Olive Garden Salad (Printable)
Fresh crisp greens with pepperoncini, olives, Parmesan, croutons, and creamy Italian dressing.
# What You'll Need:
→ Salad
01 - 6 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
02 - 1 cup iceberg lettuce, chopped
03 - 1/2 cup red onion, thinly sliced
04 - 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
05 - 1/2 cup black olives, pitted
06 - 6–8 whole pepperoncini peppers
07 - 1/2 cup croutons
08 - 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
→ Dressing
09 - 1/2 cup mayonnaise
10 - 1/3 cup white vinegar
11 - 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
12 - 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
13 - 1 tablespoon lemon juice
14 - 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
15 - 1 teaspoon garlic powder
16 - 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
17 - 1/2 teaspoon sugar
18 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
# How to Prepare:
01 - Wash and thoroughly dry the romaine and iceberg lettuce. Combine both in a large salad bowl.
02 - Layer the thinly sliced red onions, halved grape tomatoes, pitted black olives, and whole pepperoncini peppers over the greens.
03 - Scatter croutons and freshly grated Parmesan cheese evenly across the top of the salad.
04 - In a separate small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, white vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, grated Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, dry mustard, and sugar until smooth and fully combined. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
05 - Drizzle the dressing over the salad just before serving. Toss gently to coat the greens evenly, or serve the dressing on the side.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The dressing is that perfect middle ground between zippy vinaigrette and something richer, and once you make it yourself you will never go back to bottled.
- It comes together in fifteen minutes with zero cooking, which means you can pull it off on a weeknight without breaking a sweat.
- Everyone at the table reaches for seconds because it hits salty, tangy, crunchy, and creamy all at once.
02 -
- If you dress the salad more than ten minutes before eating, the croutons will surrender and the lettuce will start to weep.
- The dressing thickens in the fridge, so if you make it ahead, let it sit at room temperature for fifteen minutes and whisk it again before using.
03 -
- Taste the dressing on an actual piece of lettuce instead of off a spoon, because the greens mellow the acid in a way a bare tasting will not show you.
- Lightly crushing the pepperoncini before adding them releases their brine into the salad, which is where a lot of that signature flavor hides.