Iceberg Lettuce With A Cheddar Mayonnaise

This silly recipe reminds me of a time many years ago at a restaurant in Salt Lake City. We (4 of us) ordered a salad. What came was a head of lettuce cut in 4 and that was it. I still laugh when I think of the shocked looks on our faces. Never mind, this is good and tasty for sure.

• 1/2 cup pecans
• 2 tbsp. maple syrup
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 tbsp. flour
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 drops of Worchestershire sauce
• pinch of salt and pepper
• Milk – as needed
• 1 head of iceberg lettuce, cut in 6 wedges
• 3 tbsp. cheddar cheese, crumbled

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a small bowl, mix the nuts and syrup together and spread them out on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Toast for 15 minutes, turning them every 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. When cool, break into pieces.

In a small saucepan, combine the cheese, flour and cream. Over a low heat, stirring constantly, let it come to the  boil and starts to thicken. Remove from the heat immediately and cool to room temperature.

In a blender, pulse the cooled cheese mixture with the mayonnaise until smooth. Add the mustard, Worchestershire sauce, salt and pepper and blend well. Add just enough milk to make it pourble. Refrigerate.

To serve, place a wedge on a plate, drizzle the cheese sauce of it, and garnish with the carmellized nuts and crumbled cheese.