Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon-Mustard Dressing

I used some personalized touches...fried the bacon, onion and garlic together, saving the bacon drippings ( in place of the olive oil) and flavorings..added the other ingredients of the dressing to the fry pan, heated thru and poured over the spinach, eggs, and mushrooms.. yummy..but eat it all the same sitting...as it does not keep well.

This was yummy. My family just loved it! We added a few extra's to the salad, like mandarin oranges and dried cranberries. We also added some grilled chicken. The dressing was out of this world and worked well! Thanks!

I'm going to keep playing around with the dressing in this recipe. For my family, the vinegar was too strong. I think I'll slightly increase the amount of honey and slightly decrease the amount of vinegar and mustard.

This is hands-down the best salad that I have ever had. My fiance was wary of a warm spinach salad, but after we sat down and started eating, he changed his tune VERY fast. I did not have any shallots or fresh garlic (someone keeps throwing my garlic out! The horror!) but used a fourth of a medium-sized onion and it was great. The best part of it is that there aren't really any flavors that dominate...it's crunchy from the almonds, a little salty from the bacon, a touch sweet from the cheese and the honey. We will be making this one again soon! Thanks for a great recipe, brightlightz!

BEST SPINACH SALAD I HAVE EVER TASTED!

This salad is perfect. The flavors blend beautifully. The swiss cheese and almonds are a wonderful addition. There is a lot going on in this salad and every taste is there making your mouth very happy! I didn't have enough honey, so I used corn syrup and honey when making the dressing. It worked perfectly and tasted fabulous.

The dressing on this salad is so good. I poured some extra on some cooked potatoes the next day for an instant potato salad. Great recipe!

The most unbelievable salad!!! I'm hooked!!!! My kids even love it!!!

This salad is AWESOME! I don't even like 'wilted' salads and I only tried this recipe because I had tons of fresh lettuce that needed used up. I didn't have all of the ingredients that it called for and it still turned out fabulous. I had to use plain mustard and white vinegar for the dressing and for the salad I only had lettuce and cheese. I can't imagine how good it will be made with everything the recipe calls for!! Thanks for a great recipe--It was delicious.

I followed this recipe exactly and my husband's comment was, "It tastes like you just poured mustard on it." The dressing was too thick, way too strong and didn't cover all the salad. I didn't throw it out, but didn't enjoy it either.

Great salad. I had purchased baby spinach and had hard-cooked eggs in the fridge. I had Provolone slices on hand so I cut it thin slices, used slivered almonds, mandarin oranges and canned sliced mushrooms since I did not have fresh. The hot dressing was the clue to a great wilted salad. It was filling for me and a side dish for my hubby. Loved it. Thanks.

Thanks for adding this recipe. It's a keeper in my house. The only thing I did differently is to add more bacon. I'm a bacon addict.

This is truly a 5 star steakhouse style salad. It is easily adaptable to items on hand. I left out the cheese and almonds to save a few calories and fat but I did you the bacon drippings to saute the shallot and garlic. I have used different vinegars depending on what I have on had, sometimes white balsamic, sometimes rice wine, sometimes white wine vinegar. My husband and son raved!

1st off, this dressing is soooooo good!! I did alter it a little bit- I didn't have any white wine vinegar, so I used apple cider vinegar. Also, I didn't have any shallots, so I just used a little finely minced red onion instead. I forgot to put extra bacon in the dressing, but I don't think that really made much of a difference- I think there was enough flavor already since instead of sauteeing in EVOO, I just used 1/2 bacon fat and 1/2 EVOO. Everything else I kept the same in the dressing. I also didn't have baby spinach, just regular spinach. No swiss cheese or almonds either, so I just used finely shredded cheddar (just what I had on hand). I had planned on serving this alongside some simple spaghetti and meat sauce. Well, we never got to the spaghetti because this salad was just too darn good!! My husband loved the dressing and the combination of the bacon, mushrooms and eggs with the spinach. I am sure it is even better (if that's even possible???) with the swiss and almonds in it. This alongside some fresh bread, and I was satisfied. I think it would be great with some grilled chicken. Can't wait to have this again!!!!

