COOKING FOR A CROWD - BASIC GREEN BEAN SAOLAD

[Kitchen Witch]

COOKING FOR A CROWD - BASIC GREEN BEAN SALAD

7 pounds iceberg lettuce
3 pounds leaf lettuce (bibb or romaine)
1 1/4 quarts French dressing or oil and vinegar or Italian dressing

1. Cut or tear lettuce and other greens into bite-size pieces. (Use sharp steel-bladed knife if greens are cut.)

2. Just before serving, toss lightly with dressing, or portion greens into individual salad bowls, 3 oz per bowl, and serve with choice of dressings.

Yield: 10 pounds

Notes: Any combination of salad greens may be used. For contrast, mix dark greens with light, crisp with tender, and smooth leaves with curly. With pale iceberg lettuce, use dark green spinach, romaine, curly endive, or red-tipped leaf lettuce. See p. 465 for major types of salad greens.

If serving on a salad bar, place greens in a large bowl and offer choice of dressing and garnishes .

VARIATIONS:

Hawaiian Tossed Salad. To 7 lb mixed greens, add sections from 8 grapefruit, 8 oranges, 4 avocados, and 1 fresh pineapple, cubed. Serve with Honey French Dressing .

Salad Greens with Grapefruit. Place 3 oz greens in each bowl. Garnish each with 3 sections of pink grapefruit. Serve with Poppy Seed Dressing or French Dressing .

Spinach Mushroom Salad. Use 10 lb fresh spinach (may be part lettuce), 4 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced, and 2 bunches green onions, sliced. Toss lightly with French Dressing just before serving. Sprinkle with cooked crumbled bacon if desired.

Spinach Salad. Use 4 lb lettuce and 6 lb fresh spinach, 2 bunches green onions, sliced, and 12 eggs, hard-cooked and sliced. To serve, toss lightly with French Dressing or Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette (p. 524) and portion into bowls. Sprinkle with bacon (1 lb) that has been diced, cooked until crisp, and drained.