Old-fashioned Iceberg Wedges With Luxurious Blue Cheese Dressing

Once upon a time, iceberg lettuce was the only salad green on most American dinner plates. Then for years it seemed to have been banished from all venues except for low-end salad bars and Mexican combo platters. But even though more fashionable species of deeper-hued, smaller, shapelier salad greens replaced it in discriminating culinary circles, in recent years iceberg has made a major comeback as the uber-cool wedge, its mildness offset with a big-flavored blue cheese dressing. It’s nice to serve this on individual salad plates. It’s even nicer if you chill the plates first (everything about this dish should be cold) by stacking them in the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before serving time.

When shopping for iceberg lettuce, buy the tightest, greenest head you can find. You can use any kind of blue cheese. Some are saltier and more pungent than others, and prices vary widely. Try different kinds until you find your favorite. The dressing can be made up to 5 days ahead and stored in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator until just before serving.

Ingredients

For luxurious blue cheese dressing

1 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup mayonnaise

½ cup crumbled blue cheese

For the salad

1 large head (about 1 pound) iceberg lettuce, chilled

Freshly ground black pepper

4 strips of nitrate free bacon, cooked and crumbled

3 green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters

1 cup toasted walnuts

Blue cheese crumbles to garnish

Directions

1. To make the dressing, combine the buttermilk and mayonnaise in a medium-sized bowl, and whisk until blended. Continue whisking as you sprinkle in the blue cheese. Continue to mix, mashing the cheese a bit. The cheese will mostly, but not completely, blend into the mixture. There will be some small lumps. You want them there. It’s part of the charm.

2. Peel off and discard any wilted or damaged outer leaves from the head of lettuce. Stand the lettuce on the stem end and use a sharp knife (choose one with a blade about as large as the head of lettuce) to cut the entire head in half. Cut each half from top to stem into two or three wedges. If the core looks tough, use a paring knife to trim it off each wedge.

3. Stand one wedge (resting on its outer-leaf side looks cool) on each serving plate, and spoon a generous amount of dressing over the top, letting it drip down to the plate if it wants to. Top with bacon, walnuts, tomatoes, green onion and blue cheese crumbles.

Serve right away, passing a pepper grinder at the table.

Bon appetit!