Author Notes
It's warm here and getting warmer every day. Salads are on the menu often either as a side to simple grilled meats or enriched with protein for a full meal. This one can be either. The creamy dilled bacon dressing adds a nice dimension to a simple chopped salad.(Note: Although not included in this version, adding diced cooked chicken is extremely good!) —inpatskitchen
Test Kitchen Notes
So often it's the little things in a recipe that elevate it from simply satisfying to splendid and this is a prime example. The addition of a bit of bacon fat to the sour cream and mayo brings the dressing to a whole new level, and the inclusion of a handful of fresh dill adds a lovely herbaceous note that tempers the richness. As suggested in the headnote, we added some grilled chicken to make it a main course, which, served along with some dry riesling, made a first-rate summer supper. —wssmom
Ingredients
-
1 cup
sour cream
-
1/2 cup
homeade or good quality mayo
-
1
clove garlic, mashed or pressed
-
1/2 cup
fresh minced dill
-
2 tablespoons
milk
-
6
slices crisp cooked bacon, reserving a tablespoon of the rendered bacon fat
-
Salt, to taste
-
1/4 tablespoon
black pepper
-
1
large heart of romaine lettuce, chopped
-
1/3
of an English cucumber, thinly sliced and then each slice halved
-
1/2 cup
thinly sliced red onion, chopped
-
2
hard boiled eggs
-
3/4 cup
crumbled blue cheese
Directions
-
Combine the sour cream, mayo, fresh dill, salt, pepper and milk. Crumble 2 slices of the bacon very finely and add to the dressing along with the tablespoon of rendered bacon fat. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
-
When ready to serve, combine the chopped lettuce, cucumbers and onions. Chop the bacon and eggs and add them to the mix. Gently fold in the blue cheese. Serve with the dilled bacon dressing.
I think I get my love for food and cooking from my mom, who was an amazing cook. She would start baking and freezing a month before Christmas in order to host our huge open house on Christmas afternoon. I watched and I learned...to this day I try not to procrastinate when it comes to entertaining.
My cooking style is pretty much all over the place, although I'm definitely partial to Greek and Italian cuisine. Oh yes, throw a little Cajun in there too!
See what other Food52ers are saying.