Spinach and Salad Turnips with Warm Bacon Dressing

These salad turnips are crisp, tender, and juicy with a little bit of sweet and a little bit of heat. They make a snappy addition to the classic spinach and bacon salad. Eat these turnips raw or quickly sauteed as they are in this recipe. If you cannot find these, use red radishes.

10 to 12 oz spinach, washed and dried, larger stems removed
8 slices pancetta or bacon
1 bunch salad turnips or red radish, trimmed and thinly sliced
2 large cloves garlic, sliced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar or flavored vinegar, such as basil vinegar
1/4 cup currants
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
Sea salt of choice, something with a gentle crunch, such as Cyprus White Sea Salt Flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil

Place the prepared spinach in a large serving bowl and set aside.

Cook the pancetta or bacon over medium heat until crisp and browned. Drain on paper and set aside.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat in the pan. Pancetta renders less fat than bacon, so if you do not have 2 tablespoons, add some olive oil to the pan. Raise the heat to medium-high. Add the turnip slices and garlic and stir-fry for a minute or so. Add the vinegar, currants, mustard, sea salt, and pepper. Stir all to blend. Add the oil, stir in to blend, and pour the warm mixture over the spinach. Toss all the ingredients together to coat them with the dressing. Crumble and scatter the pancetta or bacon over the salad and serve.

Recipe and photograph Copyright Deirdre Davis 2016.
Use of content requires permission.

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