Radicchio and Blue Cheese Bread Salad

If you’re looking for a salad to complement a late-summer or fall dinner, you’ll want to try this Radicchio and Blue Cheese Bread Salad. Bursting with bold flavor, it is so simple to make.

After an embarrassingly unproductive work week, I redeemed myself in the kitchen this past weekend. Although I did get away for some bocce watching and authentic cuisine at Little Italy Days in Bloomfield, PGH, most of my time was spent testing new recipes and photographing the results. I can’t wait to share all of the yumminess with you on IBC.

One of the recipes I whipped up was this salad. It’s loaded with toasted baguette, radicchio, red leaf lettuce, pancetta, and blue cheese. So many of my favorites in one delicious dish.

What I also love about this salad is that it’s a quick side for any meal, yet it feels kind of fancy. By taking the time to cook the pancetta and toast the bread (which honestly comes together pretty quickly), this salad instantly feels more special.

If desired, you could turn this salad into a meal by adding grilled chicken or steak. The bread will soak in all those flavorful juices from the meat. You can’t go wrong whichever way you fix it.

Let’s eat!

Serves 4-6

Here's what you will need:
4 ounces pancetta, diced
3 cups cubed baguette
1 head radicchio, chopped
4 cups roughly chopped red lettuce
1 cup crumbled blue cheese (or gorgonzola)
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

In a skillet, cook the pancetta over medium heat until crispy - about 10 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

Cook the bread in the skillet drippings over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes. Stir until toasted.

In a large bowl, toss together the radicchio, red lettuce, blue cheese, pancetta, and toasted baguette. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

*Make this salad a meal by adding grilled chicken or steak.

Voila! It’s that easy.

Oh, and feel free to make some substitutions if you wish. I know that everyone doesn’t like blue cheese. Try gorgonzola. It’s milder. Goat cheese would also work.

I hope you’ll give this recipe a try. If you do, be sure to pop back over and let us know what you think.

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