KATZ Spinach Salad with a Warm Gravenstein Apple Cider Dressing Recipe

Serves 4 as a side dish or 2 as a main course

This is inspired by the genius and simplicity of a James Beard recipe

  • 2-3 slices of bacon, roughly chopped
  • 8 oz baby spinach, washed and dried
  • 1/3 cup toasted walnuts, hazelnuts or almonds…coarsely chopped
  • 2 hard-boiled eggs (not overcooked) and coarsely chopped*
  • 2 medium shallots, sliced thinly
  • 1 cup KATZ Gravenstein Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1 tbls KATZ Chef's Pick Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • 1 tbls Branches Citrus Blossom Honey
  • salt and pepper to taste
*if you are up for it, this salad is even better with a perfectly poached egg on each serving!

Cook bacon over medium heat in a medium sized sauté pan until crisp. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set on paper towel. Drain all but 1 teaspoon of bacon fat from pan and add olive oil to pan. Add shallots and cook for about a minute until soft. Add vinegar and reduce, scrapping up any bits of bacon in pan. Reduce vinegar by half. Lower heat, add mustard and honey and whisk to emulsify. Season with salt and pepper, add bacon to warm dressing in pan and pour over spinach in a bowl. Toss in egg and check again for seasoning.

Additions to this salad are almost limitless, depending on season. Blue or goat cheese, fresh mint, watercress, red onions, apple or pear slices. Enjoy!