A bright pile of baby spinach leaves with slivers of red onion, thinly sliced white mushrooms, hard-cooked egg and tiny bits of bacon rendered in a pan until crisp and salty and perfect, whisked with a pinch of Dijon and red wine vinaigrette in a skillet to make a quick, hot dressing that you pour over the salad, gently wilting the onion, spinach and mushrooms and leaving you wondering why you don’t make this every week of the year.
Ingredients
- 4 ounces baby spinach
- 2 large white mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1/4 small or medium red onion, very thinly sliced
- 1 large egg, hard-boiled (see above), chilled, peeled and thinly sliced
- 4 pieces thick-sliced bacon (about 4 ounces), finely diced
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon honey or sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon smooth Dijon mustard
- Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
Place spinach in a large, wide salad serving bowl. Scatter with mushrooms, red onion (see above for a different, mellower way to add the onions) and slices of hard-boiled egg.
In a large skillet, fry bacon bits over medium-high heat until they’re brown and crisp and have rendered their fat. Use a slotted spoon to scoop them out of the skillet and spread them on a piece of paper towel briefly before sprinkling them over the salad. Pour out all but two tablespoons of hot bacon fat from the skillet.
Reheat over medium and quickly whisk in the red wine vinegar, honey and Dijon. Pour over entire salad and season salt and pepper. Toss gently and serve hot.
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