BLT Bread Salad

This recipe draws the inspiration for its ingredients from the classic trio in a BLT sandwich, but instead of using real bacon, I'm using the Smart Bacon from LightLife - and turning the whole thing into a salad!

Cube 6 cups-worth of French bread into 1/2-inch cubes - the original recipe said this would be about 4 ounces, but I'm not sure what kind of French bread they were using, because I needed 7 ounces! Arrange the bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet; lightly coat the cubes with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, stirring half way through.

In a large bowl, combine 1/4 cup white wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons water, 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise (such as Spectrum's canola mayo), 2 and 1/2 teaspoons raw sugar, 2 teaspoons olive oil, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, and 1/8 tsp. ground red pepper. Stir well with a whisk.

Add 3 cups torn curly leaf lettuce, 2 cups chopped and seeded tomato, and the bread cubes to the bowl with the dressing, tossing to coat. (Note: I actually did this in reverse, combining the three salad ingredients and then drizzling with the dressing - that worked too!)

Sprinkle the top of the salad with 2 tablespoons sliced green onions and 4 slices of crumbled vegan bacon (cook them for about 3 minutes over medium-high heat first, in a skillet coated with cooking spray, then crumble).

1 and 1/3 cups of salad is 160 calories.

Cost:
French bread $1.29
vegan mayonnaise $3.99
curly leaf lettuce $1.99
tomatoes $3.26
vegan bacon $3.39