2 Way Salad with Chunky Dressing

( 4 servings)

This tasty salad can easily be served two ways depending on your preference. It can be a wedge salad or a chopped salad. The addition of sliced eggs, bacon and cheese, makes it great for lunch or a light supper. I used blue cheese because I love the sharp, salty flavour, however if you don't care for it, then feel free to substitute a nice Gouda or Swiss type cheese in its place.

The dressing for this salad is loosely based on the Thousand Island dressing I loved as a child. I have lightened it up by replacing part of the mayonnaise with Greek yogurt and sour cream, and I've increased the amounts of the chopped ingredients considerably, resulting in a nice chunky style dressing.

dressing
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup Greek yogurt
2 tbsp sour cream
1 tbsp ketchup
1/4 cup chopped gherkin pickles
2 tbsp chopped pimentos
2 tbsp chopped bread and butter pickles
1 tbsp finely chopped shallots
2 tsp small capers, drained
1/4 tsp sweet paprika
*freshly cracked pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl until evenly mixed and set aside. *I've only added cracked pepper as most pickles tend to be high in sodium. Allow the mixed dressing sit for a few minutes, then taste to see if you need any salt at all.

salad
4 wedges of iceberg lettuce, or chop those up for the chopped version
2 medium tomatoes, sliced or chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, sliced or chopped
4 slices crisp bacon, drained, cooled and crumbled
2-3 oz cheese, sliced or crumbled (blue cheese, Gouda, Emmentaler, Comte)

Arrange one wedge of lettuce on each plate or alternately divide the chopped lettuce among the plates. Divide and arrange the remaining ingredients evenly between the four servings.

Spoon the dressing over the salads or serve it on the side.