Heather Giustino Blog: Poppy Seed Salad (my most requested dish!)

I remember eating this salad at a very young age at one of my mom's friend's houses. I was maybe 9 or 10, and only had a cursory serving so that it looked like I took a little bit of everything. But one bite into this salad and I was hooked. It's not your typical health-nut salad, so if that's what you're in the market for, so sorry! But if you're looking for a filling, delicious salad with big flavors, and awesome textures, then I think you will love it.

You will need:

Mixed greens (I always get a big bag from my local farmer's market, or the bag simply titled "mixed greens" from Trader Joe's)
One cup dried cranberries
Half a cup slivered almonds, or candied almonds if you want a bit of extra sweetness
One large can drained mandarin oranges (not pictured in this post, because I was completely out. UGH!)
Half a cup crumbled feta cheese
7 - 10 pieces pork or turkey bacon (NOT bacon bits, trust me) cooked, and roughly broken apart (You want them to be in somewhat big pieces) You can always add more or less, it all depends on what you like.
Poppy seed dressing. My all-time favorite is THIS one
OPTIONAL: thinly sliced red onions. They were in the original recipe, but I strongly dislike them so I leave them out ;) Occasionally I'll have Tony slice some up and leave them on the side, for those who might want them.

Drain and then rinse your mixed greens, if they aren't already. Pour greens into a big bowl, and then add in remaining ingredients, except for dressing. With clean, dry hands mix all ingredients thoroughly. I've found that my hands are the best tool for mixing!

Lightly dress the salad, and put remaining dressing out so that more can be added individually. Like I said, this salad has a lot of big flavors, and in my opinion doesn't need a ton of dressing, though some people do like quite a bit.