Iceberg Wedge With Warm Bacon Dressing
Serves 4.
Note: Perk up your summer dining with a twist on a classic recipe. Instead of the usual buttermilk dressing for this dish of the '50s and '60s, Joe Carroll, chef of St. Anselm in Brooklyn, uses a warm bacon dressing inspired by the jars of gravy-like Pennsylvania Dutch bacon dressing that his family poured over salads, vegetables and potatoes when he was a kid. Serve this salad alongside a simple grilled steak. From "Feeding the Fire," by Joe Carroll.
• 6 oz. thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/2-in. pieces
• 2 tbsp. flour
• 1 1/2 c. water
• 1/3 c. cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large head iceberg lettuce, cut and cored into 4 wedges
• 4 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
• 1/4 c. chopped parsley
Directions
Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour bacon fat into a measuring cup and then return 1/4 cup of fat to the skillet.
Heat bacon fat over medium-low heat, then stir in flour and cook stirring with a wooden spoon, until the flour is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add water, vinegar, sugar and mustard, bring to a simmer and cook, whisking frequently, until the dressing is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove from the heat. (The dressing should have the consistency of gravy.)
Put the iceberg wedges on 4 plates. Drizzle with the warm bacon dressing and sprinkle with the reserved bacon, the blue cheese and parsley. Serve immediately.
