Spinach Salad with Sweet Poppyseed Dressing

Yesterday a good friend called me up to invite me and Greg over to his place for an impromptu dinner.  Luckily our calendar was open, so we were able to spend time hanging out with Joseph, Alyssa, and their adorable 18-month old son.

We ate some really great food - Joseph made some amazing pork chops, scrumptious corn on the cob, and his famous mashed potatoes and famous rolls (he swears the rolls were homemade, but they looked and tasted so perfect that I have my doubts)! We ate belgian waffles piled high with  berries and whipped cream for dessert. So yummy!

I volunteered to bring a salad, and I made one that I have been wanting to make for quite some time. This salad is another favorite of mine that my mom used to make. The recipe for the salad and dressing comes from the Cooking Light magazine. Since I didn't have any of the light items in my house, the salad dressing really wasn't too light. But, it was still DELICIOUS! Of course if you want to make the light version, you can use light mayo in place of real mayo and skim milk in place of 2% or whole.

I love the salad because it is almost like eating a dessert, but you still get the health benefits from the spinach, fruit, and nuts. I'll be making the salad again tomorrow when my sister and brother-in-law visit with the kids. I hope they will enjoy it as much as we did!

Recipe for Spinach Salad with Sweet Poppyseed Dressing

INGREDIENTS:
For the salad:
1 5-oz box of baby spinach, washed and dried
1 16-oz container of strawberries, washed, stemmed, and sliced thin
1/2 cup of seedless red grapes, washed, stemmed, and chopped in half
2 - 3 Tbsp. of walnut halves

For the dressing:
1 Tbsp. of white wine vinegar
3 Tbsp. of granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. of poppy seeds
3 Tbsp. of skim, 2 %, or whole milk
1/4 cup of mayonnaise (regular or light)

DIRECTIONS:
Make the dressing first. In a mixing bowl, combine the vinegar, sugar, poppy seeds, milk, and mayonnaise. Use a wire whisk to stir well, and mix until ingredients are well incorporated. Cover bowl and store in fridge until ready to use.
Put the spinach, strawberries, grapes, and walnuts into a salad bowl. Put dressing on top and toss; or dish up salad in individual bowls and let everyone drizzle on their own desired amount of dressing. Makes about 4 servings (dressing makes more than 4 servings, and can be stored in a covered container in the fridge for up to two days). Enjoy!

Recipe Adapted from: My Recipes, Originally from Cooking Light June 2003

***It looks like Md will finally see some relief from the heat this week! I'm excited that I will be able to use my oven again - I've been going through baking withdrawal.  Hope to post the key lime tart recipe on Monday or Tuesday - it's one of my favorites!***