Spinach Salad with Garlicky Thyme Croutons

Yesterday was the staff appreciation luncheon at Scarlet's school. Even though it's been a very full week, I just had to contribute in some way.  I'm so glad that it happened to be a luncheon because one of my favorite ways to show somebody that I care about them is to cook for them.  It works well for me because the boys can be napping or watching Tin Tin and I can serve the community right here in my home by making something delicious that says "thank you for being more awesome than necessary and serving these children so tirelessly!" There is only so much you can say with a salad but it wasn't just the salad, it was the time making the salad. While I chopped and diced and sliced, I prayed for these people and the school.  Love and prayer are my very favorite ingredients these days.

Whenever I make this salad I always get asked for the recipe and like usual, I don't have it. That is a terrible habit and I'm so thankful for this blog because it has made me actually write stuff down while I cook so I can stop being a recipe hoarder.

This salad works perfectly for block parties, picnics or big potlucks. To prevent the spinach from wilting too much, keep the dressing in a jar and dress before serving. For more of a spread, grill some meat and bake up some delicious homemade macaroni and cheese.

If you're in a hurry, this can be a super quick salad when you buy pre-washed spinach, pre-shredded parmesan and pre-hard-boiled eggs at Trader Joes. But do make the croutons at home. They are what make the salad so tasty! If you are being more health conscious you can use sprouted grain bread for the croutons or even gluten free bread. Any kind of bread should work well.

This serves about 10-12 people as a side and takes 35 minutes to prepare.

1 1/2 cups olive oil
6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3 Tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
1 long baguette cut into 1'' chunks

6 quarts washed spinach
5 large hard-cooked eggs, chopped or sliced
1 1/2 cups shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 cup fresh basil sliced thin
golden raisins (optional)
Course salt and fresh cracked pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, coat the baguette chunks with 3/4 cup of olive oil, the chopped garlic, thyme and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Dump out on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Allow them to come to room temperature.

A fool proof way to hard cook eggs is to place the uncooked eggs in a heavy pan. Cover with about 1'' of water and bring to a boil. As soon as the water comes to a boil, turn off the heat or remove from heat source, cover and let sit for 12 minutes. Next, drain and rinse under cool water. Peel the eggs under a dribble of water from the faucet. The fresher the eggs, the harder they are to peel. We go through eggs quickly in our house so this is usually my messy outcome. Thankfully they will be chopped up!

In the same bowl that you tossed the croutons, make the dressing (or in a jar if you aren't going to serve immediately).  Mix the remaining olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.  Add the spinach and the sliced basil.  Scatter the eggs, croutons and cheese over the spinach.  Toss the salad and add more salt and pepper to taste.  If your balsamic vinegar isn't very sweet, add some golden raisins in to the mix.

I doubled the recipe so that is why there is so much in these photos. Enjoy!