A fresh, healthy and delicious strawberry spinach salad with bacon, pecans, red peppers and balsamic, is just like the La Madeleine version, but you can make it at home! (gluten-free, dairy-free)
As the weather warms up, it's time for fresh, delicious, seasonal salads! During the colder months, cold salads just don't sound as good, but as soon as it gets warm out, nothing goes better with hot sunny days than a fresh salad!
One of my favorite salads is spinach with strawberries. I love the La Madeleine spinach salad with bacon, pecans, red peppers, mushrooms, and balsamic vinaigrette, so I decided to make my own version. Somewhere along the way La Madeleine stopped putting mushrooms in theirs, but I love them, so I kept them in my version.
Why You'll Love This Strawberry Spinach Salad
If you love La Madeleine's spinach salad, then you'll love this copycat version! It's the same fresh spinach salad with strawberries from the French café, but made right in your own home. It couldn't be easier, and it's healthy!
Beyond the powerful nutrition punch in this strawberry spinach salad, it's just so tasty. It's a little bit sweet, a little bit savory, crunchy, juicy and fresh all at the same time. What more could you want? It would be a great addition to your summer menu or perfect for packing for lunch.
Why Is This Salad Healthy?
This strawberry spinach salad packs tons of nutrition, but what's even better is that all of the ingredients work together to help your body absorb more of the nutrients! Spinach is full of iron, but your body doesn't absorb iron from foods very efficiently. Vitamin C, found in strawberries and red bell peppers, helps your body absorb fatigue-fighting iron much better.
The fat found in the nuts and vinaigrette also helps you reap the full nutritional benefits from this strawberry spinach salad. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble, which means they are carried through the body by fat. Healthy sources of fat from nuts and oil-based dressing help you get all of those good vitamins.
How To Make La Madeleine Copycat Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Add spinach, mushrooms, bell pepper, strawberries, bacon and pecans to a large bowl.
- Add the dressing and toss to coat.
- Serve!
More Fresh Summer Salads You'll Love
- Everything Summer Caprese Zucchini Noodle Salad
- Strawberry Peach Salad with Burrata
- Strawberry Avocado Salad with Grilled Chicken
- Peach Avocado Caprese Salad
- Strawberry Peach Salad with Burrata
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the comments!
PrintLa Madeleine Copycat Strawberry Spinach Salad
A fresh and delicious strawberry spinach salad with bacon, pecans, red peppers and balsamic, is just like the La Madeleine version, but you can make it at home! (gluten-free, dairy-free)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
- Category: salad
- Method: no cook
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 5 oz baby spinach
- 1 cup strawberries, sliced
- ½ medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- ½ cup mushrooms, very thinly sliced
- 2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
- ¼ cup pecan halves, toasted
- ¼ cup balsamic vinaigrette (I like Brianna's)
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except for dressing in a large bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Just before serving, add dressing and toss to coat.
Notes
- To toast pecans, spread them on a baking sheet and place in the oven at 400°F for 8-10 minutes.
- I like to prepare the bacon in a cast iron skillet in the oven for the least mess. Cook in a preheated skillet at 375°F for 10-15 minutes, or until crispy, then drain on paper towels and crumble.
- Leave off the mushrooms if you don't care for them.
- For vegetarian, leave off the bacon.
Keywords: spinach strawberry salad, La Madeleine Spinach Salad
It was delicious!
★★★★★
This is my kind of loaded salad! I am all about packing on the fixings!