Wilted Spring Salad
Right now salad greens are king of our garden. The green oak leaf lettuces in particular look like little emerald crowns. I'm eating salads almost every day with either a simple Italian dressing, or if I'm including spicy greens like radicchio or dandelion, I like to wilt the greens with a warm bacon or pork belly dressing.
Wilted Spring Salad
3/4 pound spicy salad greens (should include dandelion, radicchio or spicy mustard greens)
2 or 3 slices of bacon or pork belly
up to 1/3 cup olive oil
3 to 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 clove crushed garlic or 4 spring onions washed and roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Fry a few strips of bacon or pork belly in a deep pot like you cook pasta in. When it is crispy remove the meat and pour the fat into a measuring cup. Add just enough olive oil to reach 1/3 of a cup and then add 3 to 4 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar. Sauté a clove of crushed garlic or spring onions in the residual fat in the pot. Add the oil and vinegar mixture back to the pot. Reheat the mixture just until it begins to bubble and remove from the heat. Add spicy salad mixture to the pot. Cover tightly and shake the pot to coat the greens and let them wilt a bit. In 30 or 40 seconds uncover your salad and add salt and black pepper to taste. Toss and serve with the bacon/pork belly crumbled over the top.
To turn my Wilted Spring Salad into a complete meal, I add a gently boiled egg and a chunk of crusty french bread. But I am very picky about my boiled eggs. I personally keep my fresh eggs at room temperature if they have never been washed or refrigerated. After about a week they boil and peel very nicely. Eggs take about a month to be ready to boil and peel properly if they have been washed and refrigerated. I said I'm picky about my eggs, and I'll prove it by saying I've got to have a 6 minute egg for my salads. The white is done, and the yolk is solid but still moist. Sliced in half, they top a salad fit for any royal.
Posted by Stokes Family Farm at 4/12/2010 6:37 PM 
Categories: Recipe
Tags: dandelion chicory warm salad soft boiled egg mustard radicchio salad
Categories: Recipe
Tags: dandelion chicory warm salad soft boiled egg mustard radicchio salad
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