From The Modern Family Cookbook
1 large crisp head lettuce
1 small cucumber, pared
2 branches tender celery
1/4 cup sliced green onions
6 or 8 radishes
2 small tomatoes, peeled
1 clove garlic
1 slice very stale bread
1/3 cup French Dressing
Wash vegetables thoroughly, drain and remove tops, stems, blemished parts, etc. Chill until just before serving time. Then cut clove of garlic in half and rub thoroughly over bread; drop bread into bottom of salad bowl. Pour in French dressing. Break lettuce in chunks (flavor is better when broken than when separated leaf by leaf); slice cucumber and cut celery in 1-inch lengths and add to bowl. Push salad fork and spoon under mixture on opposite sides and lift up, repeating this tossing motion until ingredients are well coated with dressing. Remove slice of bread, garnish bowl with green onions, sliced radishes and wedges of tomato. Serve immediately. 5 servings.
My question: What does the stale bread offer here? I have seen this before (usually with a Caesar salad) but have no clue. I suppose it does soak up some of the dressing making this a much lighter on the waist salad than your average salad of today where folks use 1/4 to 1/3 cup of dressing on each serving. 1/3 cup for the whole family cuts a ton of calories off the top. (makes room for more bacon fat!)
It’s croutons silly.
No it isn’t! Read the recipe. You take the bread OUT.
Looks to me like it’s used to dissipate the garlic flavor without leaving a chunk of raw garlic in the salad for someone to bite into.