It’s important to use the best quality product of each season. Right now we have an abundance of juicy strawberries. This salad uses some of my favorite ingredients. What is life without an aged balsamic? . Throw in some creamy goat cheese and spinach and you will have my full attention! It’s simple and has something for everyone. A little sweet, a little savory and lots of flavor.

Traditional balsamic vinegar is always labelled Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale and carries a D.O.P. (“Denominazione di Origine Protetta”) stamp — a European Union certification that guarantees an ingredient’s quality, production, and place of origin. You don’t cook with this aged balsamic. You drizzle this syrup over foods like fresh strawberries. It enhances the flavors of foods. You can even put it on vanilla ice cream. Buy the good stuff. It’s expensive but a little goes a long way.

Candied Pecans

2 tbsp butter

1 cup pecan halves

2 tbsp brown sugar

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Toss in the pecans and brown sugar. Sir to coat the pecans. Cook over medium heat until the sugar begins to caramelize. It takes about 3 minutes. Don’t walk away! It’s easy to burn the pecans. Stay with the 3 minute time frame. It’s better they are a little under done than burnt. Spread out the pecans on wax or parchment paper and cool. Go ahead. Sample a FEW! They are sweet, but not too sweet.

Salad

6 ounces of baby spinach leaves

1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries, stems removed (or more!)

Small log of plain goat cheese, sliced (or more!!)

Balsamic vinegar

Olive oil

salt and pepper

In a large bowl, place the spinach, strawberries, goat cheese and pecans. Drizzle some balsamic and olive oil over salad. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss gently. Wait until right before you want to serve this salad, before you add the dressing.  You can add more strawberries or goat cheese if you’d like. It’s a salad! Go crazy!

Happy Summer!

Here’s the original recipe