I confess to loving spinach and not because of Popeye. Those of you who are old enough will remember that Popeye, when confronted with a crisis, would “pop” a can of spinach in his mouth and turn into a super-hero, saving the day for Olive Oyl, his forever girlfriend. Now that spinach is plentiful, try this salad as an alternative to “same old.” There are many variations of this salad; this one we find really tasty and fulfilling.
Warm Spinach Salad
Basic Ingredients
- Enough young spinach to fill your favourite large salad bowl, maybe 6 to 8 ounces
- 1 pound of bacon
- 3 extra large eggs, hard boiled and chilled
- ½ red onion, shaved
- 6 large white mushrooms, sliced
Dressing
- ¼ cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
- 5 tablespoons of Honey or Octoberfest Mustard
- 2 tablespoons of grainy mustard
- 2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
- A generous splash of cider vinegar
- A dash of Tabasco
- A dash of Worcestershire Sauce
- A dash of lemon juice
Preparation
- Cut your bacon into 4 inch squares and fry on low heat till just browning
- Don’t make them crispy; we don’t want bacon bits but nice pieces of meat
- Place the cooked bacon in a bowl lined with a paper towel to pick up the grease
- Retain 4 or 5 tablespoons of the bacon fat
- Combine all of your dressing ingredients in a sauce pan and warm on low heat
- Add the bacon fat and whisk the dressing ingredients together
- Place your shaved red onion on top of your spinach
- Slice your egg into ¼ inch disks or use an egg slicer to do so and place on your spinach
- Place your sliced mushrooms on your spinach as well
Because this is a warm salad, you will want to wait till just before serving to drizzle your hot dressing over the salad. Don’t toss, serve it as is and let your guests ooh and ahh at your artistry. They can then dig in. Use fresh baguette to accompany this great salad. Vegetarians, don’t despair. Instead of the bacon, caramelize the slices of a largish white onion and use it instead of the bacon. Keep the red onion raw though. Works like a charm…
