Spinach Salad with Tangy Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
Spinach and Romaine Lettuce topped with bacon, mandarin oranges, and candy coated slivered almonds, to name a few. All dressed up with a tangy poppy seed vinaigrette.
Ingredients
For Dressing:
- 1 ½ teaspoons poppy seeds
- ¾ cup canola oil
- ¼ cup chopped onion any kind
- 2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
- ⅓ cup white vinegar
- ⅓ cup white sugar or honey
- ¾ teaspoon salt
For Salad:
- 1 large head Romaine lettuce
- 6 ounces baby spinach leaves washed
- ¾ pound sliced mushrooms optional
- ½ cup finely chopped red onion see note
- ½ - 1 pound bacon cooked and crumbled
- 2 11-ounce cans mandarin oranges drained
- ½ cup slivered almonds candy coated, see note
- ¾ pound Swiss cheese grated or finely sliced
Instructions
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Combine all the dressing ingredients in a blender and blend well. For best results, refrigerate for at least an hour (or up to a week) before serving.
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Wash the Romaine lettuce, drain well, and tear it into bite sized pieces. Alternatively you can chop it, but the salad will not last as long in the refrigerator.
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In a large bowl, combine chopped lettuce, spinach, mushrooms (if using), and chopped red onion. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
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Just before serving, add the mandarin oranges, crumbled bacon, candy coated slivered almonds (see note), and grated Swiss cheese. Serve with dressing on the side or add to taste (you may not use it all). See notes for other serving suggestions and ideas.
Recipe Notes
1. For the red onion, I like to use one or two red pearl onions (the very small ones) because the flavor is a little milder.
2. To candy coat the almonds: melt 3 tablespoons sugar in a heavy bottomed sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add ½ cup almonds and coat with melted sugar. Remove and place on a sheet of parchment paper to cool. Separate almonds when cool enough to touch. Cool completely then use.
3. I almost always serve this salad with the dressing on the side so the leftover salad will last a few days. For large gatherings, mix dressing with salad right before serving. You may or may not want to use all of the dressing in this case. Start with about half of the dressing, then taste it and add more as needed. Sometimes when I serve it to my family, I just combine the spinach and romaine together and serve everything else as toppings that the kids can choose to put on or not. That helps the salad last even longer and I can eat it for several days.