Blue Cheese Chopped Salad

Blue Cheese Chopped Salad

Adapted from Food & Wine

1 TBS very finely chopped shallot

1 1/2 TSP Dijon mustard

3 TBS sherry or white wine vinegar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/4 Cup EVOO

2 TBS Gorgonzola, crumbled

2 Romaine hearts, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise

1/2 Fennel bulb, cored and finely chopped

1/2 Cup shredded carrots

1/2 Pint cherry tomatoes

1 Fuji apple, dices

1/4 Cup walnuts, chopped

My steak dinner was delicious, but now what am I to do with the leftovers? A salad is a great vehicle for using up extra protein, but for my steak not any old salad was going to do. I thought this flavor-packed chopped salad from Food & Wine would be exceptional with slices of steak (keeping with the steak-blue cheese-onion theme here). The ingredients in the salad are totally interchangeable. They originally included avocado and cucumber, but I added tomatoes here. You can even swap out the apples for pears (any combo of blue cheese and pear is to die for), or walnuts for pecans. And the dressing has definitely become my new fave!

In a large bowl, whisk the shallots with the Dijon mustard and vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Slowly add the olive oil, whisking until smooth. Add the cheese and combine until the dressing is creamy. Toss in the lettuce, fennel, carrots, tomatoes, apple and walnuts and season with salt and pepper. Toss the salad well to coat with the dressing. Top with warm slices of steak, or enjoy by itself!