Winner Announced: This giveaway is now closed. The randomly chosen winner is Laurie, who said: "We’re having a great day grilling with the family!" Congratulations, Laurie. Please check your email to claim your prize. 🙂
Happy Memorial Day weekend y'all!
What are your big plans? We just finalized plans yesterday. Out of the blue, our friends from Chicago called us and told us they were in town for a funeral. So, guess who's coming over to grill out with us tomorrow. Yippee!! It's always great seeing old friends, especially this family. They have four kids of their own, so we're gonna bust out the slip 'n slide my parents gave us and the bouncy house some other friends gave us. 🙂 Yay for FUN freebies!
I'm seeing all over Instagram that there is unusually colder weather across the country. Same here in Mississippi, except that means instead of the typical 100+ degree temps with high humidity, we are experiencing beautiful 80 degree weather with NO humidity. Perfect for being outside! We're going to soak this up as much as we can before the real heat strikes.
Salads are great for warmer weather, and since it is strawberry season I thought I would share with you one of my favorites. It's probably the easiest salad you can throw together, too. Everyone has their favorite version of this with variants of toppings, but I keep it very simple with just strawberries and pecans.
I was first introduced to Poppyseed Dressing as a kid from my mom. She would always buy a bottle of it from a local restaurant because "it was the best!" And, really, it was good! I'm excited that I know how to make it at home and with staple pantry ingredients, where the taste is just as delicious!
This version of Poppyseed Dressing is from my friend, Lauren's, new e-cookbook "Everyday Ingredients, Extraordinary Meals". I'm super positive that you would love this book, along with her blog if you don't read it already. She shares fabulous recipes that you can make with ingredients that you've actually heard of before! Everything in the book is easily achievable even in the novice home chef's kitchen.
Lauren provided me a copy of her book, but I wanted to buy one anyway to support her. So, I'm going to buy it instead for one of YOU!
To enter the giveaway for one e-cookbook "Everyday Ingredients, Extraordinary Meals," simply leave a comment below telling me your plans for Memorial Day. The giveaway will close tomorrow (Memorial Day) evening at 10:00 PM EST. One winner will be chosen randomly and announced at the top of this post. Make sure you leave a valid email address in the correct field when leaving a comment so I can also notify you by email if you win.
If you don't win and would like to purchase a copy of your own, click here to buy: 
Here's the recipe:
Strawberry Spinach Salad with a Simple Poppyseed Dressing
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 5 oz baby spinach leaves
- 1 lb fresh strawberries , washed, dried and sliced
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
For the poppyseed dressing:
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon poppyseeds
- Salt and pepper , to taste
Instructions
- Toss the salad ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate medium bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients together until fully combined. Drizzle just a few Tablespoons over the spinach salad and toss. Add more to taste. Serve immediately.
- Store the leftover dressing in an airtight container in the fridge. Will last for a couple of weeks.
- Source: Poppyseed dressing from Lauren's Latest, "Everyday Ingredients, Extraordinary Meals"
Nutmeg Nanny says
This salad looks so fresh and delicious 🙂 I am putting strawberries on everything I can lately!
claire @ the realistic nutritionist says
I just love this!! so simply and perfect for summer.
Melissa says
i was at the beach with my family, how cliche, huh?
CJ says
We are spending a quiet day at home. DH has had a severe allergy attack so - shish kabobs and long grain and wild rice is one the menu.
Laura says
I'm guessing the poppyseed dressing you grew up on was the same one I grew up on....it wouldn't be Arnies famous poppyseed dressing...would it? 🙂
Nikki says
Yep! 🙂
Leann G says
Cleaning up my house & relaxing with my hubby
Megan Brown says
We are having a family cookout with burgers and hotdogs! 🙂
Michelle Blair-Weeks says
Worked today (I'm a self-employed medical transcriptionist), but grilled burgers last night at home, just the two of us.
jan says
Visiting the cemetery then bbq with family and friends.
Camiele says
My plan for today was to do a whole lot of nothing, but instead I gardened, went strawberry picking, cleaned the house, and went to grocery shopping!
Anne says
Grilling hamburgers with my husband and son. Working on end of the year progress reports and other school things--the end is in sight!!
Karen says
We are smoking the free turkey we got at Thanksgiving and have had sitting in our freezer. Then it's leftover turkey sandwiches all week. Yum!
laurie says
We're having a great day grilling with the family!
Carly says
I'm spending the day with my mother packing for our upcoming trip to Charlotte, North Carolina!
Sally says
I also had to attend a funeral out of town this weekend, so not much time to prepare. This salad sounds perfect!!!
