Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing
Baby spinach, sweet strawberries, toasted almonds and tangy goat cheese in a creamy, sugar-free poppy seed dressing — a summer salad that fits keto.
Nutrition per serving
2 cups- Net carbs
- 4g
- Calories
- 227kcal
- Protein
- 5.9g
- Fat
- 20g
- Total carbs
- 10 g
- Fiber
- 2.9 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient (optional ingredients excluded). Brands vary — check your labels if you track closely.
Ingredients
With grilled chicken: Sliced grilled chicken breast makes it a light main-course salad.
- Pound the chicken to an even ¾ inch (2 cm), season with salt and pepper, rub with the oil and grill or pan-sear 5–6 minutes per side, until it reaches 165°F (74°C). Rest 5 minutes, slice and lay over the salads.
Raspberry & walnut: Raspberries — one of the lowest-carb berries — with toasted walnuts and feta for a tangier twist.
- Toast the walnuts instead of the almonds and scatter the raspberries over the salad whole so they hold their shape.
- Salad
- Poppy seed dressing
- Salad
- Poppy seed dressing
- Also add
- Salad
- Poppy seed dressing
Estimated cost $7.06 for 4 servings ($1.77 each) · how we estimate
Instructions
-
Toast the almonds in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for 2–3 minutes, shaking the pan, until golden. Let them cool.
-
Make the dressing: shake the oil, vinegar, sweetener, mayonnaise, poppy seeds, Dijon, onion powder and salt in a jar until creamy and the sweetener has dissolved.
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Put the spinach and red onion in a large bowl, add about two-thirds of the dressing and toss gently.
-
Top with the strawberries, almonds and goat cheese, drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve right away.
Tips for success
-
Bottled poppy seed dressings are usually loaded with sugar. This one gets its sweetness from allulose, which dissolves completely and never turns gritty. - A cup of sliced strawberries spread over four salads adds only about 2 g net carbs per plate — plenty of juicy color without blowing your carb budget.
- Add grilled chicken or salmon to make it a meal.
Storage & meal prep
- Best eaten fresh
Reheat: Serve cold
Prep tip: Shake up a jar of dressing on prep day and keep the spinach, berries and toasted nuts separate; a salad then takes 2 minutes.
Dress just before serving. The dressing keeps 1 week in the fridge (shake well); washed spinach keeps 3 days and sliced strawberries 2 days.
Variations
2 variations, each with its own ingredients and macrosWith grilled chicken
ProteinSliced grilled chicken breast makes it a light main-course salad.
- + 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- + 1 tbsp olive oil
4 g net · 393 kcal · 31 g protein · 27 g fat · ≈$2.88 per serving (same net carbs as the original)
Raspberry & walnut
FlavorRaspberries — one of the lowest-carb berries — with toasted walnuts and feta for a tangier twist.
- strawberries → raspberries
- sliced almonds → walnuts
- goat cheese → feta
4 g net · 237 kcal · 5 g protein · 22 g fat · ≈$1.93 per serving (same net carbs as the original)
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Pin this recipe to your keto board so it’s there when you plan next week.
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