Mango-Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette

Fresh mango. Cheese. Bacon! Warm bacon dressing with lime, honey and sauteed red onions. Do you really notice any spinach when you toss it in all that goodness? Not really. It just adds color and hidden nutrients.

I am always looking for a new salad of the fruit and cheese variety, and this one from Southern Living is definitely worthy of making the weekend salad treat rotation. It even turned out delicious on my first try when the power went out just after the bacon cooked, and we ate raw onions and an improvised dressing in the dark. The warm bacon dressing on the second try made it all the better, and it looked quite pretty in the light.



Mango-Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
Southern Living

4 thick bacon slices, diced
1/2 medium-size red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. honey
9 oz. fresh spinach
1 mango, peeled and diced
1/3 cup crumbled queso fresco (or substitute feta like me)
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat 6 to 8 minutes or until crisp; remove bacon, and drain on paper towels, reserving 1 Tbsp. drippings in skillet.

Sauté onion in hot drippings 2 to 3 minutes or until soft. Add vinegar, lime juice, and honey; cook 2 minutes, stirring to loosen particles from bottom of skillet.

Place spinach in a serving bowl. Add warm vinaigrette, and toss to coat. Top with mango, queso fresco, and bacon; season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.