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Sicilian Spinach Salad
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Classic Sicilian flavors on a bed of fresh spinach, drizzled with fresh basil vinaigrette. A deliciously flavorful salad that makes a delicious addition to any meal!

Classic Sicilian flavors on a bed of fresh spinach, drizzled with fresh basil vinaigrette. A deliciously flavorful salad, perfect for summer.

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Back in college, before the low carb craze, I developed an entire relationship over baskets and baskets of bread. Let me explain. Sometime early sophomore year, I met my now good friend Erin. We were opposites from the beginning – she was loud and outgoing, had tons of friends and was always up for anything….especially if it involved a party! I was much more quiet and reserved, more likely to have a few close friends, looking for good conversations and deep connections….and not much for parties at all! And yet, somehow, we just clicked.

Classic Sicilian flavors on a bed of fresh spinach, drizzled with fresh basil vinaigrette. A deliciously flavorful salad, perfect for summer.
We would ride the city bus from Marquette’s campus to an Italian restaurant called Louise’s. I’m not sure how we chose it or why….but it quickly became one of our very favorite places to be! And I honestly think it was because of the bread! As soon as we would order our meals (always a BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad), they would bring out a basket of fresh-baked focaccia bread with seasoned dipping oil. And we would eat bread and talk – about school, boys, friendships, family….LIFE. And when the bread was gone, we’d ask for another basket, and sometimes even a third…..until we were ready to head back to campus, hours later.

Classic Sicilian flavors on a bed of fresh spinach, drizzled with fresh basil vinaigrette. A deliciously flavorful salad, perfect for summer.
It’s funny….we always ordered the exact same thing. And stuffed ourselves silly with bread. Looking back, I think it’s because it was never really about the food. It was about the friendship, and the time together. The food was just a bonus! It’s one of the things I love most about food – the way it brings people together. As an adult, Louise’s is still one of my favorite restaurants. Of course, when we go there, I do a few things differently. Like only eating a few pieces of bread instead of a few baskets. Like trying not to overstay my welcome (no more 3 hour visits!) Like ordering new things on the menu…although the BBQ Chicken Chop is still high on my list.

Classic Sicilian flavors on a bed of fresh spinach, drizzled with fresh basil vinaigrette. A deliciously flavorful salad, perfect for summer.
Another one that’s high on my list is their salad with goat cheese, pine nuts, and sun-dried tomatoes. Since ordering it at Louise’s, I’ve used the same ingredients on pizza (amazing!) and in a pasta dish (Sun Dried Tomato Pasta). Now that summer is here again, I decided it was time to go back to the salad….and I made a delicious basil vinaigrette to go with it! I plan to make this salad a lot this summer, hopefully with friends. Because if there’s one thing I know to be true about myself, it’s that I can really bond with someone over a delicious meal.

Classic Sicilian flavors on a bed of fresh spinach, drizzled with fresh basil vinaigrette. A deliciously flavorful salad, perfect for summer.

Sicilian Spinach Salad

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Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 2
Calories: 377kcal
Author: Cathy Trochelman

Ingredients

  • 2 cups fresh spinach
  • 2 ounces goat cheese
  • 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes
  • 1 Tablespoon pine nuts
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon minced red onion
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh basil
  • 1/2 clove minced garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

  • Prepare salad by combining spinach, goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes, and pine nuts in a salad bowl.
  • In a small jar, combine olive oil, vinegar, red onion, basil, garlic, salt & pepper. Shake vigorously until well blended.
  • Drizzle over salad to taste.

Nutrition

Serving: 1grams | Calories: 377kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 26g | Cholesterol: 13mg | Sodium: 691mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g

 

 

 

 

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Comments

  4. Jessica @ Barefoot by the Sea says

    I’m loving all these salad posts lately – perfect for my “state”! Love basil so this will be added to next week’s meal plan…I may substitute feta for goat cheese (my hubby isn’t a fan). But I think it will be yummy! Thanks, as alway Cathy!

    Reply

  8. Kate Griffin says

    I think you need to do a thirty days of salads series! You’re so creative (and it would force me to eat salad for a month) How ’bout it? 😉
    Thanks for sharing!
    Kate

    Reply

  11. Jen Nikolaus says

    Cathy, this looks amazing!! There’s nothing better than good conversation over a (couple) bread baskets! I can’t wait to try this salad, YUM!

    ~Jen @ Yummy Healthy Easy

    Reply

  12. Hot Mess Housewife says

    This entry was so well-written… and has me craving foccacia! Haha.

    The salad sounds tasty, and that vinaigrette would work on a lot of salads, I bet! Thanks for the recipe. 🙂

    Reply

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  18. Ashley says

    This looks great! I recently fell in love with sundried tomatoes and you can’t go wrong with goat cheese. I’ve been trying to come up with some original salad ideas for the summer. You can get so creative with salad and it’s a great low-carb meal

    Reply

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