Wedge Salad (cuz I'm feeling uppity!)

I'm typically not an advocate of iceberg lettuce.  I think I was scarred as a child by getting giant chunks of the core in bad school lunch salad. If I am going to make a traditional salad (which is rare) I typically go for romaine or baby spinach. After all, I've always been told the darker the green, the more nutritional value. (I also grew up pronouncing crooked as crookerd, so you'd probably do well to research that before quoting me at your next dinner party.)

So I will buy and eat iceberg lettuce if it's in a wedge salad, but that is pretty much its only use in my book. In my previous life as a meat eater, wedge salad was mainly a vehicle to ingest as much blue cheese dressing and bacon as possible, typically to get my arteries ready for a giant slab of red meat. Since I've reformed and realized that we only get one body, so we best treat it right, I've tweaked the idea of a wedge salad.  End result is a healthy salad, that through the magic of greek yogurt, has enough protein to stand alone as a meal. 

Also, I use fake bacon in this recipe.  Processed food is processed food, even if it is vegetarian. I know some food purists don't go for the fake meat products, all the power to them. I try to avoid processed fake meat, but sometimes I'll eat it, in moderation. If the idea of using fake bacon makes your stomach turn, then you can skip it.  In fact, I am a giant advocate of skipping everything that makes your stomach turn.

Wedge Salad

• 1 head of iceberg lettuce, cut into quarters
  (or eighths if you want smaller portions)
• 4 strips fake bacon, crumbled
• 1 pint of grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
  (most have anchovies in it, check your label)
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 2 tbs white vinegar
• 2 cups fat free greek yogurt
• 1 cup blue crumbled blue cheese

1. Combine Worcestershire sauce with garlic salt and pepper. Add milk and whisk until everything is dissolved.  
2. Add the vinegar to the milk mixture, it will start to curdle but don't freak out, this is normal!  Add the yogurt and whisk until blended. Add 3/4 cup of blue cheese crumbles.
3. Refrigerate the dressing for at least 30 minutes, to allow the flavors to develop.
4. Build the salad by taking a wedge and pouring a healthy amount of the dressing (only fat is the cheese so don't worry about getting pudgy). Scatter a few tomatoes around the plate, top with some of the remaining 1/4 cup of blue cheese and some bacon bits.

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