Every table needs this Simple Green Salad! Fresh spring greens drizzled with a maple balsamic dressing and sprinkled with whatever crunchies your salad-loving heart desires.
Simple Green Salad
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Delicious! So easy… will keep in my back pocket all the time. I brought to a friend’s house and topped with dried cranberries and walnuts. People asked for recipe it was so good!
Caitlin
Thank you so much, food angels, for reminding us that something as simple as bright spring greens and an incredible homemade maple balsamic dressing can literally save the day over and over and over. Did you get a vegetable on the table with the meal? Sure did! And it was this super delicious, slightly sweet, super flexible, add-what-you-want/nix-what-you-don’t green salad and we are eating it every day with wild abandon.
And this little babe is ready to greet you any old time. Dinner, of course. Lunch, yes that makes sense. Brunch, you better believe she’s going to shine next to a piece of quiche. It’s all honestly so easy and so good.
The BEST Homemade Dressing
Since we really cannot take any credit for the spring greens, they’re just doing their thing, let’s talk about this dressing. It’s got all the elements you need to really make it feel special even though it could not be easier and it’s just a few jar-shakes away from being yours all day every day. Deep rich balsamic, a hint of maple sweetness, a subtle little garlic bite. Just get everything together in a jar and then that magnificence is going to be at the ready for you in your fridge all week long.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- balsamic vinegar
- olive oil
- maple syrup
- garlic powder
- salt + pepp
That’s it, frands! Dressing dreams are yours!
Prefer To Watch Instead Of Read?
How To Make This Green Salad (It’s Simple!)
You don’t really need a step-by-step here because it really only entails shaking up the dressing and plopping handfuls of greens into a bowl for gentle tossing, but there it is. Dressing ingredient jar-shake, greens plop, donezo. And then after that it’s really only the greens plop step since that dressing is already waiting in the fridge for you.
- Shake dressing ingredients in a jar.
- Plop your greens in a bowl for tossing.
- Donezo.
Wrote it out anyway, just in case you didn’t believe us.
The real beauty of this easy wonder is that it can go with anything! It’s so good with soup or as a side with a pasta dish, something bright and green to go with a casserole or seriously, it’s been brunch-fare around here and it has been WONDERFUL. It’s so fast to bring together that even if you think of it at the very last second, you can still get it out on the table in under a minute for a nice little green boost to any meal. You better believe our fridge has been steadily stocked with spring greens and dressing swirls for just such a last-second occasion.
Dress It Up If You Like
It’s been a meal plan staple around here just as is, but it is ready for any of your salad-making artistry. You can make it as hearty as you like by adding some goat cheese or any other you like, maybe a few nuts or seeds. Maybe a little dried fruit in there or a pile of extra veg if you’re chopping. Did someone mention big hunky croutons? Yep, that was us and they would definitely be great.
Get some grilled chicken going on that and you have yourself a whole meal outta this guy. But then just please make sure you stock up on some more spring greens so you can keep popping those on the side at every meal this week and feel like a darn fancy champ with this tangy, barely sweet stunner.
Ugh, it’s just so great with all the things. What is that Tina Turner song? “YOU’RE SIMPLY THE BEST!….The salad that’s lightly dressed….”
Not sure if those lyrics are right but…they feel right.
Simple Green Salad: FAQs
How long does the dressing stay good for?
Dressing keeps well in the fridge for a week or more!
What should I serve with this salad?
This goes well with literally everything: soups, pastas, casseroles, brunch – I’ve done it all. This is a weekly staple for us.
When should I toss the salad with the dressing?
The greens will start to soften a bit when the dressing hits, so be sure to toss just before serving for optimal salad texture.
More Super Simple Veg Sides
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Simple Green Salad
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Every table needs this Simple Green Salad! Fresh spring greens drizzled with a maple balsamic dressing and sprinkled with whatever crunchies your salad-loving heart desires.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Dressing
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- black pepper to taste
Salad
- 4 cups spring greens
- seeds, nuts, or any other crunchies for topping if you want (not necessary though!)
Instructions
- Shake dressing ingredients up in a jar. Taste and adjust to get it just right for how you like it.
- Toss a generous amount of spring greens with just a few light drizzles of dressing – you want to get the leaves entirely coated in dressing (but not so much that they get soggy). I often use my hands to gently toss it well without breaking all the greens. Serve immediately.
Notes
I usually do one generous handful of spring mix per person, and 1-2 circular pours of dressing from the jar – you really need less dressing than you think! Just need a really thorough toss to coat them well.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Toss
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: simple green salad, green salad, everyday salad
Other Super Simple Salad Recipes
- 5 Ingredient Vegan Vodka Pasta (SUPER easy take on vodka pasta – and vegan!)
- Zippy Orzo Summer Salad (made easy with rotisserie chicken)
- Liz’s Roasted Broccoli Salad (bright lemon, crisped-up bacon, tangy feta – everyone’s FAVORITE)
- Spicy Peanut Soba Noodle Salad (lots o’ fresh veggies and noodles – just how we like it)
One More Thing!
This recipe is part of our January Meal Planning Bootcamp. Check it out!
Filed Under: 5 Ingredients All Recipes Dairy-Free Dinner Gluten-Free Healthy Lunch Quick and Easy Salads Spring Sugar-Free Summer Vegan Vegetarian Winter
January 6, 2022
Created By The POY Team
Lindsay Ostrom
Recipe Developer
Rita Boersma
Writer
Eman Kemp
Editorial
Emily Caruso
Videographer
I always appreciate a simple dressing.
