The season of salads is upon us with lettuce, radicchio, spinach, and countless other British leaves and vegetables coming into season. It seems a shame then, that the salad is a dish that’s often an after-thought, an aside: the rejected dish at the buffet. Here, however, I’ve tweaked a salad recipe of my mother’s: undoubtedly a salad delicious and sumptuous enough to tempt even the staunchest of salad-haters. It’s a hearty and filling dish, yet manages to retain the freshness of a salad one yearns for on these lighter, warmer summer evenings.
Not quite containing all of the ingredients of a full English, but arguably the best ones! Serves 2, but can easily be multiplied.
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE SALAD
- 2 eggs
- 1-2 tbsps of vegetable oil
- 4 rashers of bacon
- 1 pack of spinach, washed
- 2 tomatoes, washed and chopped
- 2 slices of stale bread, chopped into cubes
FOR THE DRESSING
- 6 tbsps olive oil
- 2 tbsps red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp of Dijon mustard
- ½ tsp sugar
- 1 crushed clove of garlic
- Salt and pepper, to taste
METHOD
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a jug and whisk thoroughly. Separate the spinach and tomatoes between two serving bowls. Put to one side.
- Bring water to the boil in a pan and gently place the eggs in. Boil for 7-8 minutes for a slightly gooey centre.
- In the meantime, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Start cooking the bacon rashers in the pan until they’ve lost their pink colour. Add the other tbsp of oil to the pan, then add the cubes of bread.
- Keep turning the bacon and the cubes of bread with tongs, ensuring everything gets crispy and golden.
- Once the eggs are cooked, remove them from the hot water and run under the cold tap. Peel the eggs and halve them.
- Separate the bacon and crouton mixture between the two bowls and mix around a little. Place two halves of egg on top of each salad and drizzle with the dressing to finish.
Words FFIONA MILLS
www.thethinkingwomanscrumpet.com
@ffionamills