Everything Bagel Breakfast Salad
Everything bagel breakfast salad with bacon, eggs, avocado, everything bagel croutons, and cream cheese dressing is perfect for a light and cozy weekend brunch!
We have a weekend tradition around here of picking up bagels + coffee every Saturday, and to be honest, it’s what I look forward to most these days. While I’ve been going through a big sesame phase lately, my usual go-to is everything toasted with plain cream cheese. She’s a simple gal, but I like her! Anyways, like a good Millennial, I’ve also been going through a breakfast salad phase, so I decided to just mesh the two together.
My usual breakfast salads are not quite as elaborate, but this one is definitely my go-to for Sunday brunch! We have plenty of greens, eggs, and pretty pickled veggies and then we add bacon, bagel croutons, and cream cheese dressing for ~balance~.
Plus, this everything bagel breakfast salad is super easy to throw together for those days when, I don’t know, maybe you drank a bit too much wine in your sweatpants while watching Bridgerton the night before and now you need something quick and vaguely healthy-ish to get through the rest of the day. It happens!
Let’s talk ingredients
The ingredients here are pretty straightforward, but there are a few things I would definitely recommend you have on hand:
Day old bagels – I prefer to use day old bagels to get a nice crunch when they’re fried up! You can also slice up the bagels a few hours in advance and let them dry out on the counter. However, if you like a bread-ier crouton, you can always just use fresh.
Hard or soft boiled eggs – This is another ingredient I like to make ahead of time. I’m never quite in the mood to go through the process pre-coffee on a Sunday morning. Tip: use eggs that are 7-10 days old to keep them from falling apart when you peel!
Pickled veggies – I like to add pickled onions and radishes for crunch and color. These aren’t entirely necessary but I love the pretty pink hues! Non-pickled would work great too.
Everything bagel seasoning – I usually just make my own mix of sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onion, and dried garlic and store it in a jar. You can also buy it online or at Trader Joe’s! You’ll want a bit of this seasoning for the dressing and to sprinkle on top of the salad.
Other than that, the ingredients are pretty basic things like spinach, bacon, avocado, cream cheese, and spices!
Making the perfect breakfast salad
This everything bagel breakfast salad has some prep work to get everything in order, but for the most part, it’s pretty straightforward!
- Make the croutons – You’ll simply fry the bread cubes in a bit of oil until they’re crispy and browned, and then you’ll sprinkle with a pinch of salt.
- Mix up the dressing – I like to use my hand mixer to blend everything together. You’ll just mix the cream cheese with some milk, red wine vinegar, spices, and everything bagel seasoning. The dressing tastes like a super creamy ranch. It’s so good!
- Prep the ingredients – Make sure the bacon is crisped, the eggs are boiled, and the avocado is sliced.
- Assemble – Top a few handfuls of spinach with the bacon, eggs, croutons, avocado, pickled veggies, and dressing. Enjoy!
Ingredient substitutions!
If you want to switch things up a bit, replace the hard or soft boiled eggs with fried eggs! Just mix up the salad and top with a fried or sunnyside up egg – so delicious.
For a vegetarian version, simply leave out the bacon or replace it with a vegetarian option, coconut “bacon”, or butter beans.
When it comes to the bagels, everything bagel is my favorite, but any savory flavor will work. Regular bread would also work in place of bagels.
Fresh red onions or thinly-sliced radishes would be delicious subs if you can’t find pickled.
Lastly, this salad is super versatile. Throw in any seasonal veggies you have laying around in the crisper.
A make ahead option
If the thought of waking up in the morning and prepping ingredients for an everything bagel breakfast salad makes your eyes roll in the back of your head, don’t worry. Most of these ingredients can be prepped so that all you have to do is toss before serving!
You can store the croutons in an airtight container for about 3 days before they start to lose their crunch. The hardboiled eggs, dressing, and bacon can both be made a few days in advance and stored in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. (I would just recommend warming the bacon a bit in the microwave before tossing in the salad).
A few tips & Tricks
Make the bacon in the oven – Stovetop and microwave bacon are both good. But, the oven is my all-time favorite method! I just place the bacon on an oiled sheet pan, throw it in the oven, set the oven to 400°F, and then set the timer for about 14-17 minutes. The bacon will cook up nice and crispy as the oven preheats! (You can also line the sheet pan with foil to make clean up easy. But, I’m personally fine just pouring the bacon grease into an old can).
Add the avocado last – I find that avocado gets a little mushy when tossed in a salad. I prefer to add it last and toss for just a few seconds, or top the salad with whole slices.
Use day old bagels or bread – Dried out bread = crispier croutons! If you don’t have day old, you can always just cut the bread into cubes and let them sit on the counter for a few hours.
More cozy breakfasts
Make Ahead Breakfast Burritos
Poppy Seed Pancakes + Blood Orange Curd
Mini Chilaquiles Verdes with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa
Bacon Hash Skillet with Runny Eggs & Harissa
Everything Bagel Breakfast Salad
Ingredients
Everything Bagel Breakfast Salad
- 1 everything bagel cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 tbs neutral oil plus more if necessary
- 4 oz baby spinach
- 2 hard or soft boiled eggs quartered
- 4 strips bacon cooked to desired crispiness
- 1/2 avocado sliced
- Fresh or pickled onions and radishes for serving
- Salt and pepper to taste
Cream Cheese Dressing
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- 6 tbs whole milk plus more to thin
- 2 tbs red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp parsley
- 2 tsp everything bagel seasoning plus more for sprinkling
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Everything Bagel Breakfast Salad
- To start, heat the canola oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the cubed bagel, and toss to coat with the oil. Cook, stirring frequently, until the croutons are crisp and golden brown. Add another Tablespoon or two of oil if necessary. Remove from heat, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Chop the bacon, if desired, or leave as whole strips.
- In a large bowl, combine the spinach, bacon, eggs, croutons, and fresh or pickled veggies. Toss with 3 Tablespoons of the dressing. Add the avocado and toss for a few more seconds. Add more dressing and everything bagel seasoning, to taste. Enjoy!
Cream Cheese Dressing
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the milk, and mix until no longer clumpy.
- Add the red wine vinegar, Dijon, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, everything bagel seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix until smooth, adding more milk to thin if necessary. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Notes
xo Sara Lynn
*Song of the day: Never Seen Such Good Things by Devendra Banhart
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