Salade de Maison

The name means "house salad" in French, but we just call it "THE salad". Don't worry, though, it's definitely not fancy or hard to make.

Start with the dressing, which tastes best if you make it early and let it sit in the fridge:

3/4 cup olive oil or salad oil
juice of 1 large lemon
4-5 garlic cloves, pressed (or chopped finely)
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Put everything in a jar or tupperware and shake to combine. Once the dressing has been sitting a while, shake it again and toss over the following:

2 bags pre-washed hearts of romaine mix
1/2 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 lb. bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
3/4 cup shredded swiss cheese
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1 cup garlic-flavored croutons

This amount will use up all the dressing and feeds about 8 people. Feel free to double it for a party or halve it for a smaller group. However, if you're making it for a smaller group (like when I make it for just my husband and me), I'd still make the same amount of dressing so there's leftovers for salads the rest of the week. Enjoy!