Layered Salad (Recipe)

Ingredients

1 large head iceberg lettuces, torn into bite-size pieces (6 cups)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon pepper

6 hard-cooked eggs, sliced

1 10-ounces package frozen peas

1/2 pound bacon, cooked until crisp, drained and crumbled (10 slices)

2 cups shredded Swiss cheese (8 ounces)

1 1/4 to 1 1/2  cups mayonnaise or salad dressing

1 to 3 green onions, sliced

Paprika

Steps

1. Place 3 cups of the lettuce in a salad bowl.  Sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon of the salt, the sugar and pepper.

2. Stand some egg slices decoratively against the side of the salad bowl.  Cover the lettuce with the remaining egg slices.  Sprinkle with the remaining salt.

3. Sprinkle the frozen peas over the eggs.  Top with the remaining lettuce.

4. Sprinkle the bacon over the lettuce, and shredded Swiss cheese over the bacon.

5. Carefully spread the mayonnaise or salad dressing evenly over the salad.  Top with the green onions and sprinkle with paprika.  Cover and chill for 2 to 24 hours.  Toss the salad at the table before serving.

Tips:

This salad will completely fill 3-quart casserole.  Therefore, you'll need at least a 4-quart bowl to allow room for tossing the salad.

To tailor this recipe to suit your own preferences, try substituting or adding shredded carrots, alfalfa sprouts, sweet green or red pepper, onion, broccoli or cauliflower.  You might also vary the kind of cheese you use or include a layer of julienned ham or turkey.  Instead of the iceberg lettuce, try red tipped leaf lettuce or fresh spinach.

The easy way to produce perfect egg slices is to use an egg slicer, a gadget specifically designed for this purpose.

To crisp-cook this amount of bacon with no fuss or spatter, place the slices on a rack in a shallow baking pan.  Bake, uncovered, in a 400° oven about 20 minutes or until crisp.  Or, if you wish to use your microwave oven, place the bacon on a microwave-safe rack or a plate lined with paper towels.  Cover with paper towels.  Cook on 100% power (high) until done.  Allow 4 to 5 minutes for 6 slices.

You can flavor the mayonnaise dressing with 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried tarragon or basil or 2 to 3 teaspoons lemon juice.

From : America's Best-Loved Community Recipes