Seven-Layer Strawberry Salad with Homemade Poppy Seed Dressing ♥

Today's party salad: A spring riff on the traditional Seven-Layer Salad, layers of strawberries, mangoes, kiwi and avocado plus the traditional romaine and red onion. Not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

Everybody loves the Classic Seven Layer Salad, you know, that messy concoction of lettuce, bacon, cheese, bacon, tomato and hard-cooked egg. Wait, is that seven layers? Ooops, add green peas, too.

This is a summer and fruity version of that salad, substituting colorful layers of fresh fruit: strawberries, kiwis and mango plus avocado and toasted walnuts. Seven-Layer Strawberry Salad: the name alone makes me want to mix up another beautiful bowlful!

It was the crowd favorite at a party last week and would make a great contribution to the next potluck or dinner gathering.

RECIPE for SEVEN-LAYER STRAWBERRY SALAD with HOMEMADE POPPY SEED DRESSING

Hands-on time: 30 minutes
Time to table: 30 minutes
Serves about 12

HOMEMADE POPPY SEED DRESSING (enough for two salads)
4 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon red onion
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon poppy seeds

SEVEN-LAYER STRAWBERRY SALAD
Romaine, chopped
Fresh strawberries, trimmed and sliced
Red onion, chopped very fine
Kiwi fruit, peeled and diced
Mango, peeled and diced
Avocado, peeled and diced, stirred with a tablespoon of lemon juice to prevent browning
Toasted walnuts, chopped

HOMEMADE POPPY SEED DRESSING Mix all ingredients except poppy seeds in a small food processor or blender. Stir in the poppy seeds. Can be made in advance. The dressing will separate, just stir to recombine. Makes about 14 tablespoons, a scant cup. You may not need all the dressing, I used about half.

SEVEN-LAYER STRAWBERRY SALAD In a large glass bowl, build seven layers, then repeat. Just before serving, drizzle with Homemade Poppy Seed Dressing.

ALANNA's TIPS & KITCHEN NOTES
I love-love-love the look of a trifle bowl for seven-layer and other showy salads. The downside is that it's hard to toss with ingredients with the dressing. So I must admit that for me, the trifle dish is all for show and when it comes time to serve, I move it to a big salad bowl for easier serving.
To serve 12, I used 1-1/2 heads romaine, 1 pound strawberries, 1 small red onion, 4 kiwi fruit, 2 mangoes, 2 avocados and about 1 cup toasted walnuts. I considered adding bits of feta or blue cheese, but was very happy with this particular combination of ingredients.

TODAY'S VEGETABLE RECIPE INSPIRATION The salad is inspired by the Strawberry Poppy Seed Salad served at the wonderful Benton Park Cafe here in St. Louis; their recipe will be published in my column in the Post-Dispatch in May. This poppy seed dressing shared here is adapted from my own recipe published in 2006, Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Vinaigrette, it's much similar to Benton Park Cafe's recipe.

HOMEMADE POPPY SEED DRESSING ONLY, NUTRITION INFORMATION Per Tablespoon: 84 Calories; 8g Tot Fat; 1g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 83mg Sodium; 4g Carb; 0g Fiber; 4g Sugar; 0g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 2, PointsPlus 2

DRESSING & SALAD NUTRITION "BEST ESTIMATE" (assumes amounts listed in the notes, 7 tablespoons dressing, serving 12) Per Serving: 215 Calories; 14g Tot Fat; 2g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 58mg Sodium; 21g Carb; 6g Fiber; 13g Sugar; 4g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 4, PointsPlus 6

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