The Breakfast Salad
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Feb 20, 2025 The Breakfast Salad Recipe – Get your greens in the morning with eggs, bacon, cinnamon toast croutons, and maple vinaigrette!
An unconventional morning meal, The Breakfast Salad with Cinnamon Toast Croutons and Maple Vinaigrette. Who knew a salad for breakfast could be so good?
I’ve noticed a trend here in Asheville and on the menus of popular breakfast joints around the country… Salad for Breakfast.
Before you turn up your nose, let me clarify. These breakfast salads are not bland leafy side salads with bottled ranch dressing, but bold hearty meals. A good breakfast salad encompasses everything that makes breakfast so appealing: carbs, eggs, pork fat, and sweet accents.
After exploring these salads at several favorite breakfast hotspots, I decided to work on my own version.
Healthy Breakfast Salad
First, I wanted to put my family’s favorite morning flavors into the breakfast salad. That way, it would be hard for the kids to resist. My version had to include: bacon, maple syrup, cinnamon toast, and eggs.
The Cinnamon Toast Croutons were the first inspiration. Truly, I could eat a whole pan of these babies.
In fact, it’s important not to make them too far in advance, or there will not be any left for the salad. Maple Vinaigrette provides a sweet and poppy essence with apple cider vinegar and Dijon mustard. The addition of candied nuts and dried cherries offers a granola-like quality.
To complete The Breakfast Salad, prepare your morning eggs just the way you like them, and place them on a bed of crisp baby spinach.
This, my friends, is a great way to start the day!
Eat breakfast like a King, lunch like a Prince, and dinner like a Pauper. ~ Adelle Davis
What Ingredients You Will Need
For the Cinnamon Toast Croutons:
- 6 cups French bread cubes
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch salt
For the Maple Vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil (or olive oil)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Pepper to taste
For the Breakfast Salad:
- 1 cup candied nuts
- 3/4 cup dried cherries
- 12 ounces bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 6 cups baby spinach, packed (or baby kale)
- 12 large eggs, prepared to order
How to Make Our Breakfast Salad Recipe
Instructions…
For the Cinnamon Toast Croutons:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lay the bread cubes out on a rimmed baking sheet. Mix the melted butter, sugar, cinnamon, and salt together and drizzle over the bread cubes. Toss and bake for 5-10 minutes until toasted.
For the Maple Vinaigrette:
Whisk all the ingredients together until smooth. Set aside.
Assembling the Salad:
Cook and drain the bacon. Prepare the eggs to your liking—scrambled, poached, sunny-side-up.
Prepare each salad plate with a heaping cup of baby spinach, topped with cinnamon toast croutons, candied nuts, dried cherries, and crumbled bacon. Then top each with 1-2 eggs and drizzle with maple vinaigrette salad dressing!
You can add in other toppings or mix in other ingredients like avocado, roasted sweet potato, tomatoes/cherry tomatoes, lemon wedges, bacon, and breakfast sausage.
Get the Full (Printable) Breakfast Salad Recipe with Maple Vinaigrette Below. Enjoy!
Other Breakfast Recipes
- Easy Sheet Pan Pancakes
- Pumpkin Spice Overnight Oats
- Best Avocado Toast Recipe
- Egg White Frittata with Spinach and Peppers
- Best Huevos Rancheros Recipe
- Better than Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls
- Fluffy Strada Recipe (Overnight Casserole)
Check the printable recipe card below for the prep time, total time, and nutrition information including calories, carbohydrates, protein, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, potassium, fiber, vitamin c, and calcium percentages.
The Breakfast Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cinnamon Toast Croutons:
- 6 cups French bread cubes
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch salt
Maple Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Pepper to taste
For the Breakfast Salad:
- 1 cup candied nuts
- 3/4 cup dried cherries
- 12 ounces bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 6 cups baby spinach, packed
- 12 large eggs, prepared to order
Instructions
For the Cinnamon Toast Croutons:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lay the bread cubes out on a rimmed baking sheet. Mix the melted butter, sugar, cinnamon and salt together and drizzle over the bread cubes. Toss and bake for 5-10 minutes until toasted.
For the Maple Vinaigrette:
- Whisk all the ingredients together until smooth. Set aside.
Assembling the Salad:
- Cook and drain the bacon. Prepare the eggs to your liking—scrambled, poached, sunny-side-up.
- Prepare each salad plate with a heaping cup of baby spinach, topped with cinnamon toast croutons, candied nuts, dried cherries, and crumbled bacon. Then top each with 1-2 eggs and drizzle with maple vinaigrette!
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My favorite is searing chicken breast, mushrooms, minced garlic in sesame oil and at the last minute toasting sesame seeds. Oh yummy, I will never get tired of this dish. Just splash with a little soy sauce and this is a meal!!
Just like you, I love a good fried egg in this kind of pan! Makes breakfast clean up easy in this pan! Great giveaway.
In keeping with your breakfast theme, my favorite thing to cook in a frying pan is frittata.
Mmm, the croutons look so yummy! And that fried egg is beautiful :) Those pans look awesome! I’d have to say my favorite thing to cook in my frying pan are eggs, any which way :D
Not just for breakfast…I eat breakfast for dinner often…no reason I couldn’t do it in salad fashion. Sounds great and must say; I LOVE my ManPans steamer pan.
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This is so creative! I love the idea of a salad for breakfast! My favorite thing to make in a frying pan? Probably veggies. I like to saute them for awhile before I add them to things!
Cinnamon toast croutons? Whaaat?! That is genius my friend, pure genius. :D