Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese, Bacon, Walnut and Warm Italian Dressing
My son kinda has this thing for salads. Miracle of miracles as this child of mine is quite literally the pickiest eater on the face of the planet. When he was three years old, he ate nothing but bacon and tomatoes. Every.Single.Meal. Thankfully these days he will eat a bit more. Nowadays, he eats a spinach salad every day when he comes home from school, with bacon and tomatoes of course.
My family loves spinach, we eat it sauteed with garlic quite often. My daughter loves it on her pizza and on sandwiches. But in its fresh state, it is very tasty for a green salad. I pretty much have huge bins of spinach sitting in my fridge at all times.
Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon and Italian Dressing
What You Will Need
I was able to locate all my ingredients at my local Food 4 Less (Kroger in some states). I really wish I had one closer to me as this store is fantastic! They sell these tiny bags of walnuts that are perfect for this salad and for popping in school lunches.
5 slices bacon, roughly chopped
1 package Tyson® Grilled & Ready® Chicken Breast Strips
Handful of walnuts
Wish-bone® Italian Dressing
Kosher salt
1 pound spinach (I always rip the stems off as they can make the leaves a bit bitter)
Fried Goat Cheese
8 ounce goat cheese log
1 cup Italian style bread crumbs
1 egg - beaten
coconut oil
Croutons and Tomatoes - OPTIONAL
Instructions
1. In a skillet, fry your bacon until nice and crispy. Just before it is done frying add your walnuts and cook in the bacon grease. Remove the bacon and the walnuts to a dish.
2. Place the entire package of Tyson® Grilled & Ready® Chicken Breast Strips into the already hot skillet with the pan drippings. Quickly warm the Tyson® Grilled & Ready® Chicken Breast Strips. These 100% all natural white meat chicken strips are already fully cooked, so you will only need to heat them through. Remove to a dish.
3. In a large bowl add the spinach and add the warmed through chicken strips..
4. In a separate mixing bowl combine the bacon, walnuts, the pan drippings, and the Wish-bone® Italian Dressing. I actually put all of my ingredients in a small jar and shake the jar until well combined. This seems to work better for me.
5. Pour the dressing over the spinach. Give it all a good toss to evenly distribute the dressing. Place your (optional) goat cheese, croutons and tomatoes on top.
OPTIONAL: This is completely optional to add fried goat cheese. You could just as easily crumble your goat cheese on top of this salad or simply not add any cheese at all.
Slice the goat cheese in ¼ - ½ inch slices (TIP: To make the cheese easier to slice, put it in the freezer for about 10 minutes before cutting. Also, run your knife under hot water in between slices. If it does crumble on you, the good thing about goat cheese is you can just mold it all back together.) Put bread crumbs in a small bowl and add some salt. Beat an egg in a small bowl. Dip the sliced goat cheese in the beaten egg. Flip it gently to coat with egg on both sides. Dip the egg covered cheese into the bread crumbs and coat both sides and fry on medium heat with the coconut oil (and do use coconut oil) in a hot pan until golden brown on each side. The other good thing about goat cheese is it will not ooze out over your pan! Remove from heat.
I really didn't expect my son to enjoy this salad since he is so picky. Especially with the goat cheese. But all together with the bacon, walnuts and spinach, the awesome warmed Wish-bone® Italian Dressing adds the perfect sweetness to the tangy cheese. This salad is just so delicious! This is an incredible salad, but then again, I am super biased, loving spinach so much.
If you are looking for something light and filling, full of flavor and super quick and simple . . . this Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese, Bacon, Walnut and Warm Italian Dressing will be on a regular meal rotation in your home. You are eating super healthy spinach, preservative-free chicken full of protein and the #1 Italian Dressing.