The Spin on Strawberries

The Ingredients (for 5 to 6 servings):

• 225 g (or 8 oz) of spinach
• 340 g (or 12 oz) of strawberries
• 115 g (or 4 oz) of chèvre, a creamy goat cheese
• 225 g (or 8 oz) of lean bacon
• aged white balsamic vinegar
• salad grade olive oil

The Method:

1. Cook the bacon until it is crispy, then allow it to cool to room temperature.
2. Wash and spin dry the spinach and place it in a salad bowl.
3. Wash and hull the strawberries, cut them into quarters, and strew them across the spinach.
4. Crumble the chèvre over the spinach and strawberries.
5. Cut or crush the bacon into small pieces and sprinkle it over the salad.
6. Make the balsamic vinegar and olive oil available for each person to drizzle on their own serving.
   

The Story:

Recently we were given a quartet of balsamic vinegars as a gift. I used a tangerine flavored one in my Lucky Duck recipe and the taste was superb. Wondering how to best use the remaining bottles, I remembered reading that strawberries were sometimes eaten with a splash of balsamic vinegar. It was the work of a moment to imagine a bed of spinach and a sprinkling of bacon, and my daughter supplied the idea of adding chèvre. This is one of our favorite salads.