Indulge in the Sweet & Savory Delight: Basil, Brie, and Strawberry Salad
Luscious ripe berries are a truly terrific addition to a myriad of dishes, but when combined with the creamy richness of Brie and the aromatic freshness of basil, they create something truly spectacular. This beautiful, irresistible, and incredibly tasty Basil, Brie, and Strawberry Salad is more than just a side dish; it’s a culinary experience waiting to be discovered.
The arrival of strawberry season often sends minds drifting to classic desserts like strawberry shortcakes, piled high with dollops of sweetened whipped cream. While those delights are undeniably wonderful, it’s a disservice to these vibrant fruits to limit them solely to the dessert menu. This exquisite Berry and Brie Salad masterfully showcases strawberries in a fresh, savory context, transforming them into the star of a delightful summer side dish or a light, elegant lunch.
Why This Strawberry Brie Salad is a Must-Try Culinary Experience
While gorgeous, ripe strawberries often grace our fruit salads, we wanted to craft a recipe that offers more substance and complexity, something suitable for a refreshing light lunch or an elegant starter. The secret? A thoughtfully chosen protein source that elevates the salad from a simple fruit accompaniment to a truly satisfying meal. This harmonious blend of flavors and textures is why this particular salad stands out.
- Elegance on a Plate: Adding creamy Brie cheese instantly transforms this simple berry salad into a sophisticated entrée. The tiny, melt-in-your-mouth cubes of Brie provide a delightful, creamy contrast to the crisp texture of fresh berries and celery, all while keeping the dish surprisingly light and balanced.
- A Symphony of Flavors: Just as whipped cream perfectly complements strawberries in a classic shortcake, the luscious, buttery Brie is an ideal match for these sweet berries, especially when bathed in a tangy-sweet balsamic vinaigrette. The unexpected pairing creates a flavor profile that is both familiar and exciting.
- Unforgettable Taste in Every Bite: Each forkful of this basil, Brie, and strawberry salad is a delight for the palate. You’ll experience the juicy sweetness of the strawberries, the mild creaminess of the Brie, the subtle crunch of celery, and the herbaceous whisper of fresh basil, all tied together by a perfectly emulsified dressing. It’s an unforgettable combination that will have you coming back for more.
- Effortlessly Gourmet: Despite its sophisticated appearance and taste, this salad is remarkably easy to prepare. With minimal cooking and straightforward assembly, it’s an ideal recipe for entertaining or a quick weeknight meal.
- Seasonal Perfection: This salad truly shines when made with peak-season strawberries. It’s a wonderful way to celebrate the bounty of summer, highlighting the natural sweetness and vibrant color of freshly picked berries.
The Art of Selecting Your Ingredients for a Perfect Strawberry Brie Salad
The success of any great salad hinges on the quality of its ingredients. For this Basil, Brie, and Strawberry Salad, each component plays a crucial role in creating a harmonious balance of flavors and textures. Here’s a guide to selecting and preparing the best for your gourmet salad:
- Kitchen Staples: Ensure you have high-quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a good Dijon Mustard (like Grey Poupon), fresh sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper on hand. These pantry essentials form the foundation of our delectable vinaigrette.
- Brie Cheese: Opt for a good quality, ripe Brie. The rind should be removed before cubing to ensure a smooth, creamy texture in every bite. To make slicing easier, place the Brie in the freezer for 20-30 minutes until it firms up slightly. A sharp knife will then glide through it effortlessly, allowing you to achieve perfect, neat cubes.
- Fresh Strawberries: The star of the show! Choose vibrant red, firm, and fragrant strawberries. Avoid any with soft spots or mold. Carefully remove the hulls and slice them into uniform pieces to ensure even distribution throughout the salad. Seasonal berries will offer the best flavor.
- Crisp Celery: Mince the celery finely to add a subtle, refreshing crunch without overpowering the delicate flavors of the berries and Brie. Its mild, earthy notes provide a lovely textural contrast.
- Aged Balsamic Vinegar: The quality of your balsamic vinegar truly matters here. Seek out a well-aged balsamic, ideally one that is syrupy and slightly sweet with a rich, complex flavor. An 18-year-old balsamic, for example, offers depth that a younger vinegar cannot replicate. This forms the backbone of our exquisite vinaigrette.
- Tender Lettuce: For a delicate salad like this, a tender lettuce variety is preferred. Butter lettuce or Bibb lettuce are excellent choices, offering a soft texture that won’t compete with the other ingredients. Always rinse your lettuce thoroughly and spin it dry using a salad spinner to prevent a watery dressing.
