Warm Spinach Salad

For week #1 of my Do It Challenge, I made a warm spinach salad.

The Source

I found this one on the Christian Science Monitor blog.

There are a few problems with the recipe:
1. It doesn't list the quantity of mushrooms. (I opted for about half an 8oz package of sliced fresh mushrooms).

2. The title of the recipe in the article is "Wilted Spinach Salad," but the spinach in this salad isn't wilted -- it's served fresh.

Changes

I cooked the bacon and mushrooms as directed, but didn't add the balsamic vinegar as I'm not a huge balsamic fan. At the end, I just used some shredded Italian mix cheese I had on hand instead of shaving some asiago.

Results

Yum! This recipe is a super tasty salad and the result is very hearty. It definitely feels like a salad that's a meal in and of itself, not just a side for something else. It's not the lowest in fat, but it's a completely no carb recipe with a LOT of flavor. It does dirty up quite a few dishes (more than I'm used to for salad) -- chopping board and knife for cutting bacon, skillet for bacon & mushrooms, and pot for poaching egg, in addition to whatever you use to wash and dry the spinach.

However, this is a recipe I would only make if my husband's not home. He's not a big fan of spinach salads (he much prefers romaine) and his idea of an egg is one where the yolk doesn't move at all. Seriously, I've known him to order eggs "over hard" at a restaurant; before I met him I didn't even know that "over hard" was an option. There doesn't seem to be much point in poaching an egg if the yolk is not going to run out all over everything else when you cut the egg. And, that runny egg is what really gives the salad some of its pizzazz and makes a dressing superfluous.