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Summer Wedge Salad with beets, tomatoes, radishes and romaine hearts, topped with a creamy gorgonzola (or blue cheese) dressing. Keep it vegetarian or add mustard glazed bacon crumbles.

Romaine Wedge Salad with beets, tomatoes, mustard glazed bacon and a creamy, horseradish- spiked gorgonzola dressing. | www.feastingathome.com

The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.

John Muir

With the cool, crispy bite of romaine hearts, vine-ripened summer tomatoes, baby golden beets, crunchy radishes and the optional crispy mustard-glazed bacon crumbles, dressed with chilled horseradish-spiked creamy Gorgonzola dressing– this has become our new favorite salad. Talk about getting in a rut! I keep asking Brian, what do you feel like for dinner tonight, honey? And he keeps saying, wedge salad please, with this half-crazed look on his face. Delicious, crunchy and refreshing- on its own, it makes for a light dinner. Or for heartier appetites, serve alongside grilled steak or chicken. If going meat-free, substitute chopped smoked almonds for the bacon.

Back at home, we have tiny little yellow pear tomatoes growing in our garden, which I used for this, along with baby beets and radishes from the farmers market. Crispy lettuce works best, like romaine hearts– or my favorite, “little gems” if you can get your hands on them. Soft greens, like mesclun, arugula or baby spinach, do not lend themselves well to this- you need a lettuce crisp enough to stand up to this heavier style of dressing. The traditional lettuce used in a classic Wedge Salad is Iceberg, and even with its bad reputation for being somewhat boring, bland and nutrition-less, it totally works. But for the sake of mixing it up, try romaine.

The key to making a great wedge salad is very simple…keep it cold! All the components must be very cold and crisp, otherwise, it will turn into a sad, sloppy mess. So if adding blanched or roasted beets or bacon crumbles, make them ahead so they can be good and cold before you put the salad together.

Summer Wedge Salad with beets, tomatoes, radishes and romaine hearts, topped with a creamy gorgonzola (or blue cheese) dressing. Keep it vegetarian or add mustard glazed bacon crumbles. #wedge #romaine #beetsalad #beets #wedgesalad

The dressing is basically made with crumbled blue or Gorgonzola cheese mixed with sour cream, mayo, fresh garlic, horseradish, vinegar, salt and pepper. I have also made this with a smoked blue cheese and the results were amazing.

Brush Bacon with a mixture of maple syrup and whole grain mustard. Lay on a sheet pan or make a foil pan turning up the edges to catch the drippings. Place in the oven, or toaster oven until crisp.

Lay the wedges down in the same direction on a platter or in a bowl.

Arrange the veggies and bacon over top. You could refrigerate at this point until ready to serve, the

pour the chilled dressing over top, right before serving.

Sometimes I will toss the romaine hearts in the dressing first, before placing them in the bowl…either way works.

Hope you are having a beautiful sun-filled week!

Summer Wedge Salad with Beets, Tomatoes and Radishes & Gorgonzola Dressing

Author: Sylvia Fountaine
Prep Time: 30
Cook Time: 30
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 4
Category: salad, summer
Method: tossed
Cuisine: northwest

Description

A summer Wedge Salad with romaine hearts, roasted beets, tomatoes, radishes and a creamy Gorgonzola Dressing.

Ingredients

3–4 baby romaine hearts or little gems
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2 cup beets, roasted or blanched, chilled, diced or cut into wedges
1 cup sliced radishes (or cucumber)
¼ cup very finely sliced red onion
½ cup bacon crumbles (optional, see recipe below)
Fresh chives for sprinkling

Creamy Gorgonzola ( or blue cheese) Dressing:

1 cup mayo
½ cup sour cream
¼ lb Gorgonzola cheese or blue cheese ( if you can find smoked gorgonzola or smoked blue cheese- use it!)
1 clove garlic, finely minced or grated
2 tablespoons, finely chopped shallot or onion
1 tsp prepared horseradish (optional)
2 tablespoon red wine or white vinegar
¼ cup finely chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Mustard Maple Bacon Crumbles (or substitute chopped smoked almonds or marcona almonds)

1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon whole grain or Dijon mustard
4 slices thick cut bacon

Instructions

Make mustard maple glazed bacon if using: Mix mustard and maple syrup together in a tiny bowl, and brush on both sides of bacon. Place on a sheet pan, or a couple pieces of oil, with edges turned up to catch the oil. Bake in a 400 F oven until crispy, about 15-20 minutes. Drain, blot and chill. Crumble with your fingers.

Make dressing: Mix all dressing ingredients together in a small bowl and immediately refrigerate. You want the dressing to be really cold! Feel free to make ahead!

When ready to serve, cut the romaine hearts into long quarters, and lay side by side on a platter. Arrange the remaining veggies, down the center, over the romaine.

Pour the chilled dressing down the center, over the veggies, sprinkle with the crumbled bacon and chives and serve immediately.

Notes

The key to this salad– is making sure the salad is very cold and every ingredient is chilled. You can make the salad a few hours ahead, refrigerate, then add the dressing when ready to serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 495

Keywords: beet salad, beet salad recipe, wedge salad, wedge salad romaine, gorgonzola dressing, blue cheese dressing, summer salad recipe

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