Recipe: Brown Derby Cobb Salad and French Dressing

BROWN DERBY COBB SALAD

"According to Christie McFerren of the Walt Disney World publicity department, the recipe for Cobb Salad first saw print in The Brown Derby Cookbook. She adds that the dressing became so popular among Hollywood stars that Bob Cobb bottled it for home use."

4 cups finely cut iceberg lettuce (about 1/2 head)
2 cups finely cut watercress (about 1/2 bunch)
5 cups finely cut chicory (about 1 small bunch)
4 cups finely cut romaine (about 1/2 head)
2 medium vine-ripe tomatoes, peeled and cored
2 cooked chicken breasts (about 1 pound) (preferably roasted), boned
6 strips bacon, crisply cooked
1 medium avocado, halved, pitted, and peeled
3 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and finely chopped
2 tablespoons snipped fresh chives
1/2 cup finely grated (or crumbled) Roquefort cheese
Brown Derby French Dressing (for serving)

Arrange iceberg lettuce, watercress, chicory, and romaine in artful clumps in large shallow bowl or deep platter.

Halve to tomatoes, seed, cut into fine dice, and arrange in strip across middle of greens. Dice chicken and arrange top of greens. Crumble or chop bacon fine and sprinkle over salad.

Finely dice avocado and wreathe around edge of salad. Decorate with hard-cooked eggs, chives, and Roquefort.

Just before serving, add 1 cup dressing, bring to the table, and toss well in front of guests.

BROWN DERBY FRENCH DRESSING

"The adapted dressing recipe here makes 3 1/2 cups, far more than you'll need for this amount of salad. No matter. Store it tightly covered in the refrigerator and use to dress any green salad."

1/4 cup water (optional*)
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
Juice of 1/2 small lemon
3/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry English mustard
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 cup olive oil
1 cup vegetable oil

Shake water (if using), vinegar, sugar, lemon juice salt, pepper, Worcestershire, mustard and garlic in 1-quart shaker jar. Add olive and vegetable oils shake well. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed. Cover tight and store in refrigerator. Shake before using.

*The water in the dressing is optional-it ups the yield and trims per-serving counts for fat and calories. A trick not lost on image conscious Hollywood. In fact, stars have been known to quadruple the amount of water.

Makes: 4 to 6 servings
Source: The American Century Cookbook by Jean Anderson