Strawberry Mango Avocado Salad with Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts

Name: Strawberry Mango Avocado Salad
Prep time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt; 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice; 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice; 1 Tablespoon olive oil; 1 Tablespoon honey; salt and pepper, (to taste); 2 Tablespoons pine nuts; One 5-6 oz. bag of mixed baby greens (spring greens, or your favorite salad mix); 1 cup sliced strawberries; Half of a mango, (peeled and thinly sliced); Half of an avocado, (removed from the shell and thinly sliced); 4 oz. goat cheese, (crumbled or cut into about 8 slices); grilled chicken, shrimp, steak, beans, etc., (optional)

7/28/20

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Strawberry Mango Avocado Salad is a delightfully fresh mix of sweet and tangy with healthy and satisfying. Topped with goat cheese, pine nuts, and a creamy citrus dressing, it is perfect as a light lunch or side dish. Or add your favorite protein to make it a meal.

Strawberry Mango Avocado Salad with Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts Recipe Image with title

Who else loves kitchen gadgets?

And while getting into the kitchen to cook and bake with them, is fun, I always start with considering the thought process behind the design of each tool. I start to use them, and think about how they made a previously frustrating task into something so quick and easy. And some times much more fun!

While this Mango Strawberry Salad can easily be made with basics like a knife and a bowl and a spoon, I love making it because it gives me the opportunity to play with some of my favorites tools in the kitchen.

You can take the girl out of engineering, but you can’t take the engineer out of the girl.

Nor can you take away my ongoing obsession with salads topped with fruit, cheese, nuts, and a super-flavorful dressing…

Mixed greens topped with strawberries, mango, avocado, goat cheese, and honey lemon lime dressing

Mango Strawberry Avocado Salad with Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts

Whether you are in the depths of winter and dreaming about warmer days or enjoying all those warmer days have to offer, the bright fruit colors in this salad recipe evoke thoughts of spring and summer. The light, sweet and tart citrus salad dressing brings a little zing to freshen the rich creaminess of the goat cheese and avocado. And pine nuts are a perfect choice for a bit of crunch. Serve as a side dish or add your favorite meat, seafood, or vegetarian protein on top for a satisfying dinner, or enjoy one as a light al fresco lunch.

Here is a brief overview so you can see just how easy it is to make. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for the full quantities and details.
But don’t skip my PRO TIPS below!

Ingredients

Mixed baby greens

I love to use mixed greens or baby green in this salad. They are light and tender, and sometimes have a bit of peppery flavor that pairs nicely with the sweetness of the fruit. You could also go with a butter or leaf lettuce or even romaine or baby spinach, ich like this Strawberry Spinach Salad.

Just be sure to wash your greens and get rid of any excess moisture with a salad spinner. before putting it into bowls

Strawberries

Sliced strawberries add bright red and juicy, freshness. Removing the green leaves and the white, bitter hull of the strawberry will ensure you get the best color and flavor for your salad.

I love using a strawberry huller to take out all the stuff you don’t want without removing or wasting the good parts of the strawberry. Press it into the top of the strawberry, push the little button, and it spits out the guts.

Pro tip – if your strawberries have big leaves, rip them off first so you don’t get bits of leaves and stem stuck to the berries. Also, ones that have started to get a bit soft don’t work as well. But in general, the design is just brilliant!

Mango

Slices or chunks of mango give it that sweet tropical flavor and they pair so well with strawberries. I love mangoes but they can be a bit tricky to peel and cut.

That’s why a mango splitter is one of my favorite kitchen tools. A mango pit is so large and the fruit clings to it. There is almost no way to avoid leaving behind so much of that sweet, sunny fruit unless you use one of these. Then just use a spoon or the edge of a glass to scrape the flesh out of the skin.

Avocado

Avocado adds rich creaminess to the bright flavors of the strawberry mango salad. It also makes it more satisfying and adds a good dose of healthy fats.

A 3-in-1 avocado tool makes short work of cutting the avocado in half, removing the pit, slicing it, and removing the skin. For so long I would use the technique of banging the blade of a kitchen knife into the avocado pit and twisting to remove it. It’s effective but dangerous. This tool grabs the pit and makes it easy to pull out without the risk of a visit to the ER.

Goat cheese

You can buy a log of goat cheese or get it already rumbled in a container. And yes, just crumbling the goat cheese on the salad is simple and perfectly fine. However, if you really want to dress it up, it also looks nice to lay some slices right on top.

If you don’t like goat cheese, feta or blue cheese are great alternatives. Shredded cheddar or Monterey jack are always options, though not my favorite on this particular salad.

Pine nuts

Pine nuts always taste best when lightly toasted. I recommend heating a small pan over low to medium heat, adding the pine nuts and tossing around for a few minutes just until they are golden brown and start to smell nutty.

If you don’t love pine nuts, you can always try pecans, walnuts, or slivered almonds.

Pouring Honey Lemon Lime Dressing over the fruit and mixed greens salad

Creamy Lemon Lime Dressing

This easy Greek Yogurt Honey Lemon Lime Dressing is the perfect sweet and tangy contrast to this salad. You only need a few ingredients:

Plain Greek yogurt – nonfat, lowfat, or whole milk yogurt all work fine
Lemon juice – I highly recommend freshly squeezed lemon juice, as the bottled kind can be too bitter. If you need to use that, you will likely need additional honey or use less juice and more yogurt.
Lime juice – same comment about using fresh.
Honey
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Combine everything in a bowl, jar, or this super cool Salad Dressing Shaker and give it a stir or shake. I honestly use the shaker container from OXO all the time. On a weekly basis, I am making my Creamy Balsamic Dressing or one of my other favorites, which you can also use on this salad.

Other salad dressing options

I do love how the lemon lime salad dressing pairs with this salad. But if you want to try something different, I recommend these:

Strawberry Poppyseed Dressing
Greek Yogurt Creamy Dijon Dressing
Blueberry Balsamic Vinaigrette
Greek Yogurt Blue Cheese Dressing (though you may want to omit the goat cheese from the salad)
Creamy Sherry Vinaigrette

Fork holdind a bite of the final tossed salad

Assembling the salad

You can make one big bowl or individual bowls and really keep it as simple or as fancy as you like.

Fill the bowl with greens, then you have the option to scatter the ingredients over the top, or create nice rows.

Drizzle over the dressing or serve it tossed – that’s your call!

And check out my recommendations below to turn this light salad into a meal!

Overhead of a boal of Strawberry Mango Avocado Salad with Grilled Chicken and Honey Lemon Lime Dressing

Make it a meal

While this strawberry salad is delicious and fairly satisfying on its own. it makes a great side dish. And if you want to satisfy some bigger appetites, you can top it with chicken steak, shrimp and more. Or pair it with a soup, sandwich, bread, or another side dish.

Serve it with

Top it with

Add a side dish

Final plated salad with grilled chicken and on top

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Overhead horizontal image of grilled chicken salad with strawberries and mango

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