Ashley P says
My husband and I are going to my parents' house for our annual cookout. I'm taking the family recipe macaroni and cheese and an Oreo chocolate cake 🙂 Yum!
Lise says
It's raining cats and dogs today, so we will be indoors. I am going to make hot spinach and artichoke dip...my 1st time. And I will bake cookies with my daughter to share with her class in celebration of her birth! 🙂
Have a great BBQ!
Trina Christensen says
Spending precious time with family. I am making this today!
Jessica W says
we just moved away from family, so we are just hanging out and taking it easy today.
Janet T says
I plan on making big juicy burgers and some chocolate chip cookies.
libby says
Having hot dogs with the family
Evelyn R says
No special plans. My husband has to work.
Sherri says
Working in the yard, then, cooking and relaxing later today.
Leesa says
We're going to the parade with some of the grandchildren and then back home for lunch. It looks like the rain will hold off until this afternoon.
Gerry @ Foodness Gracious says
We will be heading over to a friends place, but we might have to divide and conquer as the little guy's had a temp all day today..
Jackie Gonzales says
Hopefully cleaning the garage and house...sounds boring but we need to get it done!!! Then a good dinner on the grill!
sara says
We are hosting a BBQ in our newly remodeled backyard.
Dawn P says
I am going to spend the enjoying myself with family. Its not often we call get together. So excited!
sydney85 says
I am in a new city but will try to find some great bbq with my husband
Shannon says
We always have a family BBQ on Memorial Day Monday and we also have it as a memorial to my late grandpa's birthday whose birthday was May 30.
Liz Maresh says
My 30 th anniversary is May 28. My daughter and new son in law were married May 26th and this is their first anniversary. So they are in Houston for an anniversary weekend and will be back in town (Corpus Christi ) on Memorial Day in time to celebrate Memorial Day and my anniversary , We are also spending our time with my beloved Father in law, who is a cancer survivor but has recently had health problems and has been given only one more week to live. He is a devoted family man who loved to have all of his family over every chance he could for good food, good company and stories of his life to pass on to the next generation. Such as this gem. One of the nearby streets in town flooded . So being a jokester, he went home, got a frozen fish he had caught earlier and put it on a fishing line and would yank it out as someone passed by . It made the newspaper with the headline - "Man catches fish in flooded waters !" He had such a good laugh !!
Amanda says
Having a BBQ despite the cold:)
SandyToes says
It's a quiet day for us, no cookout this year. We'll take our 4 grandsons to see fireworks Monday evening. I plan to spend the day curled up in the cookbook section at B&N. I've become intrigued by the various no-knead bread books out now, and plan to browse until I drop, or I find the one I simply *must* have.
.Cheryl Petersen says
It's going to be a cool day in Chicago so I am making Baby back Ribs in the oven for a family get together.. This is a nod to our Kansas City roots and we can enjoy our favorite meal no matter what the weather.
Meagan B. says
My plans for memorial day include completing a few DIY orders for my Etsy store and making my ooey-gooey brownies for my family picnic located on our family farm. Oh! And trying out my new camera!
Dana N says
We are having some friends and family over to our house. Totally random and last second. 🙂
Yvonne @ Dress This Nest says
My husband and I will be watching Arrested Development on Netflix!
abby says
bbq with the family!
Becky says
Nothing big, but we are grilling hamburgers for supper and eating them out of super cute baskets from Target's Dollar Spot!
Heather says
Lots of yard work, then grilling a side of salmon. It'll be just me, so I'm just as excited for tomorrow's meal as I am for those throughout the week using leftovers!
Kathy says
We are planning a cookout with family and friends!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
I pretty much just ate this for lunch (plus goats cheese) so I know it's yummy! Looks lovely!
Rachel says
We are planning to enjoy a lazyday at the pool!
Sheila says
Would that restaurant have been Arnies?! Love this salad. Can't wait till strawberries are ready in the Mitten ; ) Have fun with your friends.
Nikki says
Yes, Sheila! Good call! Not too long until you can pick strawberries there. We did it in June last year with Judah while visiting my family and he LOVED it. 🙂
margaret says
i'm working at banana republic for memorial day, but i have a beach vacation in a few weeks that i'm looking forward to, happy memorial day!
Jan says
Having a cookout with the family and amazingly, it's going to be a spectacular day for it 🙂
Ange Watts says
My son and husband are going to my in-laws for the day. I'll be at home cleaning and shopping to get ready for the week. This salad will probably be on the menu as it fast and easy which is perfect for the week! Thank you!!