Romaine Lettuce Salad

Prom dress shopping. Amber and I went to Kearney on Saturday to three boutiques and a David's Bridal. Nothing at the boutiques. At David's Bridal — not a bridal shop, they also sell prom dresses — Amber tried on nine dresses. She did not like eight of them. The ninth was navy blue, satin, knee-length, simple, with pockets (yes, pockets — she said "Mom, pockets" and I said "Pockets." That is a dress). She looked at herself in the mirror for a long time. She said, "Mom." I said, "Yeah." She said, "I look like her." I said, "You do." She said, "Is that weird?" I said, "No." She said, "Is it okay?" I said, "Yes." She bought the dress. It was $84. We ate ice cream after. We drove home in the Taurus with Amber driving. I did not cry. I almost cried three times. I did not.

I drove a Sioux Falls run Tuesday through Thursday. Three days. Two hotel nights. Ate a chef salad one night and a burger the next and sent Dave pictures of both dinners because this is a Brenda-on-the-road ritual, documenting road food to Dave with photographs, which started in 2014 and has become a dumb, sweet, constant thing. Dave sends back single words. "Salad." "Burger." That is the conversation. We need no more.

Cookbook is on its way to stores. The release date is April 19. Sarah emailed Wednesday with the advance reader copy — an ARC, a not-yet-final printed copy of the book for reviewers. She is sending me five. I will get them next week. She said, "Give them to people you love. Keep one for yourself. Watch one get dog-eared over time — that one is the one you keep forever." I do not know yet who is getting the other four. Gayle for sure. Amber for sure. Maybe Dave. Maybe Tyler, because he loves the book. Maybe I will keep two for myself.

Gayle watched Amber model the prom dress Sunday. Gayle said, "Darla would have worn a red one. Loud as a firetruck." Amber said, "Grandma, that's not really my — " Gayle said, "I know, honey. You are your mother's daughter. I am telling you I remember." Amber sat in Gayle's lap, which Amber is 5'9" and Gayle is 5'3" so this is logistically absurd, but the absurdity was the point. Gayle said, "I love you." Amber said, "I love you." It took them a total of eighty-two years to say it to each other. I was in the kitchen pretending not to hear. I heard. I will never forget.

The chef salad I ordered that Tuesday night in Sioux Falls wasn’t fancy — it never is, and that’s exactly why I love it. There’s something about a good, cold, composed salad eaten alone in a quiet room that feels like a small, honest reward after a long drive, and after a week as tender as this one — prom dresses and Gayle’s lap and a cookbook almost in the world — I needed something that didn’t ask anything of me. This romaine salad is that. Dave got his single-word text. I got my dinner. That was enough.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Total Time: 15 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 large heads romaine lettuce, washed, dried, and chopped into bite-size pieces
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 English cucumber, thinly sliced
1/4 red onion, very thinly sliced
4 oz deli turkey or ham, sliced into thin strips
4 oz Swiss or cheddar cheese, cut into thin strips
2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup croutons
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

Prep the greens. Tear or chop the romaine into pieces and spread across a large wide bowl or platter. Pat dry thoroughly — dry lettuce holds dressing far better than wet.
Compose the toppings. Arrange the cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, and red onion over the romaine. Lay the turkey or ham strips and cheese strips in rows across the top. Add the sliced hard-boiled eggs.
Make the dressing. Whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and garlic powder in a small bowl or jar until emulsified. Season generously with salt and pepper.
Finish and dress. Scatter the croutons and shredded Parmesan over the salad. Drizzle the dressing evenly over everything just before serving, or serve it on the side.
Serve immediately. This salad is best eaten right away while the croutons still have their crunch and the lettuce is cold and crisp.

Nutrition (per serving)

Romaine Lettuce Salad — The Road Dinner I Always Send a Picture Of