Mediterranean Spinach Salad is a delicious blend of fresh spinach leaves, crisp cucumber, marinated artichokes, couscous, and sun dried tomatoes tossed in a zesty lemon vinaigrette with tangy Feta cheese.
Salads are good for you. They are full of fiber and packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. We should all eat more salads but nobody really wants to because they are usually kind of boring. Not this one!
This salad has big flavors. Baby spinach makes up the salad part and adding marinated artichokes, couscous, sun dried tomatoes and Feta cheese makes it a lot more interesting. With a bright lemon vinaigrette to tie it all together, this is a delicious salad on its own or as a tasty side dish!
What You’ll Need to Make Mediterranean Spinach Salad
- Baby Spinach – One 6 oz bag, about 6 cups 6 ounces, coarsely chopped.
- Couscous – We use traditional couscous but you can also use Israeli couscous if you like.
- Cucumber – 2 cups peeled and cut into bite sized pieces. We use regular cucumbers but you can use English cucumber or Armenian cucumbers if you prefer.
- Sun Dried Tomatoes – 3/4 cups, chopped. The dressing will slightly hydrate them in the salad.
- Marinated Artichokes – 1 cup, drained and chopped. You can use regular artichokes but the marinated ones have a briny flavor that is wonderful in this salad.
- Feta Cheese – 1/2 cup. This is completely optional but the tangy cheese adds a nice flavor!
- Lemon – Fresh lemon is best for this salad because the lemon zest in the dressing adds an extra burst of lemon but if you don’t have fresh, you can use 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice instead.
- Red Wine Vinegar – If you don’t have red wine vinegar, you can substitute Balsamic, white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar in equal amounts.
- Dijon Mustard – Mustard with a deeper flavor due to the blend of mustard seeds used, white wine and spices. Yellow mustard, honey mustard or spicy mustard may be substituted.
- Garlic – 2-3 cloves minced, about 1 tsp. You can substitute garlic paste, chopped garlic, or in a pinch, use 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Olive Oil – We use extra virgin olive oil but any olive oil, avocado oil, vegetable oil or canola oil may be used for this recipe.
- Honey – If you don’t have honey you can substitute while sugar in an equal amount.
- Basil – We use fresh chopped basil because it tastes wonderful and compliments the spinach but if you don’t have any, use 1 teaspoon of dried basil instead.
How to Make Mediterranean Spinach Salad
Mediterranean Spinach Salad is bright and vibrant. With all sorts of good for you stuff like spinach, cucumbers, artichokes and couscous, and dressed with a delicious lemon vinaigrette, it makes a great lunch or side salad!
Prepare couscous according to package directions, making sure to salt the water. Fluff with a fork and set aside until completely cooled.
Zest the lemon and place the zest into a small bowl then juice the lemon into the same bowl. Add the vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, olive oil, honey and basil.
Whisk together until completely blended.
Coarsely chop the baby spinach and add to a large bowl top with the cooled couscous.
Peel the cucumber and cut into bite sized pieces. Chop the sun dried tomatoes and marinated artichokes. Add everything to the bowl.
Pour the tangy lemon dressing over the top and toss the salad until well coated.
Sprinkle with Feta Cheese and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Other Tasty Salads You May Like
Easy Greek Orzo Salad – Tender orzo, tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese, and Kalamata olives tossed in a zesty dressing.
Dill Pickle Pasta Salad – a fun pickle twist on a traditional pasta salad!
Southwest Summer Salad – Fresh corn, bell pepper, red onion and black beans are tossed in a vibrant and tangy dressing.
Easy Thai Chicken Salad – crunchy cabbage and chopped chicken all tossed in a delicious creamy Asian inspired peanut dressing.
Perfect Potluck Four Bean Salad – All the traditional flavors with a little added crunch. Delicious as a side or a potluck share!
Mediterranean Spinach Salad
Ingredients
Mediterranean Salad
- 1 bag baby spinach 6 ounces, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup couscous
- 2 cups cucumber peeled and cut into bite sized pieces
- 3/4 cup sun dried tomatoes chopped
- 1 cup marinated artichokes chopped
- 1/2 cup Feta cheese
Tangy Lemon Dressing
- 1 medium lemon
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced, about 1 tsp
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp fresh basil chopped, or 1 tsp dried
Instructions
- Prepare couscous according to package directions, making sure to salt the water. Fluff with a fork and set aside until completely cooled.
- Zest the lemon and place the zest into a small bowl then juice the lemon into the same bowl. Add the vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, olive oil, honey and basil.
- Whisk together until completely blended.
- Coarsely chop the baby spinach and add to a large bowl top with the cooled couscous.
- Peel the cucumber and cut into bite sized pieces. Chop the sun dried tomatoes and marinated artichokes. Add everything to the bowl.
- Pour the tangy lemon dressing over the top and toss the salad until well coated.
- Sprinkle with Feta Cheese and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Nutrition *
* The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.
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