Romaine Wedge Salad With Bacon Ranch Dressing

This recipe is my little spin on a classic wedge salad. Traditionally, wedge salad consists of iceberg lettuce cut into quarters, topped with bacon, tomatoes, and cheese, then drizzled with blue cheese dressing. I don't want to yuck someone else's yum, but I'm not a fan of either iceberg lettuce or blue cheese dressing. So, we're mixing things up with some of my favorites for this mega easy dish.

Let's start with the dressing. This dressing whisks together super quickly by using sour cream, mayonnaise, milk, and a mix of dried spices. Now, this dressing is pretty thick, especially after it sits in the fridge for a bit. I love it that way, but if you like a thinner and more traditional dressing, add a splash more milk.

In a traditional wedge salad, bacon is one of the primary components that is used to top the salad. But for our version today, we're going to mix the bacon right into our dressing. So, we'll start by making some super crispy bacon. Softly cooked bacon isn't going to work here. We need it crispy crunchy. We'll mince it up, and it gets mixed right into our dressing. I like putting the bacon in the dressing, because it guarantees we get a taste of bacony goodness in every single bite!

After the dressing is made, we're basically finished. All that's left to do is assemble. To start, we'll slice a couple romaine hearts in half lengthwise to create our “wedges”. Now, I've always preferred romaine lettuce to iceberg lettuce, because I love dark green leafy greens. Iceberg lettuce is just a little too light for me. So, I love how much extra flavor we get in this salad simply by exchanging our lettuce variety.



Once we have our romaine hearts halved, we're going to load them up with all of that creamy bacon ranch dressing. The dressing is also what helps the rest of our ingredients stick to the lettuce. So, we'll finish these salads up by topping them with diced tomatoes, thinly sliced shallot, and shredded cheddar cheese.

And, that's it! The salad is ready to devour!

I don't know why, but there's something extra special about a salad that you have to eat with a knife and fork. It feels fancier somehow. Which is pretty amazing considering how easy and humble this salad is.

Despite being ridiculously easy, this salad packs tons of flavor! The veggies are crisp and bright. The dressing is smooth and creamy. And the minced bacon hiding in the dressing adds a savory and unexpected pop of goodness that anybody would love.

Alright, everyone. I can't wait to hear what you think of these salads!

I hope you enjoy. And, let's eat!