Copycat Panera Bread Strawberry Poppyseed Salad

We love a good restaurant copycat recipe, and none more so than the seasonal or limited-time only ones that are too fleetingly on our favorite menus. One we’re always dreaming about? Panera’s Strawberry Poppyseed Salad. As much fruit salad as it was green salad, it featured a juicy orange and onion poppyseed dressing and pops of fresh fruit, like strawberries, blueberries, Mandarin oranges, and pineapple. We’re hoping it’ll one day return to the Panera menu so we can order it alongside other faves, like their mac & cheese or Frontega chicken panini. In the meantime, it’s crazy easy to make at home so you can enjoy it whenever you want.

Like with all copycats, the best part about making them at home is your ability to customize and change up the ingredients as you see fit. We’ve added grilled chicken breast breast to ours, but feel free to swap for an alternative protein if you like. Same with the fruit—we love how bright and colorful the assortment here is, but use what you’ve got at home. Not a fan of romaine? Go with arugula or spinach. Not into walnuts? Try pecans or cashews instead. It’s your salad—have fun making it exactly how you like (without the stress of having to customize your order at the counter).

If you do go the chicken route, we highly recommend taking the extra time to pound your breasts to an even thickness before grilling. This will guarantee your chicken is juicy throughout, and that the slices are nice and even in your salad.

Made this? Let us know how it went in the comments below.