White Cheddar and Bacon Chopped Salad is a simple salad, filled with flavor in each bite thanks to the way the ingredients are chopped! A great salad to make ahead of time and eat all week long!
Meet my summer love.
Do you ever think that statement will get old? As in I won’t stop finding new loves? I hope not. That’s the fun in life. And the fun in the kitchen. There is always new recipes waiting to be created and adored by all!
So last week, when I was meal prepping, I had an abundance of veggies from previous recipes. Such as this Honey Sriracha Chicken. So what is a girl to do? Making more of the chicken dish seemed like a good option but I was craving something healthy. Something to help me detox from all the dining out and family events we have had the past couple of weeks. Don’t get me wrong. I love do partake to in both, but sometimes food is overwhelming to this preggo. Odd huh?
I can say I am quite lucky that I haven’t had many food cravings. Especially for sweets. There are times that Asian or Mexican sound way too appealing, or the perfectly chewy chocolate chip cookies by girlfriend made that won’t stop tempting me. But besides that, there hasn’t been any late night runs to grab an ice cream cone from McDonalds. Although that does sound tasty right now…
But back to this detox/healthy salad! While the options are nearly endless for salads, I feel they can get boring. I mean, do you ever always resort to the same ingredients to toss together? I know I am guilty. I know I always have romaine, red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, some form of onions, and various roasted nuts and cheeses in my kitchen at any given time. So they are the usual suspects for our salad.
So when I had leftover cabbage, red peppers and green onions staring at me, I knew they were the latest victims to my weekly salad. And let me tell you. They did not disappoint. While I like to think the veggies are the stars here, they are still only veggies and can carry themselves only so far. So enter the two last additions to the salad that I believe make this dish. The cheese and bacon! And the angels sing.
White cheddar is finely grated and bacon is cooked then crumbled. The creaminess of the cheese and the salty, crunch of the bacon really tie this salad together. I used our favorite turkey bacon but by all means, feel free to use real bacon. I chose turkey bacon because with a large salad that is this addicting, I felt I was doing myself justice. Balance people.
The white cheddar is ultra creamy and really provides the salad the extra body it needs to stand on its own. The cheese isn’t too strong so it doesn’t overpower the other ingredients, rather just enhances the whole meal. And to tie this whole salad together, I toss it with a homemade balsamic dressing. A little goes a long way here! In reality, the salad hardly needs dressing; and even a few family members said they didn’t even use any and were still in love with this salad. I call that a good salad!
The dressing comes together quickly and you more than likely have all the ingredients already in your cabinet. Simply add olive oil, balsamic dressing, a bit of dijon, sugar for balance, fresh garlic and Italian seasoning into a blender. Let it do its thing, then you have a super smooth and homemade salad dressing for the fraction of the price and much healthier than any store bought!
You know what really makes this salad though? Besides all he ingredients playing perfect harmony? It’s the way the ingredients are chopped. Hence the name. Each ingredient is finely chopped. So with each bite, you get a little bit of everything. No bites that are purely lettuce, or a big ol’ onion. Rather a bit of crunchy, creamy, and sweet. So please ensure to chop each ingredient finely to really take this salad to its capacity!
I am telling you, you won’t be sorry, friends!
White Cheddar and Bacon Chopped Salad is a simple salad, filled with flavor in each bite thanks to the way the ingredients are chopped! A great salad to make ahead of time and eat all week long!
20 minPrep Time
20 minTotal Time
Yields 6
Save RecipeIngredients
- 6 cups finely chopped romaine lettuce
- 2 cups finely chopped red cabbage
- 1 large red bell pepper, finely diced (1 cup chopped)
- 1 cup finely sliced green onions
- 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded white cheddar cheese
- 1 cup cooked and crumbled bacon
- Balsamic Dressing:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Truvia or 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Salad: In a large bowl, add the lettuce. Then add the remaining salad ingredients and toss to mix well.
- Dressing: In a blender, combine all the ingredients and process until mixed well.
- When ready to serve, drizzle with salad dressing, toss to mix and serve immediately.
Hungry for more delicious salads?
Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanut Chili Vinaigrette
Simple {no cook} Zucchini Caprese Salad
Rainbow Power Kale Salad with Peanut Dijon Dressing
If you make this recipe, make sure to snap a photo and hashtag it #WITHSALTANDWIT. I’d love to see what you are cooking up in your kitchen!
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