Tangy Spinach Salad

Do you ever have a recipe you can't get out of your head? That's where I was this morning. The boys went off to school and I set my mind to tidy up a bit. Pake will play at halftime of the ball game tonight and both boys play in a tournament tomorrow. And so it begins.............

Where was I? Oh yes....I didn't do a great job of picking up last night. I worked on my toe, post bone spur removal and quite frankly, I was in a great deal of pain. One of my intentions for the year is cleaning and clearing the kitchen counters every night, no matter how exhausted. Last night I hurt, badly. So I was standing as little as possible.

I started in today with an impossible to-do list. Nothing earth shattering, just a lot of little details to tend to so I feel ready to relax into a few games of basketball tonight. One of those included mucking out the mud room. Oh my. Coats, caps, gloves, mittens, boots, shoes, you name it. Cramming a family of five and all the winter gear into a teeny tiny room is a recipe for chaos! This requires constant upkeep just to keep the floor clear and have a place to walk.

So in the midst of these to-do's  I kept thinking of this great spinach salad I'd made a while back. I bough fresh salad yesterday, I had a huge craving for it and just couldn't pass it up. I LOVE spinach. I don't know where this started coming in. During my raw, vegan days I lived off the juice and found why it was so popular with Popeye....it does given an incredible, almost super hero surge of energy. I grew spinach in my garden last year and it was FABULOUS. I aim to have it back again and would also like to try a fall/winter garden. It is so versatile too. I include it in sandwhiches, omlettes, dips and salads.

In my rush I grazed through my recipe drawer and found a couple version but not the one nestled on my tastebuds. I remember it had eggs and chow mein noodles. I now have an abundance of eggs so this would be a good way to use them up. My scouting was in vain.

I cleaned and cleaned. Came back into the kitchen and did this incredible thing.........I S L O W E D  D O W N and took a deep breath. If it meant going through my tangled draw to find the recipe I would do it. I knew it was in a cooking magazine that my mom gets for me every year. I read them, I mark them and they go into the drawer. BINGO!  (really amazed at what clearing one's mind for a few minutes can do!)

I thought I'd share this as a way to boost your vitamin and energy levels as we approach a very deep winter:

3 Tbs. cider vinegar

3Tbs. olive oil

3 Tbs. ketchup

3 Tbs sugar *I used 2 Tbs. warmed honey

1 1/2 tsp. Worchestershire sauce

1 tsp onion

1 pkg (6 oz) fresh baby spinach

3 hard-cooked eggs, chopped

1/3 cup cho mein noodles

In a jar with a tight fitting lid, combine the first six ingredients and shake well.

In a large bowl, combine the spinach, eggs, and chow mein noodles. Drizzle with dressing. Refrigerate leftovers

My Version:

Since I was the only one eating this I made a custom version for me. It was actually so tasty I had seconds.

I took a small plate (as pictured) put on a couple of handfulls of spinach, chopped an egg, sprinkled the chow mein noodle and drizzled on the dressing. If you use sugar, I would suggest using only a couple of tablespoons of sugar it's pretty sweet with the original recommendation of 3 Tbs. I also double the dressing ingredients so I don't have to make additonal batches. This lasts in the fridge for a week or better, but it's usually gone before then!

Enjoy!