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Summer Salads

Memorial Day may be opening day for summer grilling season, but it also is the start of salad season.

That may be because the first round of local produce includes lettuces that flourish in the cooler days of spring. While simple salads of leafy greens have fresh appeal, retro salads that have returned to contemporary applause can star on the table alongside barbecued ribs, burgers and grilled chicken.

We're talking about the popular Cobb Salad, Caesar Salad and Iceberg Wedge with blue cheese dressing. These days, simplified versions are everywhere, including fast-food joints.

So why make a salad when one can be found at every drive-thru? Because you can make it so much better at home.

Take the now much-abused Cobb Salad, first composed during a midnight raid on the refrigerator. Of course, the refrigerator was in a restaurant — the old Brown Derby in Hollywood. The year was 1926, and owner Bob Cobb got the makings from leftovers in the fridge, then added some crisp bacon. Trust me, the ingredients for his now-famous creation did not include ranch dressing. Cobb called the dressing Brown Derby French Dressing, but it was not the sweet French dressing on the supermarket shelf. It's an oil and vinegar/lemon vinaigrette spiked with mustard and Worcestershire sauce.

The classic Cobb Salad that has come down to us is composed of neat rows of slices of chicken, slices of avocado, diced tomatoes, chopped egg, crumbled blue or Roquefort cheese and, of course, crumbled bacon on a platter of chopped lettuces that includes mild and assertive greens. The recipe calls for watercress, but if it doesn't look fresh, use curly endive or arugula. Snipped chives are the crowning touch.

For the home cook, the parts can be prepped ahead of time, then arranged on a big serving platter shortly before serving. Drizzle the dressing over the salad just before serving. It makes a pretty party presentation — at least until guests start digging in.

Cobb Salad

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Dressing:

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 small cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup olive oil

Whisk the mustard, lemon juice, Worcestershire and vinegar in a small bowl. Add the garlic, sugar, salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Set aside until ready to use.

Salad:

1/2 head romaine, cored and coarsely chopped

1 1/2 head Boston lettuce, chopped

1/2 bunch watercress, stemmed and coarsely chopped

2 medium tomatoes, peeled, cored, seeded and diced

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, poached in salted water for 10 to 12 minutes, then diced

6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

3 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and diced

1/2 cup Roquefort or blue cheese

1 ripe avocado, pitted, peeled, sliced and sprinkled with lemon juice

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

Arrange the individual lettuces in rows on a serving platter. Arrange chopped tomatoes in a strip in the center. Arrange the chicken chunks, bacon crumbles, chopped eggs and cheese in rows on either side. Place the avocado slices on either side. Sprinkle with chives. The salad can be kept, covered, in the refrigerator, for an hour.

Just before serving, whisk the dressing and pour over the salad. You can toss at the table or set out tongs for serving.

Caesar salad calls for fresh ingredients Making your own croutons a plus

Chefs who feel an obsessive need to put their mark on everything continue to tinker with Caesar salads. The original is still the best, when made with top-quality ingredients, and that means freshly grated Parmesan cheese, pref1/3erably Parmigiano Reggiano. It's expensive, but a small chunk is all you need for this salad.

The key to a good Caesar salad is to use only romaine lettuce — and only the hearts of the romaine. Peel off the dark green outer leaves (yes, the ones with the most nutrition) until you get down to the pale green-tipped leaves. Put the outer leaves back in the refrigerator for another day (maybe to make that Cobb Salad).

The other essential is croutons. If you are going to use boxed pre-seasoned croutons, forget making Caesar salad. This is the time to make your own, and it can be done days ahead.

Before fast-food days, when making Caesar salad was a tableside production in fancy restaurants, the waiter always rubbed the garlic in the bottom of the bowl. Some experts insist the garlic originally was used only in making the croutons. I got my recipe for Caesar Salad from Alex Cardini's restaurant in Mexico City, where it was printed on the menu (the salad is attributed to Caesar Cardini of Tijuana). Cardini insisted the garlic was used only in making the croutons, not the dressing.

That's the way I have always done it, but I have modified the preparation over the years.

CAESAR SALAD

Makes 4 to 6 servings

3 heads romaine

1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper, 8 to 10 grinds

1 teaspoon Worcestershire

1 coddled egg, boiled 1 minute *

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup homemade croutons, recipe follows

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Wash the romaine leaves and dry in a salad spinner. Tear the larger leaves in half. Combine the lemon juice, salt, pepper, Worcestershire and coddled egg in the bottom of a salad bowl and mix vigorously. Gradually add the oil and then stir in the Parmesan cheese. Add the romaine leaves and croutons and toss gently.

If desired, serve with a sprinkle of additional Parmesan cheese.

* If you are concerned about the undercooked egg, buy pasteurized eggs (available at Trader Joe's). You can leave the egg out, but the texture of the dressing will be different.

Croutons:

2/3 cup olive oil

2 to 3 large cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed

2 cups bread cubes, from trimmed bread

Place the oil and garlic cloves in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the garlic is golden but not brown, about 5 minutes. Remove and discard the garlic.

Toss the bread cubes with 3 tablespoons of the garlic-flavored oil and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until the croutons are golden brown. Turn onto paper towels to drain. When cooled, they can be stored in an airtight container.

Reserve the rest of the garlic oil, refrigerated, for other uses.