I love adding all kinds of things to my salads. After a protein – seeds (pumpkin, sunflower), dried fruit like raisins or dried cranberries, salty cheese like feta, beans/chickpeas, croutons/crispy tortilla strips/crispy noodles, sometimes a boiled egg
Love all of those salad toppers! Thanks so much for sharing!
I loved this dressing!! I cut all ingredients by half to make a smaller batch (I was just trying to make it for myself) but it only lasted maybe like 3-4 days in the fridge before the syrup (I guess?) Started to caramelize and it was really hard to mix it up again. Any tips on how to make the dressing last at least up to 1 wk? Thanks!!
This does sound easy/tasty, but so far, this series hasn’t really had anything to do with meal prep…
Hi Amanda! We have a specific email list that we’re sending the meal plans to. If you’d like, you can sign up here to get on that email list. Also, here is the link to the first meal plan.
This dressing is so good! I made just 1/2 recipe to try it out, but tomorrow I’ll have to make it again, it is that delicious! I think it would be a great addition to a lentil salad or grain salad also.
So excited to get this easy delicious dressing recipe! I added just a dab of mustard and it is yummy, just want to keep eating it. No more bottled dressing needed, plus it comes together in like 5 seconds.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it, Eudora! Thanks for the comment!
That’s a Tina turner song, not Whitney Houston 😬
This salad dressing is excellent. It is very well balanced. Highly recommend!
So glad you enjoyed it, Alexandra!
I’m not a salad dressing person but this dressing really won me over! I normally choose to eat my greens plain (anyone else?) but this dressing may become a new fridge staple! Super easy to shake together and very yummy flavor profile, thanks again!
P.S. I used spinach and chopped cucumber as my salad base, my favorite!
Awesome, Lexy! So glad you enjoyed it!
Oh my word this is SO yummy!!! I was looking at the nutrition facts and I was wondering… about how much dressing is considered one serving?
Hi Molly! Great question. We don’t have the exact measurement per serving. I’m guessing it’d be right around 1/4 cup, but you could measure the dressing in tablespoons to determine your preferred serving since some like a lot of dressing and some like a little! It’s possible that you’d get more than 4 servings for you/your family.
Simple and tasty dressing that took our usual olive oil/balsamic routine to the next level. Will absolutely make this again. Might use less sugar next time and add mustard.
So glad you enjoyed it, Liz!
I have such a hard time with diy salads. They are never as delicious as eating out until i tried this. This is DELICIOUS. The dressing is fantastic. I threw together a salad with dried fruit, seeds, chicken, and avocado and I gobbled this up. Total game changer for me and my salad relationship. As further proof, I have never written a review for a recipe before but this is *chefs kiss*. Thank you!
So glad to hear it, Monica! Thanks so much for the review!
I was a little skeptical… .I use fresh garlic in dressings all the time, never garlic powder. But I followed the recipe, powder and all, and OMG this dressing is delicious!! My new fave! Thank you!
So glad you like it, Skye!
I’ve made this three times now and it is SO DELICIOUS. The dressing makes it feel so fancy but it is one of the simplest salads ever. Every time I have served it with some sunflower seeds and croutons, and this last time I threw in some diced red bell pepper I needed to use. It was such a nice fast side to throw together when friends brought over pizza. HIGHLY recommend!!
Delicious! So easy… will keep in my back pocket all the time. I brought to a friend’s house and topped with dried cranberries and walnuts. People asked for recipe it was so good!
This is THE BEST DRESSING EVER….Thanks!
Whoa.
This dressing was so good I had another serving of salad. And I don’t normally eat salad!
We love this dressing! Simple but perfect!
Can’t stop won’t stop making this salad! It’s so simple but AMAZING. I’m eating it everyday for lunch and taking it to any gathering, and everyone lovessssss it!
This salad dressing is so good, I now make it weekly! So much tastier than bottled dressing. I also made it for compapany twice and was asked for the recipe both times.
Perfectly perfect! I’ll keep this dressing as a staple going forward. Simply yum.
My absolute favorite salad dressing! I don’t even understand how this is so good.
I almost never leave comments, but I wanted to let you know how much I love and use this dressing. As a mom of 3 young children, I felt like salads were written on my menu much more often than they made it to the table. I love love this dressing, so I started prepping a big batch of the dressing. It makes salads so simple! We are so enjoying fresh greens more regularly. I have added a number of things, but my most common is to add a sprinkle of either feta or shredded parmesan before tossing with the dressing. Toasted nuts, (uncooked) toasted Ramen noodles, tomatoes, olives…I haven’t eaten in any way that I don’t enjoy yet! After serving the salad to company, I shared your recipe and know that it has become a staple for them as well. Thanks so much for a delicious go-to salad!
We’re thrilled to hear this, Megan! So glad you’ve been enjoying the dressing! Thanks so much for the review!
Want to thank you for this delicious and easy dressing. I didn’t have maple syrup so I used 2/3 molasses and 1/3 agave nectar. It was excellent!
Another success story. Made it for my parents and my mother commented on how good the dressing on the salad was, and asked for the recipe.
I make this dressing all the time – everyone loves it – so versatile!!!
This dressing is SO GOOD!!! I was never the type of person to make my own dressing/eat salads but this dressing has forever changed me.