I tripled this recipe for a large gathering at thanksgiving. I followed the recipe exactly with the exception of adding more bacon. I was able to make it all in advance (that morning), package the ingredients separately and do a last minute combine and toss at the party in a large bowl. I reheated the dressing in the microwave just before tossing. everyone absolutely loved it.

I didn't follow directions. Mixed dressing ingredients all together and let it sit all day then heated it in the end. Was going to swap the swiss for goat but forgot that. Turkey bacon instead, and more of it, no mushrooms, added a bit of salmon, more garlic. Loved it but for us maybe a tad more vinegar.

This a great but I wouldn't say it is quick to make what with having to make bacon, hard boil eggs, and chopping stuff. I would also say you should double the dressing recipe and be sure to use quality ingredients for the vinegar and mustard. Simple dressings require top notch ingredients to really work well. I also think four servings is crazy. This makes at least 8.

This was delicious! I didn't realize I didn't have any bacon, and it was good without it. The dressing was fabulous. Even my hubby liked it, and he's not much of a salad person. This is a keeper!

What an AMAZING salad! Very tasty and light. I think allrecipes got the nutritional info wrong...no way is there 57 grams of fat per serving in this salad. I will definitely be serving this again. Thank you!

Followed the recipe exactly, except bags of baby spinach leaves tend to come in 6oz. sizes. I used one bag and the same amount of the rest of the ingredients and found that this fed FAR more than 4 people (8 people ate off of it as a large side). If you use the 6oz size, you may find that you can halve the rest of the recipe and it will feed 4 people. If you are serving it as a main course with chicken, then the 4 serving size makes more sense. Otherwise, the vibrant flavors in this dressing are amazing, and using the recipe for the dressing portion alone will be repeated.

Loved it! All the ingredients go together so well. I have to say my favorite part is the dressing with the bacon. The only change I made was to sub. 1/4 cup sugar for the honey.

This is, hands down, the best warm salad I've ever had. My husband and I are vegetarian, and I just substitute a fake bacon product (on their own, fake bacon products are relatively nasty, but crumbled into this salad and dressing? Amazing.). This salad is diverse enough for a main dish, and cut down to two servings is the perfect side. Let the dressing cool slightly before pouring it into the salad, or your cheese will turn into a gloppy mess (still good. Just rather clumpy).

Excellant. I followed this recipe exactly, served it for Christmas dinner and it was a hit! For those that think the vinegar is too much, just use a high quality product and it really makes a difference.

This is one of those no-fail salad recipes that holds up well to additions/substitutions or omissions. For instance, I used parmesan, real bacon bits and subbed vidalia onion for the shallot. I also used rice wine vinegar, added craisins and toasted pecans, as well as omitted the mushrooms. I'd suggest plating individual salad portions and pouring the dressing into each serving to avoid a soggy, wilted mess. I refrigerated the leftover dressing until the following day and tossed it into a wild rice dish for extra flavor. I love this salad and any remaining dressing can be repurposed too -- a win-win!

Everyone loved this salad, but I couldn't quite give it 5 stars. I really expected the dressing to be more bacon-y, but it was more of a honey mustard dressing with some bacon thrown in. Not really sure how you get more bacon flavor - maybe add bacon drippings to it? The dressing was really good though - I kept tasting for sweetness as the dijon does tend to make it a little salty.

Absolutely Fantastic!! I would say this salad is comparable to being "restaurant quality". So many dimensions and flavors. I didn't have white wine vinegar, so I used a 50/50 mix of white cooking wine and apple cider vinegar. My spinach didn't wilt too much at all, maybe because I let it sit out until almost room temp, and I also allowed the dressing to cool a little to thicken before pouring. Definitely a keeper that will be served often. The only thing I will do different next time is double the dressing.

