Salads grow old quickly. Even as a vegetarian, when I hear about somebody being on an all-salad diet I instantly pity their jaw, which is likely quite sore from all that chewing (I may also picture them with Swatchenagger-like jaw muscles bulging out of their otherwise proportionate face…). Anyhow, that means when I make a salad, it’s got to be worth all that chewing!
Anyone who has ever picked blackberries knows that they are delicious berries that defend themselves somewhat over-enthusiastically. But it’s worth it, especially when they’re still warm from the sunlight, and you’ve bandaged up your berry-picking battle wounds. While I wasn’t able to pick these berries myself as it is the dead of winter, I was able to enjoy them as part of a spot-of-summer Blackberry Salad with a Blackcurrant Dressing.
Spinach, goat cheese, and blackberries, with a blackcurrant and coconut dressing. Mmm. An excellent side to a bowl of thick lentil soup with some nice, crusty bread.
Blackberry Salad with Blackcurrant Dressing
4 cups baby spinach, washed and spun dry½ cup crumbled chévre
1 cup blackberries, rinsed and driedDressing1 tbsp blackcurrant infused balsamic vinegar
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp melted extra virgin coconut oil
4 tbsp canola oilWhisk the dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar together. Combine the coconut and canola oil in a small container. Slowly whisk the oils into the mustard/balsamic vinegar.
Top a few handfuls of spinach with some chévre and blackberries. Drizzle with dressing and serve.
