My New Favorite Salad

With my new toy arriving from Kerekes, I decided to take a few vegetables for a turn, and this salad was the glorious and delicious result.

Roasted Golden Beet, Carrot and Fennel Salad:

2 carrots, sliced
2 golden beets, roasted, sliced
1 fennel bulb, sliced thin
4 strips bacon, cooked and diced (reserve fat)
1/4 avocado, sliced thin
1/4 cup Basil, chiffonade
1 egg, poached
1 slice Ciabatta topped with Idiazabal cheese, toasted

Dressing:
Reserved bacon fat
1/4 cup white balsamic
1 T. honey
salt and pepper as needed

Whisk to combine.

Toss carrots, beets, fennel, bacon, and basil with dressing.
Top with poached egg, avocado, and a chiffonade of basil.
Serve with cheese toast.

The crunch from the vegetables and the bacon matched with the smoothness of the egg and the avocado created a lovely textural contrast, and the yolk from the egg added a velvety richness. The cheese toast was a nice textural element as well as a tool to sop up all of the delicious runoff.