The guys really raved about this one. I read through the reviews and I'm not a fan of overly vinegar dressings, so I did reduce the vinegar a bit, glad I did, for me it was still very prominent but once in the salad, it was fine. All the ingredients of the salad go very well together, the amount of Swiss cheese can easily be reduced, we just topped our salad with it. We took the cooks suggestion and added grilled chicken strips...a nice filling summer meal in one dish.

Great way to get almost anyone to eat spinach. Only tip, the dressing has a very strong vinegar taste/odor. Preparing earlier in the day and allowing it to marinade eliminates this.

Perfection! My only change was to use Karo syrup in place of the honey and it worked out well enough that I'll continue using it because I don't keep honey in the house. Top it with any protein or have it plain with warmed bread, delicious! I've served it with shrimp, salmon, sirloin and chicken and it's consistently getting raves. Thanks for providing a summer staple for my house!

This is excellent! I skipped the almonds, but stayed true to the recipe and it was very tasty. My husband loved it. It's a meal in itself. Yummy!

TIP: toss the salad components just before you add the warm dressing to keep the cheese from sticking to itself; then re-toss after adding the dressing. I prepared this for a Casual Gourmet group and was a hit!

Made for Christmas dinner and turned out well...there are a lot of steps to this salad, and the dressing needs to be made at the last minute, so schedule accordingly. I eyeballed all the ingredients, including the dressing and it turned out well. The only thing I might do differently next time is add 1-2 TBS sugar to the dressing...the honey didn't give the right sweet/tart ratio for me.

Used less vinegar and mustard. Used green onion instead of the shallot. Cooked bacon and then sauteed onion and garlic in drippings with additional olive oil. Did not use cheese, nuts or mushrooms.

This is the best salad!!! The dressing is fantastic!!!

Very very good! Didn't use mushrooms or swiss cheese (since I forgot to buy them-used some shredded Parmesan) and also left the almonds out for allergy reasons. Made the sauce as directed. SOOOOO good! Made a very nice addition to our Memorial Day BBQ. Will become a regular on our menu. Thank for sharing!

Made this recipe for a per holiday dinner. With one slight change. I did not have a drop of honey in the house. Substituted agave syrup. Only four people at dinner. There were twice baked potatoes left on the plates and a bit of prime rib, however not one ounce of this salad. It is definately a keeper and have passed the recipe to many.

Made according to recipe and it was great! My husband dislikes salads for dinner but actually enjoyed this one. Good if your limiting carbs and very favorable! Can't go wrong with bacon!!!

This made a really good lunch salad for me. I love the dressing - although I did make a couple of changes because I used bacon grease instead of olive oil and cider vinegar instead of white wine vinegar. Instead of mushrooms I used cubed cooked potato and mixed everything together in the skillet, slightly wilting the spinach. The potato gave it a slight taste similarity to German Potato Salad.

I made for Easter dinner- I wanted something new on the dinner table. I followed the directions exactly except I didn't have white wine vinegar, only red. When I tasted the warm dressing I didn't really love it, or even like it however, on the salad it was sooo delicious. It was the best salad I have made, and I think I just found a staple for holiday meals.

Too much vinegar for me but still ok if I make again I'll reduce the amount of vinegar and increase the honey.

This was great as written. I added a tablespoon of the bacon grease to the dressing, probably would have been fine without it. Love it!

It was good, but a little too mustardy for our taste. Next time I'll use less, but it was otherwise awesome! Even my 5 year old boy ate it!! And he is a very picky eater! :-)

Can't say enough about this dressing being soooo GOOD!! I used blue cheese crumbles instead of the swiss and added grape tomatoes and toasted pecans instead of the almonds ;no egg for us This is so good thanks so much for sharing this favorite recipe with us. Can't thank you enough!!!!

I've tried making several warm bacon-mustard dressings and this one is by far the best! Bravo!

This is a great recipes. The only suggestion is to not put the dressing until you are ready to eat it. It gets soggy and wilts too much. Will definitely make it again!

