If the BLT ranks as one of the world’s great sandwiches, imagine what the combination can do for a salad. Shop: You know the drill: ripe heirloom tomatoes and thick-sliced smokehouse bacon. Excellence lies in the details.  It’s one of the rare occasions when iceberg lettuce works better than a designer green like arugula.  To make a red-blooded American twist on the ubiquitous Italian bruschetta you can spoon the salad on toasted slices of French bread instead of mixing croutons with the greens. Salad is good for you. Bacon is about to make it taste better.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb bacon, cut crosswise into 1 inch pieces
• 4 slices French bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 c mayonnaise
• 1 c rice vinegar
• 1/2 head iceberg lettuce
• 2 large or 4 medium-size luscious red ripe tomatoes
• Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Place the bacon in a cold heavy large skillet and heat over medium heat.
2. Cook the bacon until it is crisp, browned, and most of the fat has rendered (melted out), 4 to 6 minutes, stirring often.
3. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
4. Place the mayonnaise and vinegar in a salad bowl and whisk to mix.
5. Set the dressing aside.
6. Coarsely chop the lettuce. You should have about 4 cups.
7. Remove and discard the stem ends of the tomatoes,.
8. Dice the tomatoes.
9. Place the lettuce, tomatoes, and bacon in a large bowl but don’t toss until serving.
10. Just before serving, gently toss the salad with the dressing (use the slotted spoon or a rubber spatula).
11. Season the salad with salt and lots of pepper to taste; remember, the bacon is salty already.
12. What else: For the best results, make your croutons from scratch. If you were sensible, you’d toast the bread with extra virgin olive oil or melted butter. But you’re not sensible and neither am I, so we’ll use the fat from the bacon and keep it between us. Of course, to save time, you could use store-bought croutons, but let’s pretend I didn’t say that.

Variation: BLT Salad Bruschetta
Prepare the BLT Salad,  but do not toss the salad.

1. Cut 8 slices of French bread sharply on the diagonal and about 1/2-inch thick.
2. Brush the bread on both sides with bacon fat or olive oil.
3. Bake the slices of bread in a 350°F oven or toaster oven until crisp and golden brown, about 5
   minutes per side, or brown the bread slices on the grill.
4. Lightly spread each piece of toast with some mayonnaise.
5. Toss the salad and spoon it onto the toasts.

Serves:   4 – 6

Source:  The Splendid Table