula Salad with Fresh Strawberry Vinaigrette, Hazelnuts and Goat Cheese

A delicious salad filled with fiber and protein in a fresh, light and bright dressing made with fresh seasonal strawberries. 

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Total Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Author: Sabrina Currie

Ingredients

Dressing

• 1 c Whole Strawberries Hulled
• 2-3 sprigs Lemon Thyme Leaves only, woody stem discarded
• 2 tsp Sugar
• 1/8 tsp Salt
• 1/8 tsp Fresh Ground Pepper
• 3 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp Champagne Vinegar Or other wine vinegar

Salad

• 6 c Arugula
• 1/2 c Goat Cheese Crumbled, or ricotta if you prefer milder flavor
• 1/2 c Hazelnuts (Filberts) Coarsely chopped
• 12 Strawberries For Garnish

Instructions

Dressing

• Put all ingredients except oil and vinegar into mini food processor or blender (or cup with immersion blender) and blend until smooth, then add in the oil and vinegar and blend again until frothy and emulsified. 
  

Salad

• Divide arugula between 4 bowls. Top each bowl with 1/4 of the cheese and hazelnuts, and then pour dressing over and garnish with the strawberries.
  

I found this fun article on little known strawberry facts on Food Republic, check it out!

And here is a link to the mini food processor that I use all the time (It has other attachments too):
Cuisinart CSB-79C Smart Stick Hand Blender with Whisk & Chopper Attachment