Buttered Crouton Salad with Avocado & Smoked Salmon

This was a delicious and fun-to-make salad.  Thanks to Joy the Baker for another great recipe!!  We had this over Romaine lettuce.  The croutons, dressing, avocado and smoked salmon made for a great flavor combination.  We had this with homemade tomato soup, using the leftover homemade croutons in the soup.

Buttered Crouton Salad with Avocado & Smoked Salmon
adapted from Joy the Baker
Makes 2 Servings

For the Dressing:
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon white wine or champagne vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon capers, coarsely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

For the Salad:
1/2 small baguette sliced into about 12 thick slices, then sliced in half into half moon shapes
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons olive oil
Salad greens, enough for 2 generous servings
1/2 ripe Haas avocado, sliced
enough smoked salmon for 2 generous servings, in bite size pieces
coarse sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper

1.  To make the dressing, combine mustard, vinegar, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Whisk with a fork (or mini whisk) to combine. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking constantly. The slow drizzle and whisking will emulsify the dressing. Add the capers. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

2.  To make the salad, heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon oil in a medium sautee pan over medium heat. I used my large, counter-top griddle.  Once butter is melted, add half of the bread pieces to the pan. Cook until toasted, then flip and cook until toasted. Remove from the pan, add the remaining butter and olive oil, and cook the remaining bread pieces.

3.  On a serving plate, arrange salad greens. Carefully drizzle as much dressing as you’s like onto the greens. Toss to coat. Top greens with sliced avocado, and smoked salmon pieces. Top with warm bread pieces. Sprinkle the salad with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **