Gluten-Free Blue Cheese, Walnut & Spinach Salad Recipe

By: Gillian on August 4, 2011

A salad of fresh spinach makes a nice change from a typical lettuce salad, and it is a good source of calcium. This gluten-free recipe also uses chopped walnuts for added crunch, while the blue cheese and crispy bacon bits are an interesting flavor combination.

4 strips of bacon, chopped finely

2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs olive oil
2 tsp clear honey
3 Tbs reserved fat from the cooked bacon (warm)
Salt & black pepper

1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 – 2/3 cup crumbled Gorgonzola blue cheese (gluten-free)
1 packet (5 oz.) fresh, baby spinach (prewashed or rinsed under cold water and dried off)

Cook the chopped bacon until very crispy; remove from the fat and place on a paper towel to drain. Keep the melted bacon fat. To make the salad dressing, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey and 3 Tbs of the warm bacon fat; add salt and pepper to taste. Toss the spinach with the dressing to coat. Divide the spinach into 4 servings and garnish each with chopped walnuts, blue cheese crumbles and the crispy bacon bits.

4 servings