Good overall recipe, I would cut the Dijon to maybe 1/4 cup though. Dressing was very overpowering with the mustard taste.

I hate it when someone rates the recipe on their revised version, but I made a small revision-I did not have white wine vinegar and used rice vinegar instead-it was great!!! I do not care for white wine vinegar in the first place, so the rice vinegar was perfect, it did not overwhelm the dressing!! Also added cranberries!!

Delicious! I sauteed onion in olive oil then added precooked and crumbled bacon. Stirred in red wine vinegar, mustard, honey and some mayo to mellow the vinegar. To the spinach I added a few sliced strawberries and mushrooms. Topped with warm dressing and combined well. I put some of the salad in containers for lunches and packaged dressing separately. Ate the rest for dinner. Yum!

I really enjoyed this recipe. I used shaved parmigiano/reggiano instead of swiss cheese, but otherwise followed the recipe as it is listed. If you don't like the tang and tartness of the dijon, then you might want to use 1/2 of what the recipe calls for and add a little more olive oil. We will definitely make this a regular dish!

This was so good. My family asks for this on a regular basis.

Overall, this is a good spinach salad. However, we found the mustard in the dressing to be overwhelming. It was still reasonably good, but not something I will make again. I think one key to this recipe is to make sure the mustard you use is one that your family really, really likes.

Very good! Serving it with the dressing warm is definitely the way to go. The cold leftover salad just wasn't as good.

AMAZING and in my opinion, the way the dressing should taste!

Great and just what I was looking for. My husband loved it and I wouldn't change a thing.

One of the best warm dressings I've had. Sweet and tangy. i keep going back to it.

This is definitely a 5 star recipe. The only thing I did differently was to lightly saute the mushrooms first as I have a raw mushroom hater in the family. Extra dressing keeps well, we could eat this over & over!

This salad was pretty good. I did make a few changes. I added mozzarella instead of swiss to suit our tastes, and added chicken to make it a meal. The salad was wonderful, I wasn't too keen on the dressing. It wasn't the typical flavor I really enjoy in a honey mustard dressing. I don't really care for warm dressing on my cold salad, so I did not heat it up. I'll make this again, as both my husband and I really enjoyed the salad, but I'll keep looking for a different honey mustard dressing.

This is now my husbands favorite dressing ! I added chicken breast and some blue cheese crumbles. Everyone loved it!

Yummy spinach salad with lots of goodies! Hard boiled eggs and spinach are so good together...add bacon for perfection!

I have tried numerous spinach salad recipes and this one rocked!

I made this for Easter dinner and got rave reviews. I substituted red onion for the shallot and left off the almonds (due to nut allergy), but otherwise this was great! Made double the dressing just so I would have leftovers for dinner salads this week.

This would have been 5 stars... first I double it except for the mustard. Who doesn't like having a little left over. I use the bacon drippings to cook the onions and garlic. I also use rice vinegar. We really love it.

I plan to make this over and over.

Loved this dressing and so did the whole family. Thanks so much!!

I made it, well, almost. I didn’t have any swiss cheese, and I thought that cheese would make it heavier than I wanted. Also, I can’t imagine a spinach salad without red onion, so I added about 1/4 of a red onion, sliced very thin on a mandolin, and soaked in white wine vinegar for about 1/2 hour (soaking onions in vinegar really cuts down the sharp onion flavor, making them mellower and sweeter), and I substituted chopped walnuts for the almonds. The dressing was very good, the walnuts gave a nice crunch, and the combination of flavors was great. I’m not sure that I would ever add swiss cheese, though next time (and I’ll definitely make this again) I might add bleu cheese crumbles.

I LOVE THIS DRESSING! The salad is simply to whip up, but it is the dressing that makes this my favorite salad EVER! I made this for my family and I have never seen my dad eat more salad in his life! SO GOOD!

This was the best. I didn't change a thing. It was wonderful. I put grilled chicken breast strips on top. My company loved it.

