In our house, dinner is the “big” meal of the day.  We usually do a quick breakfast, I make a really simple lunch, but I tend to focus most of my efforts (and appetite) on dinner because it’s the meal I eat with my whole family and my husband is usually starving when he gets home.  Typically our dinner is pretty filling, so with that in mind, this is NOT a recipe that would cut it in our house for dinner.  It is super easy, delicious,

Here are 3 situations where making this would be ideal:

1. You want a light, yet hearty lunch for a few friends.

2. You’re serving a light dinner, like quesadillas or sandwiches, and need a hefty side.

3. You spent your afternoon making a killer dessert and you don’t want to hear any nonsense about your diners being “too full for dessert”.

In my life, #3 is a real situation often – I hate when a great dessert is under appreciated.  Plus, these won’t leave you with a ton of dishes, either, so you can focus on the kitchen disaster at hand after making said dessert.

Chorizo and Mushroom Salad

8 cups fresh spinach

8oz. chorizo

8oz. mushrooms (I used some shiitake and some button)

1 onion

3T olive oil

Juice of 2 limes

1/2 tsp dried oregano

2oz. goat cheese

salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 425.  Dice the onion and chop the mushrooms.  Break the chorizo up into blobs on a rimmed baking sheet.  Scattter the onion and mushrooms around the pan, too.  Bake for 20 minutes, stirring the mixture every 5 minutes (so the onions and mushrooms gain some fat and flavor from the chorizo).

2. Whisk the lime juice, olive oil, oregano, and 2T of water together to make a dressing, season with a bit of salt and pepper.  Put the spinach into bowls for serving, then scoop the now cooked mushroom mixture over the top.  Drizzle with dressing and crumble a little goat cheese on top.