1 head curly leaf lettuce, rinsed, spun and ripped into bite-sized pieces
1 head romaine lettuce, rinsed, spun and cut into bite-sized pieces
12 vine-ripened tomatoes, quartered
6 rashers bacon, oven-roasted
¼-½ cup creamy buttermilk ranch dressing (see below)
2 cups croutons (see below)
sprinkle sea salt flakes
sprinkle black pepper
sprinkle grated or crumbled cheese
For the croutons:
½ loaf white bread, cubed
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
For the creamy buttermilk ranch dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon chopped white onion
1 garlic clove, chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
½ teaspoon dry mustard
squeeze of lemon
½ teaspoon each, kosher salt and black pepper
Takes ,
serves 6.
Instructions
Prepare the dressing: Place the mayonnaise, buttermilk, onion, garlic and dry mustard in the canister of an immersion blender. Zip to purée. Add salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon, taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in fresh herbs. Cover and refrigerate until use.
Prepare the croutons: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir the chopped garlic into the melted butter. Place bread cubes into a large bowl and sprinkle with melted butter, seasoning, cheese and salt and pepper. Spread croutons out onto baking sheets. Transfer to oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until croutons are a rich golden colour.
Prepare the bacon: Preheat oven to 425°F. Place bacon onto a wire rack sitting in a foil-lined baking sheet. Transfer to oven and bake until crispy, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and pat dry with paper towel to remove excess grease. Roughly chop.
Assemble salad: Place lettuce into a large salad bowl. Add tomatoes, bacon and ¼ cup of the dressing. Toss lightly. Add croutons with a sprinkle of pepper, sea salt flakes and additional dressing, if desired. Toss again and garnish with remaining croutons, bacon and cheese, if desired. Serve immediately.
BLT Salad
Ingredients
For the salad:
1 head curly leaf lettuce, rinsed, spun and ripped into bite-sized pieces
1 head romaine lettuce, rinsed, spun and cut into bite-sized pieces
12 vine-ripened tomatoes, quartered
6 rashers bacon, oven-roasted
¼-½ cup creamy buttermilk ranch dressing (see below)
2 cups croutons (see below)
sprinkle sea salt flakes
sprinkle black pepper
sprinkle grated or crumbled cheese
For the croutons:
½ loaf white bread, cubed
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
For the creamy buttermilk ranch dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon chopped white onion
1 garlic clove, chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
½ teaspoon dry mustard
squeeze of lemon
½ teaspoon each, kosher salt and black pepper
Directions
Prepare the dressing: Place the mayonnaise, buttermilk, onion, garlic and dry mustard in the canister of an immersion blender. Zip to purée. Add salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon, taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in fresh herbs. Cover and refrigerate until use.
Prepare the croutons: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir the chopped garlic into the melted butter. Place bread cubes into a large bowl and sprinkle with melted butter, seasoning, cheese and salt and pepper. Spread croutons out onto baking sheets. Transfer to oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until croutons are a rich golden colour.
Prepare the bacon: Preheat oven to 425°F. Place bacon onto a wire rack sitting in a foil-lined baking sheet. Transfer to oven and bake until crispy, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and pat dry with paper towel to remove excess grease. Roughly chop.
Assemble salad: Place lettuce into a large salad bowl. Add tomatoes, bacon and ¼ cup of the dressing. Toss lightly. Add croutons with a sprinkle of pepper, sea salt flakes and additional dressing, if desired. Toss again and garnish with remaining croutons, bacon and cheese, if desired. Serve immediately.
BLT Salad
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Crispy bacon with romaine, curly leaf lettuce and tomatoes, tossed with garlic croutons and creamy buttermilk ranch dressing…
The classic sandwich gets a makeover in this terrific BLT SALAD!
You know at the outset that this recipe has all the makings of a great salad, right? Better still, if you’re a lover of the sandwich, this BLT SALAD promises to impress. Not only is it incredibly easy to make, it’s also flavourful and will serve six guests with an extra portion in the bottom of the bowl for the lucky “bit more, please” salad lover in the crowd.
Now, if you’ve arrived because delicious, well-prepared salads often make an appearance on your table, you’ve come to the right place. We love salads too and there’s lots to try and enjoy! Click HERE to jump to our complete lists of salads.
