Warm Bacon & Shrimp Salad
Warm Bacon & Shrimp Salad. The perfect summer salad that has been one of our go tos for the past two years. It’s simple, it’s easy, and it’s delicious. Packed with allllll the ingredients of summer…grilled shrimp, grilled corn, avocado, tomatoes, spinach, blue cheese, bacon, scallions, and basil. Drizzled with a warm bacon Dijon dressing…you guys it’s soooo good. Happy summer salad season, this one is for sure a winner !!
This is hands down one of my favorite summer recipes, and it is so simple that we make it so often during the summer. Especially when we need a dish that’s quick and easy but so good and loaded with summer ingredients. I mean I am talking this salad is addicting. I always go back for seconds…usually even thirds.
You probably don’t even recognize this salad based on our picture, but we do make it a lot and have posted it a lot. Because every time we make it, I always try to plate it up differently. And this time I actually think might just be my favorite most summery plating yet.
The salad is packed with flavors of summer. There’s grilled shrimp, grilled corn, avocado, cherry tomatoes, crumbled blue cheese, crispy thick-cut bacon, basil, and scallions. I mean does it get any better than this combo of summer flavors?! Honestly no…but it actually does get a little better because the salad is tossed in a bacon dijon dressing that is to die for. And for a little extra…serve it up with some grilled bread on the side. It’s perfect for dunking.
So we are kicking off the weekend with this delicious salad and of course some wine. The weather isn’t supposed to be great again…lots of rain. So unfortunately we are missing yet again, another beach weekend. But we do have a lot of exciting celebrations planned. We are celebrating my brothers graduation from college so you already know we will be drinking and eating super good the next two weekends while we celebrate. Cheers !!
Ingredients
1/2 pound chopped bacon; reserve cooking fat
5 ounces baby spinach
10 ounces cherry tomatoes; halved
1 avocado; diced
3 ears corn
1 pound large shrimp
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 chopped scallions
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 pound crumbled blue cheese
salt and pepper
For the Dressing
1/4 cup warm bacon fat
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
Directions
In a large skillet, fry the bacon. Reserve cooking fat for the dressing. Set aside.
Drizzling the shrimp with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Drizzle the corn with the remaining 2 tablespoon of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Transfer to the grill. Cook over medium heat for 5 - 6 minutes, turning once. Slice the kernels off of the corn. Set shrimp and corn aside.
Make the dressing. In a shaker, combine the warm bacon fat, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, honey, dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.
Assemble the salad. In a large bowl add the spinach, tomatoes, avocado, chopped bacon, grilled shrimp, grilled corn kernels, scallions, basil, and blue cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the dressing over topped. Toss to combine.
