Whenever my husband and I are lucky enough to line up a babysitter and have a date night out alone with each other, we often go to dinner and a movie. While at dinner, one of our favorite salads to order is an iceberg lettuce wedge with blue cheese dressing – also known as a Roman Wedge.
One particular restaurant on Cape Cod prepares what we think is the absolute best version of this salad – a wonderful Italian restaurant in Sandwich, Massachusetts called Tomatoes Italian Grille & Bar. In addition to their huge food portions, reasonable prices, great service, fun atmosphere, and the convenience of a movie theater right next door (a perfect date night!) – their Roman Wedge is perfectly prepared and the inspiration behind this recipe.
What makes this salad so good are just simple, quality ingredients: A chilled wedge of fresh iceberg lettuce topped with a rich and creamy blue cheese dressing, ripe tomato slices, plus a sprinkle of crispy pancetta. Nothing overly fancy – just the perfect combination of flavors – and we hope you like it as much as we do!
Ingredients
- ¼ pound pancetta
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ large head of iceberg lettuce
- 2 tomatoes sliced
- 2 cups blue cheese dressing
- ½ cup crumbled blue cheese
Instructions
- Unroll the piece of pancetta and chop into small pieces.
- Heat olive oil in a medium sauté pan until hot. Add pancetta and cook over medium heat until crispy. Drain on paper towels and discard the fat.
- Cut the iceberg half into three or four wedges (depending on the size of your head of lettuce) and arrange on salad plates. Arrange tomatoes slices around each wedge.
- Pour blue cheese dressing over wedges and sprinkle the crispy pancetta over the top along with crumbled blue cheese. Serve immediately.
Viva la Violette