Bright & Beautiful Spinach Salad Recipe With Fresh Cherries & Pistachios Is the Perfect Summer Salad (20 Minutes) by Elisa Schmitz

To me, summer means salad. I love eating salads and summer is the only time of year when my husband may actually agree with me – which means I make as many as I can! Good thing there are endless ways to enjoy fresh salad, especially with all the farm-fresh produce at farmers markets and in grocery stores. Cherries are one of the stars of summer, and this spinach salad lets these stone fruits shine.

The bright and beautiful spinach salad recipe with fresh cherries and crunchy pistachios is the perfect summer salad. It's chock-full of rich and sweet summer cherries, which add incredible flavor as well as nutrition. Did you know that cherries contain a variety of powerful plant compounds that may help reduce inflammation? Plus, eating them may help improve sleep, boost heart health and even help with exercise recovery, among the many health benefits of cherries. That's the cherry on top of the salad!

This wholesome summer salad recipe is packed with fiber and protein. Learn about the health benefits of fiber and the health benefits of protein. This quick-to-make salad offers the perfect blend of sweet and savory flavors thanks to the buttery dates (check out the health benefits of dates), sweet-tart apples and crunchy pistachios. The light and tangy vinaigrette dressing pulls it all together in a way that makes salad seem indulgent. Plus, check out the health benefits of apples and the health benefits of pistachios.

To make this gluten-free salad recipe, here are the vegetarian ingredients you'll need to gather: extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, butter, cinnamon, sweet paprika, Medjool dates, fresh cherries, green bell pepper, apples, pistachios, baby spinach (check out the health benefits of spinach), flat-leaf parsley (check out the health benefits of parsley) and fresh chives (check out the health benefits of chives). First, combine the dressing ingredients. Next, sauté the cherries, bell peppers, apples and pistachios in the butter, cinnamon and paprika. Then, toss the greens in the dressing and place the decadent cherry mixture on top of the salad greens. Bright, beautiful, nutritious, delicious.

You can serve this sweet and savory summer salad as an incredible lunch, as a vegetable side dish or even as a vegetarian dinner. Garnish with additional fresh chives, parsley or other favorite herb, if you like. This is one salad we'll be eating on repeat this summer!

Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

Dressing

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• salt and pepper, to taste (optional, but I used about 1/4 teaspoon of each)

Salad

• 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 8 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
• 2 cups fresh cherries, pitted and sliced
• 1 cup apples, diced (I used Fuji)
• 3/4 cup green bell peppers, diced (or your preferred color of bell pepper)
• 1/2 cup pistachios
• 6 chives, chopped
• 6 ounces baby spinach
• 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley

Here's how to make it:

1. Prepare the vinaigrette dressing first. In a large mixing bowl, add the olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey and mustard. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, if desired. Whisk to combine then taste it to see if you'd like to adjust any of the ingredients. Set bowl aside.
   
2. Make the salad next. In a large saucepan over medium heat, add the butter. After butter is melted, add the cinnamon and paprika and stir to combine.
   
3. Add the cherries, dates, apples and bell peppers. Stir to combine.
   
4. Add the pistachios and stir to combine.
   
5. Cook, stirring, until dates, cherries, apples and peppers have softened, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the chives and stir to combine. Remove from heat.
   
6. Prepare the greens next. In the mixing bowl with the dressing, add the spinach and parsley.
   
7. Toss to combine.
   
8. Place the greens onto a large serving plate or onto four individual plates.
   
9. Place the cherry mixture on top of the greens and serve. Garnish with additional chives, parsley or other fresh herb, if desired. Store leftover salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
   

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