Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

spinach salad with warm bacon dressing, marinated onions, bacon, and boiled eggs

Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

Spinach salad is a great way to eat lots of fresh spinach!  And even better when tossed in this delicious warm bacon dressing from Alton Brown.

Bacon

Bacon makes everything better, right (uncured, nitrate-, nitrite-free bacon, of course)!  For this salad the bacon fat is reserved to make the vinaigrette.  

There are a couple ways to cook the bacon.

  1. Spread the bacon out on a foil-lined baking sheet and place in the oven at 350 degrees F. 
  2. Or cook the bacon in a skillet on the stove top over medium heat.

Either way, cook until browned then remove the bacon and drain on a paper towel. Then reserve the bacon fat for the vinaigrette.

Marinated Red Onions

I also really love the addition of marinated red onions or shallots.  All you have to do is add thinly sliced red onions to a mixture of red wine vinegar, olive oil, and salt to a small container.  It can sit at room temperature, but stir often to help them marinate.

Boiled Eggs

Then of course, you need the boiled eggs.  The way we do is to start boiling the water.  Once boiling, use a spoon to gently drop eggs into boiling water.  They should boil for 7-7 1/2 minutes depending on the size of the eggs.  Then immediately place in ice water until ready to peel and serve.

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Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing | Gluten-Free, Dairy-free

A delicious spinach salad dressed with a warm bacon vinaigrette.

Course Salad
Cuisine American
Keyword bacon, homemade salad dressing, salad, spinach salad
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 2
Author Deana Larkin Evans

Ingredients

Spinach Salad

  • 2-3 large eggs
  • 6 slices gluten-free bacon
  • 1 bunch fresh spinach
  • thinly sliced marinated red onions or shallots

Warm Bacon Vinaigrette

  • 3-4 tbsp warm bacon fat
  • 3-4 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp organic raw cane sugar
  • 1 tsp gluten-free stone ground mustard
  • salt & freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. Start boiling the water for the eggs.  Once boiling, use a spoon to gently drop eggs into boiling water.  They should boil for 7-7 1/2 minutes depending on the size of the eggs.  Then immediately place in ice water until ready to peel and serve.  

  2. Cook the bacon until browned then remove the bacon and drain on a paper towel. Crumble and set aside. Reserve the bacon fat for the dressing.

  3. Wash the spinach and remove excess water (salad spinners are great for this). 

  4. Pour 3-4 tablespoons of the bacon fat into a pyrex measuring cup. If the bacon fat is still warm, then whisk in the red wine vinegar (1:1 ratio with the fat), sugar and mustard. Season with a dash of salt and pepper. If the fat has cooled then reheat it before whisking in the other ingredients.

  5. Toss the spinach, marinated onions or shallots, and crumbled bacon with the warm bacon dressing. Divide between two large bowls. Peel off the shell from the eggs and cut in half to place on top of the salad.

  6. Serve immediately and enjoy the deliciousness!

Deana Larkin Evans

You get one life - do your best to ENJOY IT! So hi, I'm Deana. This food blog is all about cooking wholesome real food and developing gluten-free recipes for some of our favorite comfort foods. I had to start eating gluten-free in 2010, then cut dairy and casein (except for the occasional Parmesan) in 2014. We learned A2 casein (goat, sheep and buffalo milk) is easier to digest than the predominate A1 form in cow milk. So we brought back goat milk dairy into our recipes in 2016. Thank goodness, right! So I'm kind of a science nerd, too. In the '90s, I earned an undergrad degree in biochemistry from The University of Texas at Austin. Hook 'em! Then followed up with a PhD in biochemistry and a law degree from the University of Houston. I recently earned a certificate in genomics/sequence analysis from Johns Hopkins University, where I also took a very cool food microbiology course. Currently, I'm learning about the microbiome and gut health. And trying to come up with healthy recipes to feed those gut bugs! #feedthegutbugs

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2 Responses

  1. January 11, 2015

    […] Thursday – Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing & Grilled Chicken […]

  2. February 22, 2015

    […] Tuesday – Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing and Roasted Chicken […]

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