Spinach & strawberry... a salad match made in heaven!

When I tell you that this salad is super easy and such a crowd pleaser, you better believe me! I found the basic recipe on allrecipes.com & then added some twists to it that really helped the flavor along. Here is my version...

Enjoy! :)

Spinach and Strawberry Salad
(adapted from all recipes.com)



INGREDIENTS
4 bunches spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
4 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup vegetable oil
½ cup balsamc vinegar
1 cup white sugar
½ teaspoon paprika
4 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 ½ cups candied almonds**
2 cups bleu or gorgonzola cheese crumbles

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, toss together the spinach, strawberries and almonds.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar, paprika, sesame seeds, and poppy seeds.
Pour dressing over the salad.
Top with cheese & serve!


** To candy almonds: drop into a hot pan and sprinkle with sugar and a few drops of water… allow the almonds to caramelize on low heat for a few minutes

Tana-Licious’s notes: You can prep everything ahead of time but make sure to leave dressing out on a counter and not in fridge. It will turn to sludge!

What's better than strawberry lemonade?

I'll tell you... strawberry lemonade in the form of a dessert bar! I saw this recipe on a fellow foodie blog called Something Sweet and I knew it would be a perfect match for our Memorial Day cookout last weekend!!

This little babies sure pack a punch of lemon and taste so yummy! they were devoured the minute they hit the table! My only gripe - they did not swirl as I expected them to. The only reason I can figure for this is that I had frozen strawberries in the house (instead of fresh as the original recipe called for) so I used those... maybe too watery? Who knows!

It certainly didn't effect the taste and the two layer look was sort of cool as well!

Enjoy :)

Strawberry Lemon Bars
(adapted from Something Sweet)



Ingredients:
Crust:
7/8 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
Pinch of salt
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Lemon Filling:
2 large eggs
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1½ Tbsp. flour
¼ cup lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest, from 2 lemons
2 Tbsp milk
Pinch of salt

Strawberry Puree:
1/2 cup chopped frozen strawberries
1–2 Tbsp. granulated sugar, depending on how sweet the berries are

Directions:
Mix the chopped strawberries with sugar and set aside to macerate for about 30 minutes.

Mix flour, confectioners' sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a bowl. Add the pieces of butter and, using a pastry blender or your hands, mix until it's a pale yellow and looks like coarse cornmeal. Line an 8x8 baking pan with a sheet of parchment. Press crust mixture into an even ¼-inch thick layer and about ½-inch up the sides. Chill in fridge for 30 minutes.

Blend the strawberries in a food processor (for a few seconds) or mash with a fork until there are no large chunks. Cook over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes until thickened. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 350F and bake crust for 20 minutes, until golden brown.

For filling: Whisk the eggs, sugar, flour and salt in a bowl until the sugar dissolves. Then whisk in the lemon juice, zest, and milk.

Reduce the oven temp to 325F.

Pour the filling into the crust. Drop spoonfuls of the strawberry mixture on the surface. Use spoon or knife to swirl the strawberries through the filling.

Bake at 325F for about 20-22 minutes, or until the filling feels firm when touched lightly. Cool to room temperature, and dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired.