Simple Salad Sensation

By CYNTHIA COWAN

Recent sun and showers worked miracles on home gardens struggling with a cool spring. Spinach and lettuce reached peak picking time seemingly overnight. For a few weeks anyway, gardeners don’t have to rely on Reliable.

To savor the taste of just-picked Island grown lettuce, sometimes the simpler the better is the best recipe. Tossing unadorned greens with a light vinaigrette is often all that’s needed to complement a summer meal. When salad is the meal, then additions need not be extravagant either. Just a little bacon and egg, for example. If you can get organic Island eggs and bacon, all the better.

Vibrant greens tossed with crisp bits of bacon in a simple vinaigrette, topped with a poached egg make a perfect lunch or light supper. The poached egg, once broken, blends beautifully with the vinaigrette, creating an irresistible taste and texture salad sensation, to be mopped up scrupulously with toasted baguette.

Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 Tablespoon red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Salad:

4 slices thick bacon

4 eggs

4 cups assorted lettuce

8 slices of baguette, toasted and buttered

Blend the dressing ingredients and set aside. Fry bacon, cool, crumble into bits and set aside. In a large saucepan, bring 2 inches of water to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to medium. Break each egg into a small dish before gently ladling into simmering water. Cover and simmer eggs for 4 minutes or so, until whites are opaque, but yolks are still runny. Meanwhile, toss greens with vinaigrette. Distribute salad among four plates, sprinkle with bacon, carefully top with poached egg, and side with bread. Simple.