Spinach Salad
Spinach Salad, may not sound like the most exciting recipe in the world. But what if I add in words like bacon, bacon vinaigrette, apple, feta? Becomes a bit more tantalizing doesn't it? This spinach salad is one of my favorites for a starter course, or as a side salad for say a big summer BBQ. It's easy to make, the favors work great together, and it looks beautiful. Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Recipe Overview and Keys to Success
To make the best Spinach Salad, just make sure to do the following:
- I only use baby spinach. It's a bit more tender, and the size makes it easy to eat without any chopping or cutting
- Cook the bacon until it's well rendered, and then let it rest/cook to get crisp
- Make sure to taste, adjust and retaste the salad dressing. It's important to get right, and you'll need to make it perfect for your own tastes, so play with the quantities I'm suggesting below
- Finally, don't over dress your salad. Add some dressing, then toss, taste the greens and add some more needed. It's easy to add some more, but once you have too much on spinach you're stuck with a watery overdressed mess
- 3 - 4 cups loosely packed baby spinach
- 1 - 2 strips of bacon
- 1 teaspoon ketchup
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- Olive oil
- 1 Apple
- 3 - 4 tablespoon feta cheese
- Salt and pepper
- Dice the bacon into 1/4 dice and add to a sauté pan over medium heat
- Continue to cook until the fat is rendered out and the bacon crisp
- Separate the bacon from the drippings, reserving the fat
- In a mixing bowl whisk together the ketchup and balsamic vinegar
- Once incorporated, slowly drizzle in the bacon fat, whisking as you pour it in
- After using the bacon drippings, taste the vinaigrette, if it's too tangy, or you need to mellow the flavors, drizzle in move olive oil, whisking as you go, tasting periodically until you get the consistency and flavor you like
- Put the baby spinach in a mixing bowl
- Cut the apple in half, and using a potato peeler, shave slices of the apple off into the bowl with the spinach - I like about 1/3 of the apple
- Add the feta cheese, and season with salt and pepper
- Add about half the dressing, and gently toss the salad. Taste. If needed add more dressing, and toss again, repeating until you're happy with the result.
If you having this spinach salad as a stand alone dish, I'd suggest a light, refreshing wine. Champagne, or sparking wine would be great. As would a Riesling, which are low in alcohol, but have good affinity with foods like salads. Hope you enjoy it!
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