Wedge Salad with House Dressing

YIELD: 4 APPETIZER SERVINGS

Go big or go home. That was always Eli’s philosophy, and it applied to everything Eli’s The Place For Steak served. In order for the salad to be the same scale as a steak, Eli’s vision was to create a big wedge of crisp, cold iceberg lettuce topped with a generous dollop of his house dressing—there was nothing better. Remember when Barbra Streisand’s character in The Mirror Has Two Faces orders a salad with “more dressing and a side of extra dressing”? That’s how our daughter Elana likes it, too.

            1 head iceberg lettuce, washed and crisped and cut into four equal wedges

            4 strips cooked smoked bacon, crumbled

            1 recipe The Place For Steak House Dressing (recipe on p. 62)

            1 handful fennel fronds, for garnish

1.    Place the four lettuce wedges, flat side down, on chilled shallow dishes or plates. Either scatter the bacon crumbles over the lettuce wedges or stuff them into the wedges.

2.    Pour Eli’s House Dressing on top of the lettuce wedges. Garnish with the fennel fronds and serve immediately.

       NOTE: If any of the dressing is left over, you can add 2 teaspoons of vinegar to it and store it covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This classic mid-century salad dressing will jazz up even the palest of iceberg lettuces and is a perfect mayonnaise substitute on any salad or sandwich.