- Fresh Basil: Minced fresh basil is non-negotiable. Basil and strawberries share a surprising affinity, their sweet and peppery notes complementing each other beautifully. The fresh herbs provide an aromatic lift that brightens the entire dish.
Crafting Your Perfect Salad: Expert Tips & Techniques
Creating a truly memorable Basil, Brie, and Strawberry Salad is an art, but it’s an art that anyone can master with a few key techniques. These expert tips will help you elevate your salad from good to extraordinary, ensuring perfect texture, flavor, and presentation.
- Source the Freshest Berries: The quality of your strawberries directly impacts the salad’s taste. Always pick the freshest, most fragrant strawberries you can find. This recipe truly shines when you can purchase locally grown, in-season berries, bursting with natural sweetness and vibrant color. Plan to make this salad during peak strawberry season for the best results.
- Effortless Brie Slicing: Slicing soft cheeses like Brie can be notoriously difficult, often resulting in sticky, uneven pieces. To combat this, place your Brie in the freezer for approximately 20-30 minutes before cutting. This brief chill period will firm up the cheese, allowing you to easily remove the rind and cut it into clean, uniform cubes with a sharp knife. For an even cleaner cut, you can lightly spray your knife with non-stick cooking spray or wipe it with a tiny bit of olive oil.
- The Magic of Emulsification: Dijon mustard (or any good quality mustard) is more than just a flavor enhancer in your salad dressing; it acts as a natural emulsifier. This means it helps bind the oil and vinegar together, preventing them from separating. The result is a thick, creamy, and stable vinaigrette that clings beautifully to your salad ingredients, ensuring every bite is coated evenly.
- Perfecting Your Vinaigrette: To achieve a beautifully emulsified dressing, it’s crucial to slowly drizzle in the extra virgin olive oil while continuously whisking the vinegar and mustard mixture. This gradual addition, combined with vigorous whisking, allows the oil to disperse into tiny droplets, which are then suspended by the emulsifying agents in the mustard. This technique ensures a smooth, cohesive, and flavorful dressing that won’t separate.
- Timing is Key for Dressing: For the freshest taste and texture, dress your salad just before serving. This prevents the lettuce from wilting and the strawberries from becoming too soft. If preparing ahead, keep the dressing separate and toss just before plating.
- Enhancing with Garnish: A sprinkle of extra fresh basil leaves or a few whole strawberries on top can significantly enhance the visual appeal of your salad. Presentation makes a big difference in how food is perceived!
Frequently Asked Questions About This Gourmet Strawberry Salad
Strawberries are a nutritional powerhouse! Unlike many fruits, they are low in carbohydrates, making them a great option for those following low-carb diets. They are exceptionally rich in Vitamin C; just eight medium berries can fulfill your entire daily requirement. Beyond their health benefits, ripe, in-season strawberries are incredibly delicious and add a burst of flavor to any dish.
Absolutely, strawberries are consistently listed among superfoods! They are densely packed with essential nutrients, including the aforementioned Vitamin C, powerful antioxidants, folic acid, and potassium. Incorporating more fruits and vegetables like strawberries into your diet can significantly contribute to better health, helping to combat issues such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and even certain types of cancer. Their natural goodness supports overall well-being.
While it’s best to assemble and dress this salad just before serving to maintain the freshest texture of the lettuce and berries, you can certainly prepare some components in advance. The vinaigrette can be made and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. You can also hull and slice the strawberries, mince the celery and basil, and cube the Brie a few hours ahead of time, storing each component separately in the fridge. This makes assembly quick and easy when you’re ready to serve.
If you have any leftover dressed salad, it’s best consumed within a few hours. The lettuce may begin to wilt, and the strawberries can soften. For best results, only dress the portion of salad you intend to eat. Store any undressed components (strawberries, celery, Brie, lettuce, and vinaigrette) separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator. The Brie and strawberries are typically good for 1-2 days, while the vinaigrette can last longer.
This salad is wonderfully adaptable! Consider adding a handful of toasted pecans or walnuts for extra crunch and nutty flavor. For a heartier meal, grilled chicken, shrimp, or a mild white fish can be added. A few slices of avocado would introduce even more creaminess. Other berries like blueberries or raspberries can also be incorporated, or even thin slices of apple for a different fruit profile. A touch of mint alongside the basil could also offer a refreshing twist.
