Lamb's Lettuce Salad with Bacon and Croutons

Ingredients

Convert cups to grams →

• 200 g (7.1 oz) lamb's lettuce washed and spun dry
• 100 g (3.5 oz) diced bacon thick-cut
• 3 slice white bread a day old, cut into 1/2-inch (1 cm) cubes
• 20 g (0.7 oz) butter
• 1 shallot finely diced
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp honey
• 3 tbsp canola oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Wash the lamb's lettuce in a large bowl of cold water, changing the water twice, until no grit is left at the bottom. Trim the root end only thinly so the rosettes hold together. Spin the lettuce dry or pat it dry on a towel.
2. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat, add the bread cubes and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, turning often, until golden brown and crisp. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and drain on paper towels.
3. Add the diced bacon to the same skillet and cook over medium heat without additional fat for 5 to 6 minutes, until the fat has rendered and the bacon is crisp. Drain on paper towels.
4. Whisk the shallot, mustard, vinegar, water, honey and a little pepper in a salad bowl. Whisk in the oil in a thin stream until the dressing is creamy and bound. Season with salt only at the end, because the bacon is already salty.
5. Toss the lamb's lettuce in the dressing right before serving, divide it among four plates and scatter the still-warm bacon and croutons on top. Serve at once.

Tip: If the lamb's lettuce is very small and tender, a quick toss with two spoons in the dressing is enough. Sturdier winter greens such as radicchio can take the dressing a quarter of an hour earlier.

Tip: The croutons can be fried a day ahead and stay crisp in a tin; fry the bacon just before assembling, so it goes on warm.