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I wanted to use up what we had in the kitchen and turns out we had everything for a BLT Salad.. except the buttermilk and shallots! I was going to the market and so they weren’t too hard to add to my list 🙂
I have had my fare share of BLT’s over the years and I thought this would be good, but it wasn’t just good .. it was great! The buttermilk-parmesan dressing was amazing and the croutons… OMG! We were fighting over the leftovers! Bread toasted with butter.. need I say more??
Make the dressing and the homemade croutons! I promise you, it is so much better than any store bought you are thinking of using as a short cut!
I decided to make individual romaine leaves with the toppings, but you could cut up the romaine and make it a true salad. We ended up eating ours with our hands… holding the lettuce like a boat so the best parts didn’t spill out.
The fresh bright tomatoes, crisp romaine, salty bacon, crunchy buttery croutons, savory dressing topped with garden basil will have you dancing in your seat!
The fresh basil was the best part. It was the perfect compliment to the dish!
I hadn’t thought about how I was going to serve it in advance or I would have made smaller croutons for the little boats. They were a little too big but it didn’t matter because they were so tasty. I can’t wait to make it again!
Please comment below and give a star rating if you make it. And don’t forget .. you can always PIN IN for Later to your Pinterest Recipe Board. That way you won’t forget it and you have it saved.
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BLT Salad with Buttermilk-Parmesan Dressing and Buttery Croutons
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 12
- Total Time: 32 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Salad
Description
Recipe from Southern Living
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups cubed white bread
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon sugar
- 12 ounces romaine lettuce hearts, chopped
- 1 1/2 pounds assorted fresh tomatoes, sliced (I used grape tomatoes)
- 6 slices cooked bacon, chopped
- Flat-leaf parsley and torn basil leaves to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Prepare Croutons: Toss together bread, melted butter, salt, and pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Place on a baking sheet, and bake 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from oven, and set aside.
- Prepare Dressing: Combine shallot and vinegar in a medium mixing bowl, and let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk in buttermilk and next 5 ingredients.
- Make Salad: Arrange romaine lettuce hearts onto a serving platter. Top with sliced tomatoes and chopped bacon, and drizzle with 3 Tbsp. of dressing. Add croutons, parsley, and basil.
- Serve immediately with remaining dressing on the side.
Notes
It makes a lot of dressing, I saved it in a glass jar in the fridge and used all week long.
Keywords: BLT, Salad, Easy, Tomatoes, Bacon, Romaine, Croutons, Buttermilk Parmesan Dressing, Make Ahead