Ever since I can remember, I’ve always been a hearty eater.  That’s polite for “this girl can put some serious food away.”  My mother never had to worry about me cleaning my plate at meal time.  She probably could have put it back in the cabinet when I was done because I’m one of those people whose last bite is the piece of bread that I use to mop up every ounce left on my plate.  That’s how they do it in Greece so I’m sure I learned it there from a very young age.  My Greek Theas were food pushers.  Before you were even half way done, they’d ask you if you wanted more.  It makes it difficult to say no when another serving is already hovering over your plate when they ask.  I guess you could say that I’ve become an overeater out of politeness. 

I grew to love second and even third helpings which made it awkward growing up with a best friend who didn’t indulge the way I do.  I was twice the size of my best friend, Judy.  Not just in weight but height as well.  Not knowing us, you would probably look at pictures and think I was her babysitter.  She’s caught up a little in the height department but I’m sure I could still out eat her in pizza slices for sure.  I would frequent her house for dinner growing up and you’d bet I’d be there for sure on “rib night.”  Judy’s dad made the best ribs I’ve had to this day.  She knew how much I loved them and would invite me over as soon as he fired up the grill.  I’d fly over on my bike knowing it was going to be a very satisfying meal except for one thing…I knew that I wouldn’t be able to eat until I passed out.  Judy’s family didn’t eat like mine did.  I’m not saying that I ever left her house hungry, because I didn’t.  I just stopped after one helping unless they needed someone to finish the last few ribs that nobody else wanted.  Somebody taught me, “Be polite if you want to be invited back.” I was sure that eating politely in her family had quite a different meaning than it did in mine and I definitely wanted to be invited back for those ribs, so you better believe I tried not to be a hog. 

Salad hardly ever comes to mind when I think of being a hearty eater unless you’re talking about the King and Queen of salads, The Cobb and The Wedge.  Whoever thought of putting bacon and eggs on a salad is a genius by my standards!  The chunky blue cheese dressing that tops both of these salads is also one of the many reasons why they remain my favorites among the salad category.  The Cobb salad is a meal in itself.  It takes a little time to prepare due to all the chopping but it’s well worth it.  And if you take your time, it’s picture perfect for entertaining.  The Wedge salad, on the other hand, takes almost no time to whip up.  If you buy the precooked bacon, you can have a Wedge Salad on the table in minutes.  I will admit that I didn’t make my own blue cheese dressing for either of these salads and I’ll tell you why.  I believe in the phrase, “if it’s not broke, don’t try to fix it!” and if there’s a product on the market that’s delicious, use it.  For me, that product is Marie’s Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing.  Trust me, it’s better than any blue cheese dressing I could ever make from scratch.  I rarely think of a salad as a meal but if it’s either one of these, I think they would certainly do the trick of satisfying this serious eater.

The Cobb Salad: Photograph by Andrea Karapas

The King of Salads:  The Cobb
Ingredients
1 head Iceberg lettuce
1/2 bag fresh baby spinach
6 strips crisply cooked bacon, crumbled
4 slices deli ham, chopped
4 slices deli turkey, chopped
1 grilled chicken breast, chopped (I used pre-packaged)
1/2 English cucumber, chopped
10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 handful petite baby carrots, whole
1/2 small red onion, sliced thinly
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 ripe avocado, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Marie’s Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing
Instructions
Chop head of lettuce and wash. Run through salad spinner to remove all water.  Add spinach leaves and toss.  Lay in large shallow salad bowl.  Chop all toppings and lay vertically in rows along the top of the salad, alternating colors.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Serve dressing on the side.

The Wedge Salad: Photograph by Andrea Karapas

The Queen of Salads:  The Wedge
Ingredients
1 head lettuce, quartered into wedges
2 slices crisply cooked bacon, crumbled
1/2 small red onion, chopped
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Marie’s Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing
Instructions
Place quartered lettuce wedges on salad plates.  Spoon desired amount of dressing over wedge and let it run down the sides.  Add chopped bacon, red onion and tomato.  Salt and pepper to taste.