Spring Spinach Strawberry Pasta Salad (Printable)

Vibrant bow-tie pasta with fresh spinach, strawberries, almonds, and homemade poppy seed dressing. Refreshing and easy to prepare.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 8 oz bow-tie (farfalle) pasta

→ Salad

02 - 3.5 oz baby spinach, washed and dried
03 - 7 oz fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
04 - 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
05 - 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
06 - 2 tablespoons fresh basil, thinly sliced (optional)

→ Poppy Seed Dressing

07 - 3 tablespoons olive oil
08 - 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
09 - 1 tablespoon honey
10 - 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
11 - 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
12 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
13 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

# Directions:

01 - Cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package instructions until al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside to cool completely.
02 - In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, poppy seeds, salt, and black pepper until well combined.
03 - In a large salad bowl, combine cooled pasta, baby spinach, sliced strawberries, and toasted almonds.
04 - Drizzle with poppy seed dressing and toss gently to coat all ingredients evenly.
05 - Top with crumbled feta cheese and fresh basil if using. Serve immediately.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • That perfect moment when spring produce meets comfort food in one bowl
  • The homemade poppy seed dressing comes together faster than driving to the store
  • Everyone thinks you spent way more effort on it than you actually did
02 -
  • Rinse the pasta with cold water or it'll keep cooking and turn mushy in the salad
  • The dressing tastes even better if you make it an hour ahead and let the flavors mingle
  • This salad doesn't keep well overnight, the strawberries get weirdly soft
03 -
  • Use a glass bowl to toss everything so you can see if the dressing is coating evenly
  • The key to restaurant quality presentation is leaving some ingredients visible on top rather than burying them
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