Delightful Variations & Serving Suggestions for Your Strawberry Brie Salad
The beauty of the Basil, Brie, and Strawberry Salad lies not just in its exquisite core recipe but also in its incredible versatility. Don’t hesitate to experiment with additions and pairings to make it uniquely your own or to suit various occasions. Here are some ideas to inspire you:
- Add a Nutty Crunch: Toasted nuts like pecans, walnuts, or even slivered almonds add an irresistible textural contrast and a layer of earthy flavor. Lightly toast them in a dry pan for a few minutes until fragrant before adding.
- Boost with Protein: For a more substantial main course, consider adding grilled chicken breast (sliced), grilled shrimp, flaked salmon, or even a hard-boiled egg. These additions transform the salad into a complete and satisfying meal.
- Explore Other Fruits: While strawberries are the star, a handful of fresh blueberries or raspberries can add extra color and a different dimension of sweetness. Thinly sliced ripe peaches or nectarines also pair wonderfully with Brie and balsamic.
- Herbaceous Twists: Beyond basil, a scattering of fresh mint or a hint of thyme could introduce interesting aromatic notes. Experiment to find your favorite herbal combination.
- Substitute the Cheese: If Brie isn’t your preference, fresh mozzarella balls (bocconcini), crumbled goat cheese, or even a mild feta could offer a different creamy element.
- Serving Elegance: This salad is perfect as an elegant starter for a dinner party, a refreshing side for a barbecue, or a light and satisfying lunch. Serve it alongside crusty bread to soak up any remaining vinaigrette. It also pairs beautifully with a crisp white wine like Sauvignon Blanc or a light rosé.
Explore More Strawberry & Salad Recipes
If you’ve fallen in love with the vibrant flavors of this strawberry and Brie creation, you’ll be delighted to explore other recipes that highlight fresh produce and creative combinations. Here are a few more to inspire your culinary adventures:
- Triple Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake from Renee’s Kitchen Adventures
- Classic Strawberry Shortcake
- Fresh Strawberry Meringue Cake
- Cream Cheese Strawberry Pie
- Strawberry Shortcake with White Chocolate Whipped Cream
- Fresh Strawberry Souffles
- More Delicious Salad Recipes
Stay connected and share your culinary creations with us! You can find us on social media @ Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Don’t forget to tag us when you try one of our recipes! And if you love the results as much as we do, please consider leaving a 5-star rating in the recipe card below to help other home cooks discover this fantastic dish.
Basil, Brie and Strawberry Salad
20 minutes
20 minutes
6 servings
A fresh berry salad with chunks of creamy Brie and fragrant basil, perfect for a light summer meal or elegant side dish.
Ingredients
- 2-3 ounces brie, rind removed and cut into cubes
- 16 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 2 tablespoons minced celery
For the Balsamic Vinaigrette:
- 3 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt
- A pinch of freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
To Plate:
- Butter or Bibb lettuce
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh basil
Instructions
- Combine the sliced strawberries and minced celery in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Prepare the vinaigrette: In a separate small bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper. Continue whisking constantly while slowly drizzling in the extra virgin olive oil until the dressing is well emulsified and creamy.
- Arrange the butter or Bibb lettuce leaves on individual serving plates or a large platter. Gently toss the berry and celery mixture with 3 tablespoons of the prepared vinaigrette.
- Evenly sprinkle the cubed Brie and minced fresh basil over the dressed strawberry mixture.
- Serve immediately with additional vinaigrette on the side, if desired.
Notes
Reserve any leftover balsamic vinaigrette for other salads; store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Remember that olive oil may congeal when cold, so bring the dressing to room temperature and whisk again before using.
Cutting Brie can be tricky. Freezing it briefly (as mentioned in the tips) makes a big difference. Alternatively, lightly spray your knife with a non-stick cooking spray, or simply pull off tiny pieces of Brie if perfect cubes aren’t a priority.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6
Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 306Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 421mgCarbohydrates: 8gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 7g
Thatskinnychickcanbake.com occasionally offers nutritional information for recipes contained on this site. This information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although thatskinnychickcanbake.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased can change the nutritional information in any given recipe. Also, many recipes on thatskinnychickcanbake.com recommend toppings, which may or may not be listed as optional, and nutritional information for these added toppings is not listed. Other factors may change the nutritional information such as when the salt amount is listed “to taste,” it is not calculated into the recipe as the amount will vary. Also, different online calculators can provide different results. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information obtained is accurate.
HOW MUCH DID YOU LOVE THIS RECIPE?
Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest