We have a joke in our family when we go out to eat. Our youngest son LOVES a good salad, but never wants to just order one for his meal. So the way he gets his salad is by ordering a "salad for the table" to share with everyone.... although we know who eats most of it! Then he can get his ribs too! This delicious salad is a combo of several of our favorite salads we eat at restaurants, although we think this is even better! The dressing is a creamy Italian dressing that is amazing. I hope this will become a "salad for the table" at your house!
Italian Salad for the Table
Serves 6
Salad:
2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped
1/4 red onion, sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
I can olives, drained and sliced in half
1 package salami, cut into quarters
6 slices mozzarella cheese, cut into quarter triangles
1/4 cup sliced pepperonchini's
1 package Parmesan crisps
Combine all salad ingredients except Parmesan crisps in a large bowl and toss. Drizzle on Italian dressing just before serving. Top with Parmesan crisps.
Italian dressing:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Combine all the ingredients in a blender until well mixed. Keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Step-by-step tutorial:
Gather your ingredients. You will need romaine lettuce, red onion, cherry tomatoes, a can of olives, pepperonchini's or banana peppers, salami, mozzarella slices, and Parmesan cheese crisps (I get these at Wegmans, but if you can't find them, you can easily make them).
Prepare your ingredients by chopping and washing lettuce, peeling and slicing red onion and letting it soak in cold water for 5 minutes (this takes off the bite - so much better for kids!), slicing tomatoes in half, draining and slicing olives in half, draining and slicing banana peppers, cutting salami into quarters, and cutting mozzarella slices into quarter triangles.
Put all salad ingredients into a large bowl and toss.
To make the dressing, you will need mayonnaise, white vinegar, vegetable oil, corn syrup, grated Parmesan cheese, garlic salt, dried parsley flakes, dried Italian seasoning, and lemon juice.
Combine all ingredients in a blender.
Blend until smooth. Just before serving, drizzle with dressing and toss.
Top with Parmesan crisps which are even better than croutons!!
Recipe Source: Shanna's recipe box