I made slight alterations based on what I had. I used balsamic vinegar instead of white wine vinegar and also cooked it in bacon fat and it was delicious. That was the only change I made to the dressing. I also added avocado and parmasean. I left out mushrooms, almonds and swiss cheese because I didn't have it. I think this recipe was awesome with the changes I made but would also be just as good as is.

This salad was amazing! The dressing was perfect- I have never found a better recipe for warm bacon dressing. Thank you for sharing! I made a few alterations too. I used sliced baby bella mushrooms, added sliced red onion, and subbed feta for the swiss cheese, and used thickcut pepper bacon. Again- thank you!

it was a little sweet with 1/3 cup honey. I would use less next time.

Made it for Christmas dinner with Prime Rib. It was a perfect combination and it was great. Kept out the mushrooms but overall a great salad.

Stayed true to the recipe. It was delicious!

Easy and tastes great!

This was by far the best dressing I've had for spinach salad. Even better than grandma's! I didn't have the cheese for it, but it didn't matter at all. Yum!

Deee-licious, down to the last drop of dressing! It's not the healthiest salad, but it's definitely the tastiest. I love the hot dressing (which I heated in the microwave instead of getting another pan dirty).

great recipe....4 stars

This dressing is wonderful! I made a double recipe and didn't have enough honey so used half honey and half maple syrup. I also used turkey bacon. I made the dressing several hours before serving so the flavors had a chance to meld and then warmed for about a minute in the microwave. My guests liked it so much I had to put out extra spinach after they finished a huge salad bowl full just so they could have more dressing.

This was the most delicious salad! Thank you so much for the recipe. The only change I made was I used a mixture of olive oil and bacon drippings for the dressing. This is definitely a keeper!:-)

Tasty. Not the best spinach salad I've ever had, but very good if you are in the mood for spinach.

The taste of the dijon mustard over powered the other flavors.

Pretty tasty dressing.

it was a wonderful meal i added broiled chicken to make it a meal was a great unique flavor will be making it again

Excellent. Made it just as it was written.

the dressing was delicious. Had to use half truffle mustard as I ran out of Dijon and no wine vinegar so used white. Still fantastic. Baking potatoes now so I can have warm potatoe salad for supper.

I didn't heat the dressing as everything was at room temp.and to be honest I forgot to add the last stage of heating.

I liked this but it was VERY sweet. I'd definitely reduce the amount of honey.

Made it tonight and it was great. I did change it a bit by adding some crotons and grilled chicken. I loved the dressing, and my wife said it was a dish we should put our regular meal list. Thanks

I would eat this daily!!

I made this for dinner last week. It was probably the best of all the spinach salads I have made. I truly like the Dijon mustard combination with spinach and bacon.

This recipe was incredible! You can change up the ingredients on top – I added fresh bean sprouts and left off the nuts – and it doesn't matter. The dressing makes it. The dressing was a little sweet for my taste, so next time I'll pull back on the honey a bit. But it really is awesome as is.

This recipe is a perfect blend of ingredients. My husband and I will definitely fix it again and serve it to company.

Yum! I must admit that I replaced the oil with bacon fat (which upped the calorie count significantly, I'm sure.). But I also eliminate the cheese and cut back on the honey and Dijon, so.... At any rate, it was delicious. We had it as a main dish, along with rice pilaf and fruit salad. We will definitely put this one on the menu again!

This is a very good salad! Easy to make!

Excellent dressing very much like the house dressing from California Drewaming

Delicious and easy to make. Substituted swiss cheese with feta crumbles as well as balsamic vinegar instead of white wine vinegar. Added grilled chicken.

I really liked the dressing, but I felt it had too strong of a mustard taste. I added more honey to neutralize the flavor, and it helped. Other than that, it was a hit! I will make it again.

Love it! Thank you!

This salad was amazing! We used cherry almond vinegar and parmesan cheese since we didn't have what was called for.

I love it! Thank you.