Iceberg Wedge with Warm Bacon and Blue Cheese Dressing

 Today I'm sharing the second course recipe from our Valentine's Day at home menu line up.

Here's what's on the Valentine's Day menu:

Dirty Shirley Cocktails

Mini-Lobster Rolls (originally posted Jan. 29th)

Iceberg Wedge with Warm Bacon and Blue Cheese Dressing 

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Cream Puffs with Vanilla Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce

Sometimes when you are making a menu for your love you end up making something that may not be your favorite but instead something they will love. This is one of those dishes for me. I just recently started eating blue cheese and although I do now like some actual blue cheeses with crackers I'm still not a fan of blue cheese salad dressings. But G loves a good steak house iceberg wedge salad with blue cheese and bacon.

And I figured since I was making the blue cheese dressing from scratch I could control the flavor of the bitterness of the cheese by choosing a milder cheese. Which I did and it did help me like this salad a bit more. Still not my favorite salad but it did make G happy and  that's what love is all about I've learned these past 15 years = compromise and selflessness.

This is a great simple salad to kick off a Valentine's Day special dinner. And the great thing about this recipe is you can make all of the components ahead so you can just throw the salad together when you are ready.

RECIPE:

Iceberg Wedge with Warm Bacon And Blue Cheese Dressing (adapted from Epicurious)

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper

1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1 cup coarsely crumbled blue cheese

Buttermilk (optional)

1/2 pound thick-cut bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces

1 large head of iceberg lettuce, cut into 6 wedges, each with some core attached

1/2 red onion, very thinly sliced

Mix first 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Add blue cheese and stir until well blended. If too thick, thin with buttermilk by tablespoonfuls to desired consistency. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)

Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until golden brown and beginning to crisp. Arrange lettuce on plates. Spoon dressing over. Using slotted spoon, transfer warm bacon from skillet onto salads, dividing equally. Garnish with red onion.