This spinach, arugula, and apple salad is all about balance-peppery arugula, tender baby spinach, crisp apples, and salty pistachios that come together with a tangy-sweet maple-Dijon vinaigrette. Add in chewy sun-dried tomatoes, and you've got a fresh, crunchy, flavor-packed salad that works just as well in summer as it does any time of year.
A vibrant salad has three components: fresh ingredients, a homemade dressing, and various add-ins that add texture and crunch.
This easy, healthy salad is incomplete without a perfectly balanced dressing: maple syrup for sweetness, Dijon mustard and red wine vinegar for tang, mayonnaise for creaminess, and extra-virgin olive oil to emulsify and bring it together.
We enjoy this salad, my quinoa salad with arugula, or my Italian quinoa salad alongside grilled chicken, salmon nuggets, or crispy baked chicken cutlets.
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Ingredients for the Maple-Dijon Vinaigrette
Ingredient Notes
- Real maple syrup has a unique flavor, so don't substitute it with imitation maple syrup, i.e., flavored corn syrup.
- Use full-fat mayonnaise to achieve the creamiest vinaigrette.
Substitutions & Variations
- Substitute honey for the maple syrup.
- Try white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar instead of red wine vinegar.
- Using balsamic vinegar to make a balsamic vinaigrette would be delicious, but it will give the salad a brownish tinge, so I'd save it for another dish.
- An alternative to Dijon mustard is grainy, old-fashioned mustard or sweet honey mustard.
Ingredients for Spinach Arugula Apple Salad
Ingredient Notes
- Gala apples are ideal in a salad because they don't oxidize as quickly as other varieties.
- Be gentle when cutting fresh basil. It bruises easily, and overzealous chopping will alter its delicate flavor! See the Helpful Hints below for the best way to cut basil for salad.
Find the detailed recipe below.
Substitutions & Variations
- Substitute with Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Cortland, or Empire apples.
- Pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, or sunflower seeds are a perfect substitute for pistachios.
- Use dehydrated sun-dried in place of oil-packed tomatoes. They will soften in the vinaigrette.
- Instead of the parmesan cheese, choose Pecorino-Romano, crumbles of blue cheese, creamy goat cheese, or salty feta cheese.
How to Make Spinach Arugula Salad with Apples
Step-by-Step Instructions
Creating a vibrant, nutrient-packed salad with arugula and spinach is quick and easy, using only a handful of simple ingredients.
Make vinaigrette:
Add all the ingredients to make the vinaigrette into a large salad bowl.
Whisk:
Whisk the ingredients until the mixture has emulsified and is creamy.
Add remaining ingredients:
Add the greens and the remaining ingredients, gently toss, serve alongside a plate of lemon chicken orzo, and enjoy.
Helpful Hints
- Cut the basil into ribbons called chiffonade. Stack the basil leaves one on top of the other, then roll into a cylinder. Cut through the cylinder into delicate ribbons.
- Dry the leafy greens thoroughly after washing. This will help the vinaigrette adhere better to the leaves.
- Use a large enough bowl to toss your salad. Overcrowding the bowl makes it difficult to toss ingredients evenly and can crush delicate greens.
- To prevent sogginess, toss the salad just before serving.
Make Ahead
- You can make the salad a few hours ahead of time; however, keep the greens separate from the vinaigrette and apple slices, adding them just before serving.
Storage
- The salad is best eaten the same day and will not keep well in the refrigerator.
Recipe FAQs
Arugula has a peppery, slightly bitter taste, while spinach has a mild taste.
Wash before use to prevent wilting and store layered with paper towels in an airtight container in the refrigerator to absorb excess moisture.
Recipe
Spinach Arugula Apple Salad (with maple Dijon vinaigrette)
Equipment
- large salad bowl
- measuring cups and spoons
- whisk
- chef's knife
- salad tongs
Ingredients
Vinaigrette:
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise, I like Hellmann's
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup, real maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
Salad:
- 2 ounces arugula, washed and dried
- 2 ounces baby spinach, washed and dried
- ½ of a Gala apple, washed and cut into ¼-inch slices
- ½ cup red onion, sliced and cut into ⅛-inch slices
- ¼ cup fresh basil, gently cut into ribbons
- ¼ cup salted pistachios, shelled
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced thin and patted with paper towel if using tomatoes packed in oil
- 2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese , cut into thin shavings
Instructions
- Make vinaigrette: Add all the ingredients to make the vinaigrette into a large salad bowl.3 tablespoons mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- Whisk: Whisk the ingredients until the mixture has emulsified and is creamy.
- Add remaining ingredients: Add the greens and the remaining ingredients, gently toss, serve alongside a plate of lemon chicken orzo, and enjoy.2 ounces arugula, 2 ounces baby spinach, ½ of a Gala apple, ½ cup red onion, ¼ cup fresh basil, ¼ cup salted pistachios, ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, 2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Notes
- Two ounces is roughly equivalent to 1 cup packed arugula.
- Two ounces is roughly equivalent to 1 cup of packed spinach.
- This recipe yields ⅓ cup of dressing. This vinaigrette is delicious with other greens, too, like romaine lettuce.
Nutrition
I'm Donna, a home cook living near Montréal, Canada. I have decades of experience puttering in the kitchen, a love of cookbooks, and an unreasonable number of enameled pots. Keep it simple, learn as you go, and enjoy every bite!
Julie says
Loved this dressing! I made it 3x, skips a step for the next time.
I loved the sun dried tomatoes mixed with the pistachios crunch. So good!!
Donna Poirier says
Thanks Julie, I'm so happy to hear this!
Annamarie says
What a great salad! We all loved it and it's very easy to make too.
Donna Poirier says
Thank you 🙂