Salads rule! And composed salads are so much fun since they’re a feast for the eyes as well.
Here’s a recipe that hits all the salad sweet spots for flavor and texture. Feel free to add any extra goodies you may have on hand to make this a unique masterpiece!
Ingredients
- 1 small red onion, cut into half-rings
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 2 1/2 Tbsp sugar
- Pinch dried thyme
- Kosher salt and pepper
- 1 small shallot, thinly sliced into rings
- 3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 8 slices bacon, cooked/drained/ crumbled
- 4 eggs, boiled/peeled and sliced into quarters
- 1 large head romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces or coarsely chopped (about 1 lb)
- 2-3 tomatoesm sliced or quartered
- 3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
- 1 avocado, peeled/pitted/ chopped
Directions
- Thinly slice onion and place in 16-oz jar; place jar in the sink or somewhere splashes can be contained. Heat white vinegar, water, dried thyme, sugar and 1 Tbsp salt in small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar/salt dissolve, about 1-2 minutes.
- Let cool and carefully pour over onions. Set aside to cool to room temp, then store in fridge. Onions are ready to eat when they’re bright pink and tender.
- In a small bowl, cover shallot rings with red wine vinegar and season with a few pinches salt/pepper. Let sit 5 minutes. Add mustard and 3 Tbsp olive oil; whisk with a fork to blend. Taste and add salt/pepper as needed.
- Put lettuce down as a base in large family-style serving bowl (or individual bowls). Top with rows of bacon, eggs, chicken, tomatoes, blue cheese, pickled onions and avocado. Drizzle with dressing.