Toasty Ginger Miso Dressing w/Candied Kumquat & Spinach Salad

Kumquats give this spinach salad an unexpected sweet-tart flavor pop and the toasty ginger miso dressing adds delicious umami to create a healthy and satisfying salad.

Most miso dressings you get in the store are made with refined oils, but obviously, we're using EVOO instead! It's a great way to repurpose leftover chicken (or sub chickpeas to make it vegetarian) into something new too.

This recipe will make extra dressing so you can use it for multiple things—drizzle on salads, rotisserie chicken, rice and veggie bowls, sweet potatoes, and more.

Ingredients:

For dressing:

1" peeled piece of ginger, roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 1/2 Tbsp white miso
1/4 cup Organic Rice Wine Vinegar
6 Tbsp House Blend or Olio Santo EVOO
1 tsp Hot Chili, Jalapeno or Habanero EVOO
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tsp honey

For candied kumquats:

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 cups sliced kumquats (slice each kumquat into 3 - 5 slices, depending on size of kumquat) or 3 cups whole kumquats (methods for both sliced and whole below)

For salad:

1 bag baby spinach
2 cups shredded poached or rotisserie chicken (sub chickpeas to make this vegetarian!)
1 red pepper, seeded and julienned into thin 2" strips
4 green onions, sliced diagonally, including green and white parts
1 cup slivered almonds
1 - 2 cups candied kumquats (instructions below)
1 handful of torn mint

Candied Kumquats - Something New for Dinner

Instructions:

For candied kumquats:

Sliced method-

Using a very sharp knife slice the kumquats into thin slices, usually 3 - 5 slices per kumquat, depending on the size of the kumquat. Cut enough kumquats to get 2 cups of slices.
Put one cup of sugar and one cup of water in a pan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. When sugar is dissolved, reduce heat to medium low and cook sugar water for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and add the kumquats. Allow kumquats to steep in the sugar water for an hour or more.
Heat oven to 250 degrees. Remove kumquats from the syrup and place on a baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes until the kumquat slices dry out a bit and just begin to color. Lift the kumquats from the pan and reserve in a covered bowl or jar until ready to use. Reserve the kumquat infused sugar water and use as simple sugar for cocktails. Can be made a week or two in advance.

Whole method-

Pierce each whole kumquat with a fork two times on opposing sides.
Put one cup of sugar and one cup of water in a pan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. When sugar is dissolved, add the kumquats to the sugar water mixture, return to a boil and then immediately reduce heat to medium-low to simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow the kumquats to steep in the sugar water for at least 4 hours or over night before using. Kumquats should be stored in the syrup in a covered jar until ready to use.
When ready to use lift the kumquats from the syrup, retaining the kumquat-flavored syrup for another use, such as making cocktails!

For Toasty Ginger Miso Dressing:

Put ginger and garlic in a food processor or blender. Whirl to finely mince. Add remaining ingredients and whirl to blend. Dressing can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.

To Assemble Salad:

Lay the spinach in the bottom of a wide, shallow salad bowl or platter. Arrange the chicken, red pepper, green onions, almonds, sliced candied kumquats and mint on top of the spinach.
Drizzle with the dressing and serve.