Autumn may be approaching, but my strawberry plants are still producing flowers and fruit (let’s not even talk about our current heat wave—gah), so I’ll keep celebrating summer for a bit longer; thank you very much.
It’s been over 90º over the past few days after a relatively cool August. However, I must consider the heat wave beneficial since I’ve just sown some cooler-weather veggie seeds. The warmth will help them germinate, and the cooler weather will follow to help them grow and keep them happy. At least, I think there will be cooler weather.
Until then, I have a few things that are adding to my happiness in a beautiful way.
Dahlias: They make my heart sing. I added a few new ones this year, and most look pretty good.
Zinnias: I planted a whole bunch this year, and I think I will never not grow them. I adore all their colors!
Tomatoes: My heirloom tomatoes are still producing, and I’ve concluded that my favorite meal made from them is a tomato sandwich. Lunchtime is my happy hour! My San Marzano plum tomato plant is still cranking out tomatoes, so I’ll have plenty to make homemade pizza sauce soon.
Golden Raspberries: The raspberries produce fruit twice a season—early summer and late summer into fall. The second season is more prolific than the first, so I’ll have them coming out of my ears soon enough.
Strawberries: These luscious, ever-bearing beauties should produce sweet goodness into October. Yes!
Which brings us to this: These sweet berries are red throughout and fragile, so they must be used immediately. There are at least a dozen variations on a strawberry-spinach salad, so I used them this way this time.
I added some curly green leaf lettuce, basil, goat cheese, and almonds and made a fresh strawberry-basil dressing. Red onions are marinated in vinegar, which softens their bite and amplifies their color. This recipe is for two, but ingredients can be multiplied as needed.
Strawberry Basil Salad
For the Dressing
- 1 cup strawberries, sliced
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- ~6-7 large basil leaves
- 1 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar, divided
- 1 Tbsp honey or agave syrup
- Salt & pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender and process until smooth and creamy. Taste and adjust if necessary.
For the Salad
- ¼ cup red onion, very thinly sliced
- 1 Tbsp vinegar
- 4 cups lettuce and/or spinach
- 1 cup strawberries, sliced
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
- ¼ cup goat cheese or chèvre
- A large handful of basil leaves for garnish
Place the onion in a small bowl, pour 1 tablespoon of vinegar over it, and stir so it’s all covered. Set aside while preparing the salad.
In a medium-sized bowl, gently toss all ingredients together and arrange them on a platter or serve them in the bowl. Lastly, drain the onions in a sieve and scatter them across the salad. Garnish with the basil and serve with the dressing.
