Love and Olive Oil

Fig, Blue Cheese, and Bacon Salad with Fried Shallots

Fig, Blue Cheese, and Bacon Salad with Fried Shallots

Well that’s a mouthful.

In more ways than one.

Shortening the ‘name’ of this recipe would be doing a disservice to one of the amazing ingredients it contains. Figs? Majorly important. Bacon? Always. Blue cheese? Yep. And the fried shallots? Anything but an afterthought.

It’s salty and sweet. Fresh and tangy. Soft and crispy. Meaty and fruity. Substantial enough for a meal or special enough to hold its own on the side.

Fig, Blue Cheese, and Bacon Salad with Fried Shallots

While we’ve chosen to use figs this time, this recipe would really work with any fresh fruit. In fact, the first time we made this salad this past winter, we used pears. I’d also imagine plums or blackberries would be suitable substitutions. Anything to provide a subtle sweetness in contrast to the other flavors and textures in this stunning salad.

Fig, Blue Cheese, and Bacon Salad with Fried Shallots

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Ingredients:

For Dressing:

  • 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tablespoon honey
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • salt and pepper, to taste

For Salad:

  • 5 slices bacon
  • 1 large shallot, sliced into thin rings
  • 6 ounces (1 bag) mixed baby greens
  • 8 ounces fresh figs, halved
  • 1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

Directions:

For dressing, whisk together vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, and honey in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in olive oil, whisking constantly to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crispy.  Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside to cool, then crumble into pieces. Add sliced shallots to hot bacon fat and fry until golden brown and crispy, about 1 minute. Take care not to overcook the shallots or they will become bitter. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel to drain.

To assemble salad, toss lettuce with dressing until evenly coated. Divide among serving dishes and top with figs, bacon, shallot, and blue cheese.

All images and text © / Love & Olive Oil

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28 Comments

  1. Oh my goodness pinning this beut for later! I couldn’t help myself after seeing it over at Foodie Crush! 

  2. This salad is so so pretty! Bacon and fried shallots? Oh yeah!

  3. Wow, the flavors in this salad are incredible! I can not wait to try this :)

  4. What a gorgeous salad! Those fried shallots has me totally sold!

  5. Yummmmm, you just made my perfect lunch! Gorgeous, salad!!!

  6. Oh my gosh! Have i mentioned how much i love summer salads? Not enough! This looks simply delicious!!!

  7. I adore figs. When I was growing up we had a few fig trees in our backyard. And every summer I ate them fresh of the tree. Beautiful salad.

  8. I’m not a huge fan of bacon, I usually pick it out of a salad, but seeing it paired with figs and blue cheese it actually sounds appealing!

  9. Love the look and sound of this one! Hmmm…sure wish that 4′ fig tree would do it’s thing so I can make the salad…maybe next year?

    Thanks for the great salad recipe!

  10. What wonderful flavors!

  11. Sure, the figs and the bacon draw you in…but it’s the fried shallots that seal the deal!!

  12. Beautiful salad, so fresh and summery, would be perfect for weeknight and dinner party alike.

  13. I love fresh figs…and just about everything else in this salad! For some reason, my brain went to peaches, which may or may not work. If I try it, I’ll be sure to report back! Thanks for the delicious idea :)

  14. Delicious!

  15. Figs and blue cheese is such a dynamite combination. Love that you incorporated both into a salad!

  16. Oooooh what a beautiful salad! I would be all over it and I’m not even a blue cheese fan :)

  17. This is such a beautiful salad, Lindsay! Love those sweet, salty and earthy flavors.

  18. I must try this, sounds soooo good!

  19. The title got me in appetite, the picture had me hooked and by the time I finished reading the intro, I was drooling…

  20. LOVE that figs are in season right now… They’re my absolutely favorite!

  21. What a beautiful salad. I haven’t found fresh figs anywhere this year. When I do, I am going to be making this salad.

  22. This salad is calling my name! I don’t think I’ve ever had a fresh fig (what!), now I have an excuse to buy some!

  23. This is beautiful! And I definitely know what it’s like to have a recipe with so many awesome ingredients, a super long title is a necessity!

  24. Oh so pretty!

  25. This is my kind of salad! Your photography is stunning!! (BTW, I am making your cookie dough today for my kids!) Hugs!

  26. Figs, bacon and blue cheese oh my!!

  27. This salad sounds simply DIVINE! Love anything with figs – oh and anything with bacon – so this is a perfect salad. Loving the cover photo! Hope you have a splendid Monday and week ahead.

  28. This is just gorgeous! I love the fried shallots and those figs! YUM!

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