Cobb Salad (United States)

     The history of gastronomy (the science of cooking) is divided into two different schools.  Either the origin of a specific dish is highly debated making the truth unattainable, or we know the everything from name of the cook to the day in which it was invented.  When it comes to Cobb salad it is easy to see that is in the second school of gastronomic history, mostly because it bares the name of the man who invented it.
      While working in a very popular Los Angeles restaurant in 1937 a line cook by the name of Robert H. Cobb decided to make himself a late night snack.  Intending to make a sandwich Cobb ransacked the fridge and slicing the ingredients.  Chicken, bacon, avocado, tomatoes, hard boiled eggs, cheese, and (for reasons unknown to this writer) four different types of lettuce.
      It was not until after he had chopped his ingredients up that he realized there was no bread left, and the delivery wouldn't be until the next morning.  Unable to bring himself to throw away the ingredients Cobb simply made a vinaigrette and placed the ingredients on top of the lettuce, and called it a salad.  Well Cobb must have really liked his concoction, because the next day it appeared on the menu with the name "Cobb Salad".  The rest is a very long history of the dish spreading throughout the United States appearing as the new house salad in restaurants from Massachusetts to Washington.
      The recipe featured below is my own adaptation from a salad I enjoyed while having lunch with a friend in the West Village of New York City.  Eating at Cafe Condesa was as my friend told me, a experience that no one should be without.  The food there was a bit of an enigma, as if classic American cuisine and Latin flair had an illegitimate child that became a supermodel.  When I got home I immediately tried to mimic what I had eaten at the establishment.  The salad was easy to replicated, after all, the ingredients are listed out for you on a plate.  But the vinaigrette was a bit hard. Now, after about a dozen failed attempts, I think I have finally gotten it down. 
     

Cobb Salad

4 boneless skinless split chicken breasts, roasted

1/2 pound bacon, cooked with the drippings removed

1 cup avocado, chopped

1 1/2 cup Roquefort cheese, crumbled

3 pint sized containers of cherry tomatoes, washed and sliced in half

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, torn finely

1 12 ounce bag of spinach, washed and dried

2 hearts of romaine, washed and torn into bite size pieces

2 heads of iceberg lettuce, washed and torn into bite size pieces

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 cup white vinegar

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

3 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest

2 teaspoons green onion, minced

salt and pepper to taste

In a medium sized bowl combine the garlic, vinegar, olive oil, and mustard.  Whisk the mixture until it has reached a very smooth consistency.  Add in the cilantro, lemon, onion and give the mixture another quick whisk.  Season with salt and pepper as your personal taste dictates and place the bowl in the refrigerator to chill.

Meanwhile mix the spinach, romaine, and iceberg lettuce and place on a large serving platter, or on each individual plate.  Place each of the ingredients across the salad making defined lines for each of the ingredients.  Sprinkle with the parsley and serve with the vinaigrette on the side. 

Serves 4-6 depending on portions sizes.