Spinach Salad and Spinach Salad Dressing Recipes

"I'm strong to the finish when I eats me spinach I Popeye the sailor man!" - Popeye - Popeye knew a good thing. He ate spinach and his muscles grew and his strength was renewed. Spinach is rich in nutrients and not only contains vitamins, but also fiber and anti-oxidants. The nutrients that are contained in spinach can help guard eye health, fight heart disease and reduce the occurrence of the common cold, among other health benefits. Some nutrients will be lost if spinach is cooked. By eating spinach raw in spinach salads you will get the most health benefits.

A lot of people cringe at just the thought of spinach. Part of the reason may be, they haven't tried it in various ways.The following recipes are great for summer or really any time you want a delicious salad. My neighbor told me about the basic recipes and I changed it just a bit to my personal preference. This spinach salad is filling, yet light enough if you want to serve it as a meal along with a good crusty bread and a refreshing drink such as iced tea.

Spinach Salad Recipe

Spinach Salad Ingredients:

fresh baby spinach leaves, washed well
5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 - 1 red or sweet onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
grated Parmesan cheese
croutons

Spinach Salad Directions:

Place spinach in large salad bowl. Add cooked and crumbled bacon, red or sweet onion, mushrooms and hard-boiled eggs. Fold ingredients lightly into spinach leaves. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and top with croutons. You can increase or decrease the quantity of any ingredient you want more or less of.

Spinach Salad Dressing Recipe

Spinach Salad Dressing Ingredients:

1/2 cup ketchup
3 TBS mayonnaise
1 cup oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp parsley
2 TBS dried onion flakes or onion powder

Spinach Salad Dressing Directions:

Put all ingredients in a blender. Blend on high speed until well-blended. Pour over spinach salad and enjoy!