When my husband and I were first married we had a weekly date night and would often go out for dinner and then see a movie. One of our favorite restaurants was The Capital Grill and I always looked forward to their amazing spinach salad. The salad featured fresh shredded cheese, diced egg, toasted almonds, cranberries and bacon pieces topped with a sweet and sour dressing. I must have gone through about 15 attempts trying to perfect a recreation of that dressing since it’s the key to that delicious salad. Since I wasn’t including bacon in my version I decided to incorporate it into my dressing so that I still get that great smoky taste. I added a bit of egg to my salad but for a vegan option simply omit.

~Sarah

Ingredients:

For the dressing:

• 1/2 cup canola or other neutral flavored oil
• 2-3 tbsp coconut nectar
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup diced sweet onion (if sweet onion is not available use a yellow onion)
• 1 tbsp Dijon
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tbsp dehydrated onion
• dash of liquid smoke
• sea salt to taste

For the salad:

• 5 cups spinach
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (Daiya shreds work as a great vegan option)
• 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 2 hard boiled eggs, peeled and diced

Preparation:

1. Add the ingredients for the dressing to a blender and process until smooth, making sure there are no chunks of onion left.
2. In a large bowl add the spinach, cheese, almonds, cranberries and egg. Drizzle with dressing and toss.
3. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Yield:

Makes 2-3 servings.

Notes:

Store leftover dressing in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.