A quintessential springtime salad. Tiny sweet strawberries bursting in your mouth? Soft, gently flavorful leaves of spinach, fresh from the ground. A bit of bite from the onion and satisfying give from the pecans. And, finally, an inspired sweet and sour dressing filled with fresh fruit flavors.

• 1 lb. very cold baby spinach
• 2 c. fresh strawberries, sliced if larger than ½ inch in diameter
• 1/2 c. red onion, sliced as thinly as possible
• 1/2 c. raw pecans, chopped coarsely

Dressing:

• 1 c. fresh strawberries
• approx 1/4 c. fresh orange juice (from ~2 sweet oranges)
• 4 small dates
• 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp. chia seeds

1. Wash spinach well, dry leaves, and place in large bowl in refrigerator.

2. Place red onion slices in a bowl of water, and allow to soak 10-15 minutes. Remove, pat dry, and set aside.

3. Place dressing ingredients in a blender, spin on high until completely liquefied, and set aside 5 min. to allow flavors to blend.

4. Remove spinach from refrigerator, toss thoroughly with dressing, and arrange on 2-4 plates (2 plates for dinner salads, 4 plates for starters).

5. Arrange strawberries and pecans over top of spinach, sprinkle with red onion, and serve immediately.

Bon appétit!

Thank you, lowfatveganchef.com, for a prior version of this recipe.