You’re in for a treat! Let’s make this fresh tasting salad.
I’M IN!
As you might expect, you’ll need bacon, lettuce and tomato for this salad. Exact quantities are listed down below and I’ll talk about each in a moment. The other ingredients include salt and pepper, plus croutons and a creamy dressing. With only eight ingredients, you can make this today (hint!).
BACON
Pick your favourite bacon, but please follow my lead and cook one rasher per guest, six total for this recipe. Another tip on the bacon is to prepare it last, just before assembling the salad. We really loved the flavours of the salad while the bacon was still warm.
LETTUCE
You might look at my lettuce choice and think “Hmmm, Nik couldn’t decide!” Actually, this tag-team lettuce combo happens for good reason. The curly leaf lettuce is included not only for its vibrant colour but as a nod to the traditional BLT SANDWICH. The romaine is included to give the salad a bit of bite and crunchy texture. Important: always wash and spin your lettuce before making a salad.
TOMATO
We used vine-ripened tomatoes for this story but feel free to add halved cherry tomatoes, chopped beefsteaks or heirloom tomatoes. Just make sure they’re perfectly ripe, sweet and drippy with juice. The flavour of the tomatoes in this salad can’t be beat.
CROUTONS
Hey, where’d those croutons come from? Adding them completes the bread flavour that we’d enjoy if this was a sammie, and making them is easy. Click HERE to watch the 1-minute video and the full recipe is also listed below.
CREAMY RANCH
Another question you might be thinking is, “Why ranch dressing?” Well, I really love making a sandwich with a generous swipe of mayo (who doesn’t?), but our CREAMY BUTTERMILK RANCH DRESSING is a crowd-pleaser that works so well in this BLT SALAD. Better yet, you’ll only use about ¼ to ½ cup for the salad so you’ll have a stellar dressing at the ready for other adventures in salad making.
GO BOWL!
Just throwing this true story out there. I happened to glance up at the clock in the cottage kitchen while shooting the video for this story. Next to it on the top of the fridge was my gorgeous wooden salad bowl, looking all forgotten. Thanks to this recipe that bowl is going to get a lot more use. Got one? Use it now!
PLOT TWIST
Lemme just say, I couldn’t help myself! There I was transferring this freshly tossed BLT SALAD onto plates and it hit me; cheese! So, we’re happy to report this salad welcomes a sprinkling of a favourite cheese like cheddar, Parmesan or my favourite, crumbled Danish blue cheese. It makes this homemade salad even more memorable.
Give your favourite sandwich the toss and try a BLT SALAD today!
1 head curly leaf lettuce, rinsed, spun and ripped into bite-sized pieces
1 head romaine lettuce, rinsed, spun and cut into bite-sized pieces
12 vine-ripened tomatoes, quartered
6 rashers bacon, oven-roasted
¼-½ cup creamy buttermilk ranch dressing (see below)
2 cups croutons (see below)
sprinkle sea salt flakes
sprinkle black pepper
sprinkle grated or crumbled cheese
For the croutons:
½ loaf white bread, cubed
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
For the creamy buttermilk ranch dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon chopped white onion
1 garlic clove, chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
½ teaspoon dry mustard
squeeze of lemon
½ teaspoon each, kosher salt and black pepper
Directions
Prepare the dressing: Place the mayonnaise, buttermilk, onion, garlic and dry mustard in the canister of an immersion blender. Zip to purée. Add salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon, taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in fresh herbs. Cover and refrigerate until use.
Prepare the croutons: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir the chopped garlic into the melted butter. Place bread cubes into a large bowl and sprinkle with melted butter, seasoning, cheese and salt and pepper. Spread croutons out onto baking sheets. Transfer to oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until croutons are a rich golden colour.
Prepare the bacon: Preheat oven to 425°F. Place bacon onto a wire rack sitting in a foil-lined baking sheet. Transfer to oven and bake until crispy, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and pat dry with paper towel to remove excess grease. Roughly chop.
Assemble salad: Place lettuce into a large salad bowl. Add tomatoes, bacon and ¼ cup of the dressing. Toss lightly. Add croutons with a sprinkle of pepper, sea salt flakes and additional dressing, if desired. Toss again and garnish with remaining croutons, bacon and cheese, if desired. Serve immediately.
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