Replies to post #27333 on Got A Great Recipe To Share???? (FOOD)

[janice shell]

I disagree with you about that. I think they can be tasty, if the lettuce is nice and cold and crisp. And back in the '60s, it was seen as something kind of exotic and sophisticated, often served at steakhouses.

Though according to this guy, it goes farther back:

Salads served wedge-style date back to the 1910s and reached peak popularity in the 1960s. Iceberg lettuce, the staple lettuce used in this dish, has slowly been replaced by leaf lettuces over the years, but I still have a soft spot in my heart for this crispy, blank-canvas lettuce; it stays fresher longer than leaf lettuces and pairs better with creamy dressings and heavier toppings, as in this recipe.

https://thedomesticman.com/2017/09/19/wedge-salad/

That brief history is expanded here:

No one can document exactly how or where the original wedge salad first graced a dining table. Food historians do agree on this general timeline.

• 1916 - Marion Harris Neil's cookbook, "Salads, Sandwiches and Chafing Dish Recipes," offered the first printed version of a recipe for iceberg wedge salad.

• 1920s - The wedge salad debuted in many restaurants, but no chef claimed it as his or her original.

• 1950s - Blue cheese crumbles and bacon bits topped the stylish, traditional wedges we still enjoy today.

• 1970s - After a decline in popularity, the wedge salad found a new home in steakhouse chains from coast to coast.

• 2000s - The development of new iceberg lettuce varieties, including Iceberg Babies®, helped maintain the wedge salad's renaissance as both a side and an entree.

https://www.hitchcockfarms.com/blog/wedge-salad-history

I hadn't realized new kinds of iceberg had been developed in the past 20 years. But I've noticed it isn't the same as once upon a time. It seems to be a bit looser, and I don't really consider that a good quality. If you want to eat iceberg, it should be possible to get the real thing.

And here's Kenji's rather complicated wedge from Serious Eats. But I think it'd be good:



https://www.seriouseats.com/wedge-salad-iceberg-blue-cheese-bacon-recipe

[k9narc]

Layer Heirloom tomatoes, Vadelia Onions and wedges of iceberg lettuce hearts and serve with blue cheese dressing. Pairs great with a steak.

[BullNBear52]

It's complex.
St. Anselm’s Iceberg Wedge Salad
Recipe from Joe Carroll
Adapted by Sam Sifton
St. Anselm’s Iceberg Wedge Salad
Melina Hammer for The New York Times
Time
30 minutes
Rating
4
(407)
Notes
Read 55 community notes
This wedge salad, adorned with blue cheese and warm bacon vinaigrette, is served at the restaurant St. Anselm in Brooklyn. The revelatory vinaigrette is actually a roux made with bacon fat, then thinned with cider vinegar and water, a hit of sugar and another of Dijon mustard. It is superb, and it would not be out of place drizzled over grilled asparagus, accompanied by chopped hard-boiled eggs. —Sam Sifton

Featured in: Fette Sau’s Joe Carroll Writes ‘Feeding the Fire,’ a Worthy Barbecue Primer




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INGREDIENTS
Yield: 4 servings
For the Dressing
6ounces thick-cut bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
2tablespoons all-purpose flour
½cup cider vinegar
1tablespoon granulated sugar
1tablespoon Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper, to taste
For the Salad
1large head of iceberg lettuce, cut and cored into 4 wedges
4ounces blue cheese, crumbled
¼cup roughly chopped fresh parsley

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Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional Information
PREPARATION
Step 1
In a large skillet set over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, remove the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Pour off all but ¼ cup of the bacon fat in the skillet.

Step 2
Lower the heat under the skillet, then stir in the flour and cook, stirring often with a spoon, until the flour is lightly browned, approximately 3 to 5 minutes. Add 1½ cups water to the mixture, along with the vinegar, sugar and mustard, and allow to come to a simmer. Whisk the mixture frequently until the dressing is thick enough to resemble gravy and coat the back of a spoon, approximately 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove from the heat.

Step 3
Put the iceberg wedges on plates. Drizzle with the warm dressing, and sprinkle with the bacon pieces, blue cheese and parsley. Serve immediately.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017453-st-anselms-iceberg-wedge-salad?