This spinach salad is loaded with protein and vegetables and is perfect for meal prepping. Baby spinach is topped with diced chicken, hard-boiled egg, thinly sliced baby bella mushrooms, grape tomatoes, blue cheese, crispy prosciutto, and a homemade chunky blue cheese dressing. Eat it for lunch or dinner!
This salad is inspired by a salad that my parents used to make when I was growing up. I loved the combination of the spinach, hard boiled egg, and raw mushrooms. Raw mushrooms aren’t my favorite, but I love them when they are sliced super thin and put in a spinach salad.
Even though I work at home, I really love meal prepping my lunches. I love having lunch ready so I can grab it, go back to my desk, and get more work done. Anything that makes my days more productive is a major win.
You could certainly add some different ingredients. Steak could be substituted for chicken. You could use bacon instead of prosciutto. Avocado, toasted walnuts, and chopped bell peppers would be welcome additions.
I baked chicken breasts – my favorite way to do this is to place them on a baking sheet, drizzle olive oil over, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and then pour white wine into the pan until it is 1/2 inch deep. I cook the chicken low and slow at 300 degrees, letting it poach in the wine. This is the easiest way to cook a bunch of chicken breasts, and they come out so perfectly tender. If you want to save time you can use a rotisserie chicken.
Instead of taking the time to make hard boiled eggs, I always buy hard-boiled eggs at the grocery store. Charles loves to snack on them, and buying hard boiled eggs makes preparing this meal just a little bit easier.
I topped the salad with my homemade blue cheese dressing, which is seriously amazing. It is worth taking the 5 minutes to make it instead of using a store-bought dressing. Here is a link to the chunky blue cheese dressing recipe.
The book in the photos is The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna, it is one of my favorites. It is about finding the balance between chasing your dreams and accomplishing the things that you should do.
How to make Spinach Salad:
Spinach Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- About 1 1/2 cups White Wine I used Pino Grigio
- 4 slices of Prosciutto
- 1/2 pound Baby Spinach
- 1 cup thinly sliced Baby Bella Mushroom
- 1 cup chopped Grape Tomatoes
- 1/2 cup Crumbled Blue Cheese
- 4 Hard Boiled Eggs sliced
- Blue Cheese Dressing
Instructions
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Start by preparing the chicken. Heat your oven to 300 degrees. Place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet. Drizzle the olive oil over, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then pour the white wine into the pan, you want it to be about 1/2 inch high. Place the chicken in the oven to bake. After 30 minutes, flip it over, and let it cook for another hour.
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You have about 40 minutes of downtime while the chicken bakes. After 40 minutes, place the proscuitto on a parchment lined baking sheet, and place it in the oven alongside the chicken. Cook the prosciutto for about 15 minutes, until it is hard and crisp. Let cool, and then crumble.
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Next, prepare the blue cheese dressing if you are making it from scratch.
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Remove the chicken from the oven, and slice or dice.
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To assemble the salads, divide the spinach between for plates or storage containers. Add the sliced chicken, chopped tomatoes, sliced mushrooms, crumbled blue cheese, sliced egg, and crispy prosciutto. Either top with blue cheese dressing and eat right away, or leave undressed and store for later.
Recipe Notes
You could certainly add some different ingredients. Steak could be substituted for chicken. You could use bacon instead of prosciutto. Avocado, toasted walnuts, and chopped bell peppers would be welcome additions.
