Lettuce Wedge with Ranch Dressing
5.0 out of 5 stars (based on 1 review)
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total Time: 50 minutes | Serves: 4
No doubt, the hero in this recipe is the homemade Ranch Dressing. Sure, I have several store-bought brands that I enjoy of this rich, creamy dressing, but homemade puts bottled dressings into 2nd place. Whisking the dairy and herbs together creates a delicious fragrance. If you love ranch dressing, you get it. The recipe below makes more than enough for the four servings, so you’ll be happy to have leftovers for dipping veggies, making another lettuce wedge or drizzling over my Spicy Buffalo Chicken Dip. Halve the recipe if you prefer, though.
There are some great tips and suggestions in the “Notes” section below the recipe that will help make this Lettuce Wedge truly enjoyable!
If you love making homemade dressings, feel free to check out my other recipes… Scallion Dressing and Green Goddess Dressing that goes perfectly with my Cobb Salad.
There are some great tips and suggestions in the “Notes” section below the recipe that will help make this Lettuce Wedge truly enjoyable!
If you love making homemade dressings, feel free to check out my other recipes… Scallion Dressing and Green Goddess Dressing that goes perfectly with my Cobb Salad.
Serve this as a starter to your dinner, as a side, or as your main dish if you’re desiring a light dinner.
My Ranch Dressing recipe uses fresh herbs. I like the softer texture and fresher flavor that comes with using these bright green herbs. If you chose to use dried, you’ll have to adjust your amounts (see Notes). You’ll also want to allow the dressing to sit while the dried herbs soften. Using fresh herbs just makes a better dressing, I think. Dried herbs have their place in cooking and baking, so my pantry has a variety of them. But, when it comes to homemade ranch dressing, fresh is king.
Lettuce Wedge with Ranch Dressing
Whisking the dairy and herbs together creates a delicious fragrance. If you love ranch dressing, you get it.
Ingredients
- 1 head iceberg lettuce, see Notes for options
- 1 pound cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved
- 1 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 1 recipe Ranch Dressing, see below
Ranch Dressing:
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- pinch black pepper
- 1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, to taste
- 1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon ustard
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill weed, minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley leaves, minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh chives, thinly sliced
Instructions
Make the Ranch Dressing:
- In a medium bowl, whisk all the ingredients together. (I would begin with the smaller amounts of garlic powder, onion powder, and lemon juice. These can always be added if you’d like a stronger flavor.)
- If time allows, let the dressing rest for 20 minutes for flavors to meld. Or cover and refrigerate for an hour or until ready to use.
- Give the dressing a good stir, taste, and adjust any seasonings and/or herbs to taste. Dressing is ready to serve.
Assemble the Lettuce Wedge:
- Remove any outer wilted or bruised leaves on the head of lettuce. Using a sharp knife, cut the head into quarters. Trim the stem if necessary.
- To plate, place one wedge per person on a salad plate and drizzle with desired amount of Ranch Dressing, 1/4 cup bacon crumbles, and 1/2 cup tomatoes. (Of course, you can use more or less of these ingredients.)
Notes
The nutritional chart is for the Ranch Dressing only.
A general serving size for salad dressing is two tablespoons. The nutrition chart here shows three tablespoons for a serving size. If you choose to use more or less than the serving size and need nutrition amounts, you will need to calculate that for yourself. Also, the nutrition chart is for the Ranch Dressing ONLY. Bacon nutrition varies by brand and options (thick-cut, lower sodium, etc.) that accuracy could most likely be way off. I chose to give you the dressing only.
If you like Blue Cheese, try adding some crumbles to this wedge!
If you do not like iceberg, or would rather have more nutrient-rich lettuces, try Romain. Remove any wilted or bruised leaves and cut in half. Serve same as the iceberg: drizzle with the Ranch Dressing, then top with the tomatoes and bacon. Personally, I like the crunch and texture of the iceberg.
Wash or not… if there seems to be dirt between the leaves, go ahead and run water through the leaves while holding the wedge in your hand, so as not to separate the leaves too much. Gently shake out as much excess water as possible.
This recipe uses FRESH herbs. If you choose to use dried, your amounts will have to change. Generally speaking, dried herbs are more concentrated, so you would use fewer amounts of dried herbs. A common rule for substitution is 1 teaspoon of dried herbs for every 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs.
The tomatoes do not have to be cherry tomatoes. You can certainly slice or quarter Roma tomatoes, too. I love these sweet and juicy Wonder Tomatoes that I can find pretty much year-round in my area. They’re beautiful on your plate.
I strongly suggest you cook your own bacon for this recipe (instead of using bagged, pre-cooked bacon). The flavor and texture of freshly-cooked bacon just cannot be beaten in this recipe!
I use full-fat dairy when I make this dressing. It is so delicious and full of flavor, and not served in copious amounts, so I can justify the full-fat products.
Lemon juice – if you use freshly squeezed, squeeze over a sieve to remove pulp and seeds. Either fresh or bottled would work, but of course, juice from a fresh lemon would have a little edge over bottled.
There are many brands of Dijon. I used Grey Poupon. Remember the commercials of the people handing one another a jar from one car to another (early 1980’s)? Maybe that’s why I use this brand, just for nostalgic sake.
I use Italian parsley instead of curly parsley. I prefer the flavor and texture of the Italian, really in every dish. I never even buy the curly parsley.
Nutrition Facts
Lettuce Wedge with Ranch Dressing
Amount per Serving
Calories
114
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Leave A Comment:
Love bacon and homemade ranch!
February 10, 2022
The dressing makes it!
