Steakhouse Wedge Salad With Gorgonzola And Crispy Pancetta Food

STEAKHOUSE WEDGE SALAD

Steps:

• Make the blue cheese dressing: Stir together the grated garlic and lemon juice in a medium bowl to form a garlic paste. Add the half-and-half, mayonnaise, sour cream, Worcestershire, 1/2 cup of the blue cheese and whisk until smooth. Gently stir in the remaining 1/2 cup blue cheese and season with pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• For the salad: Put the oil and bacon in a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat until it starts to sizzle. Reduce the heat to medium and cook until golden and crispy, stirring often, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate with a slotted spoon. Return the skillet with the bacon fat to the stove and decrease the heat to low. Add the smashed garlic clove and more oil if necessary and cook for 1 minute to infuse the oil. Add the tomatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook, shaking the pan often, until slightly softened and a few of the skins are split, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the bacon back in to keep it warm.
• Put the iceberg wedges on a large serving platter and top with the scallions and tomatoes. Spoon the dressing on top, letting it run down the sides. Finish with the bacon.

ICEBERG WEDGE SALAD WITH CREAMY GORGONZOLA DRESSING

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, and gorgonzola. Using a wooden spoon, stir the mixture to combine the cheese through the mixture. Loosen up the mix with the buttermilk, a tablespoon at a time, until it comes to a salad dressing consistency. Season the mix with salt, and pepper, to taste. Stir in the fresh herbs.
• Place a wedge of lettuce on a plate, coat liberally with the blue cheese dressing, and crumble some cooked bacon on top of the dressing. Dress each plate with 2 halved tomatoes, some blue cheese, and season with a little bit of salt and pepper.

BOURBON GORGONZOLA WEDGE

Steps:

• For the dressing: Combine the creme fraiche, buttermilk, basil, parsley, chives, thyme, garlic, lemon juice, bourbon, onion powder and 1/4 cup of the gorgonzola in a blender and pulse until combined. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• For the wedge: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until fragrant, 6 to 8 minutes. Let cool and then chop.
• Divide the lettuce wedges among 4 plates. Top each with 1/4 cup of the dressing, the tomatoes, toasted pecans and the remaining 1/4 cup gorgonzola. Serve the remaining dressing on the side. Eat right away!

ICEBERG WEDGES WITH PANCETTA GORGONZOLA DRESSING

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until crisp and golden, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to a paper towel-lined plate to drain the excess oil.
• Stir the buttermilk, sour cream, and garlic in a medium bowl to blend; mix 2/3 of the cheese. Season the dressing with salt and pepper, to taste.
• (The dressing can be made up to 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Stir to blend before using, adding more milk to thin the sauce, if necessary.)
• Arrange each of 6 lettuce wedges on 6 plates. Spoon the dressing over the lettuce. Sprinkle with the pancetta and remaining cheese and serve.