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BLT Wedge Salad with Heart Croutons featured image of salad close up with 1 wedge angled
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BLT Wedge Salad with Heart Croutons

Planning a romantic dinner? Valentine's Day? Anniversary? This BLT Wedge Salad with Heart Croutons brings the steakhouse home! This salad combines the classic wedge salad with a BLT-ish twist. It's a delicious way to start your romantic night in!
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 18 minutes
Total Time 43 minutes
Servings 4 people
Calories 948kcal
Author Mara

Ingredients

  • 1 head of iceberg lettuce
  • 8 oz pancetta, diced
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • chives, finely diced for garnish
  • homemade croutons
  • 1 & ½ cup ranch dressing
  • teaspoon fresh cracker pepper

Homemade Croutons

  • 3 slices bread I used Sara Lee's Artesano Bread
  • 2 teaspoon olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • chili flake, optional
  • teaspoon flaky sea salt

Homemade Ranch-ish Dressing

  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 2 tablespoon mayo
  • ½ cup italian parsley
  • 1 lemon, zest & juice
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • Using a mini *heart cookie cutter, cut out shapes from the sliced bread**.
  • Toss hearts in olive oil, herbs, chili flake (optional) and salt. Place on a baking sheet lined with foil.
  • Bake for 13-15 minutes until crunchy. Remove from oven. Set oven to broil.
  • Broil for 20-30 seconds golden brown, flip and broil for another 20-30 seconds until golden brown. Remove from oven. Set aside.

Home Ranch-like Dressing***

  • Place all ingredients in a mini food processor.
  • Blend until smooth. Set aside in the fridge until ready to serve.

Salad Assembly

  • In a non-stick skillet, cook pancetta on high for 2-3 minutes.
  • Pour pancetta onto a plate or bowl lined with paper towel to drain grease. Set aside.
  • Remove stem and any outer wilted leaves from the head of iceberg lettuce.
  • Chop the head of lettuce in half and then half again, making 4 wedges.
  • Plate the lettuce wedges on individual plates or a platter
  • Then, top with ranch dressing.
  • Finally, top with pancetta, tomatoes, chives, homemade croutons, ranch, and freshly ground pepper.
  • Serve (preferable cold) and enjoy!

Notes

*I used this this Ateco 12 Piece Mini Stainless Steel Cutters. I misplaced the heart shape cutter so I used the star one instead for these step-by-step process photos.
**You can use leftover bread, toss with additional olive oil, herbs & salt. Toast along with the croutons, then blend in a food processor into breadcrumbs. Top on salad or add crunch to your favorite pasta dish!
***Ranch dressing, typically has multiple fresh herbs like dill, chives, and parsley. This is a more simple dressing since it only uses Italian parsley.
Nutritional information for this recipe is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. Please calculate your own nutritional information if you want it exact to what you make and use my calculations as a guide only.

Nutrition

Calories: 948kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 89g | Saturated Fat: 23g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 1945mg | Potassium: 647mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1904IU | Vitamin C: 40mg | Calcium: 173mg | Iron: 3mg