Berry Spinach Pasta Salad

Last Updated on May 26, 2024

This Berry Spinach Pasta Salad is a refreshing, sweet, tangy, and quick summer treat.

A salad that can be enjoyed as a light lunch or even as a wonderful side dish at your family barbecues!

What I love most about this salad is that you can customize it to the seasonal fruits available.

Personally, I love using strawberries in this pasta salad, this is why I always make this salad during the summer.

The strawberries add a sweet, juicy flavor along with a little tang to the salad.

Want to change it up with different fruits/berries?

Try peaches, pears, apples, blackberries, grapes, or even a diced fresh pineapple.

What nuts compliment this salad?

My favorite is salted cashews, I love the creamy, slightly soft texture with the mild buttery nutty flavor.

Not a fan of cashews? Try sunflower seeds, pecans, walnuts, or slivered almonds.

Don’t like nuts? No problem, eliminate the nuts all together and just enjoy the salad with fresh fruits.

In this recipe, I used a gluten free penne pasta, other pastas that would work wonderfully are, fusilli, bow tie, shells, or macaroni.

Ingredients needed for this salad

• Pasta – I used a gluten free penne pasta. Use your favorite pasta of your choice.
• Berries – I used blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Change up to any seasonal fruit or berry, to name just a few: pears, apples, peaches, pineapple, or grapes.
• Dried Fruit or Berries – I used dried cranberries. Or give dried strawberries or blueberries a try.
• Nuts – In this salad I always use salted cashews. But a slivered almond, walnut, pecan, or a sunflower will work wonderfully as well.
• Spinach – I added fresh spinach for color and texture in the salad.

Dressing ingredients

• Oil – Add your favorite oil to the dressing. I used a olive oil for my dressing.
• Vinegar – I used an apple cider vinegar for the dressing.
• Plant Based Milk – Add your favorite plant based milk to the dressing. I used an unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
• Real Maple Syrup – My sweetener of choice is the maple syrup. Substituted with honey if you prefer.
• Orange Juice – OJ brings a fresh, clean flavor along with a sweetness and tartness to the dressing.
• Mustard – I used a yellow mustard in the dressing. Change it up with a different variety of mustard.
• Poppy Seeds – Poppy seeds add a mild, nutty flavor along with a slight crunch to this salad.
• Salt and Pepper – To taste.

How to make this Berry Spinach Pasta Salad

Cook the pasta of your choice to the package directions.

Once the pasta is done, rinse with cold water to cool the pasta, set aside to drain.

After the water has drain completely, pour the pasta into a large serving bowl.

Clean and slice the fruit and/or berries into bite sized pieces.

Next, mix in the fruit and any dried fruit or berries to the pasta, set aside.

NOTE: Do not add the nuts or fresh spinach until ready to serve.

Making the dressing

In a large measuring cup, add and blend together the oil, vinegar, orange juice, maple syrup, plant based milk, poppy seeds, mustard, salt, and pepper.

Pour the dressing over the pasta, stir to cover the pasta, place into the refrigerator for about 1 hour or until ready to serve.

Serving the Berry Spinach Pasta Salad

Remove the salad from the refrigerator and stir.

Clean and add the fresh spinach and the nut of your choice.

Stir together and serve.

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