Strawberry Spinach Salad

For anyone that knows me, you know I'm not a salad girl. In fact, most of the time, I can't stand just eating lettuce with some dressing for a meal, and I even have a hard time sometimes eating it as a "first course" before my meal. I'm just not a huge fan of leafy greens. That, and if I do eat it, I have to smother it with toppings and dressing, completely negating the purpose of a salad. I might as well just take a bowl of ranch dressing and dip some croutons in it.

I was first introduced to this salad on Easter, when my friend Beth brought it to Easter dinner. It was awesome. I think I actually got seconds. I know, right...me getting seconds of SALAD. Preposterous. I unashamedly asked her for the recipe when dinner was over, and she emailed it to me. She got it from allrecipes.com, and the recipe is here. It was so good, I really was actually excited to make it again. I put it off for a bit for various reasons, but I put it on my meal plan for today, and I have been anxiously awaiting Monday since I made the plan and bought the ingredients on my grocery trip. I know, I'm a nerd. Haha. Since it's made with spinach, it's good for you. And since it has strawberries, it's yummy. And the dressing...well...it's amazing. So seriously...make this salad.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon minced onion (or...1 teaspoon onion powder like I used)
10 ounces fresh spinach - rinsed, dried and torn into bite-size pieces
1 quart strawberries - cleaned, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered

Directions:
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, olive oil, vinegar, paprika, Worcestershire sauce and onion (powder). I actually poured everything into a pourable container with a lid, so I could mix it, pour it, and store it all in one container. And I just shook it up in the container instead of whisking it. It will look something like this: Once it's mixed up, cover it and chill for one hour. I personally didn't chill it. I was too anxious to eat it, but if you have the willpower, go for it. It just gets better with age. ;)

In a large bowl, combine the spinach, strawberries, and almonds. Pour the dressing over the salad, and toss it all together. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes before serving. I actually don't pour the dressing on until I'm going to eat it, and I don't refrigerate it either. Once again...impatience wins the day. Haha. But feel free. I'm sure it's wonderful either way. Seriously, wonderful. Yummmmm.