Simple Spinach Salad with Apples & Pecans

Ingredient notes:

A large bowl of spinach leaves, apples, pecans and other ingredients to make a spinach salad.

(Specific measurements can be found in the recipe below.)

Baby spinach – with its dark, leafy green leaves, provides a tender yet crisp texture and forms the base of this dish. It has a slightly earthy flavor that complements other ingredients.

Dried cranberries – not only do the cranberries provide a beautiful garnet color, their sweet and tart taste is a great addition.

Granny Smith apples – provide texture, flavor, and crunch. You can substitute other apples if you like but stick with firm ones such as Honeycrisp.

Feta cheese – adds a creaminess and a tangy, salty flavor. Crumbled blue cheese or goat cheese would be suitable substitutes, but they will change the taste.

Roasted pecans – with their buttery richness, add crunch and great flavor. You can substitute walnuts or almonds.

Honey – adds a bit of sweetness to the dressing.

Lemon juice – adds a beautiful fresh citrusy taste.

Onion powder, garlic powder, kosher salt, and ground black pepper enhance all flavors and make the dressing extra tasty.

Olive oil – extra virgin olive oil provides a delicate fresh taste and, along with the lemon juice, forms the base of the dressing.

Poppy seeds – add a nutty taste and a slightly crunchy texture. Without the poppy seeds, you would have a vinaigrette.

How to make Spinach Salad and Poppy Seed Dressing:

Place the rinsed and dried spinach leaves in a large bowl. Thinly slice the apples and add them to the spinach. Next, add the cranberries, crumbled feta, and roasted pecans.

Add all of the dressing ingredients to a large jar and shake well.

Before serving, top the salad with a bit of dressing and gently toss.

Pouring dressing out of a mason jar onto a spinach salad.

Serve immediately.

Two bowls full of spinach salad topped with apples and pecans.

Recipe variations and substitutions:

As you might imagine, a bowl of spinach leaves is a blank slate and can be changed up in various ways by adding different ingredients. Here are some other topping ideas:

Mandarin oranges, strawberries, blueberries, pears, pomegranate arils, or dried blueberries

Mushrooms, avocado, tomato, cucumber, roasted cubed sweet potato, hearts of palm, or sliced red onions

Bacon, hard-boiled eggs, croutons, walnuts, almonds, pistachios, candied pecans, fried onion rings, crumbled blue cheese, or goat cheese

For the dressing, you can change things up with a warm bacon dressing, greek yogurt dressing, blue cheese dressing, honey mustard, or balsamic vinaigrette.

To transform it into a main-dish salad, consider adding grilled chicken, salmon, or cooked shrimp.

Recipe FAQs:

What’s the difference between baby spinach and regular spinach?

They are the same vegetable; baby spinach leaves are immature, it has a milder flavor, and is more tender. Regular spinach has a more robust flavor and fully matured leaves.

Do you have to wash spinach?

If your bagged spinach is labeled “washed” or “ready to eat,” it does not need to be washed.

If not, place the leaves in a colander or salad spinner and rinse thoroughly with cold running water. Allow to drain and spread the leaves out on a paper towel or dish towel to dry before using it.

Can this recipe be made ahead?

For the best results, this salad is best when made right before serving it. However, you can make the dressing ahead and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.

Leftovers and storage?

Only add the dressing to the salad right before you plan to serve it. Once it had dressing added to it usually doesn’t stay fresh for more than an hour or so.

If you have a leftover salad without dressing, it will still be okay to eat if stored covered in the refrigerator for about 24 hours, although the apples may start to discolor.

Top tips and tricks:

You will have extra dressing. Simply cover, refrigerate, and use it on another salad.

If your pecans aren’t already roasted, place them in a single layer on a microwave-safe plate and microwave in one-minute increments until they are fragrant and lightly roasted. Start tasting them at the three-minute mark.

Whether you cut the stems off of the spinach leaves is purely a matter of personal preference. I usually do, but most folks don’t.

Feel free to use purchased dressing if you are in a time crunch.

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