Cheesesteak Salad

This dish is served by a surprising number of pizza and steak shops, most of them outside Philadelphia. The Atkins diet is to blame. Most places offer the traditional ranch, French, and Italian salad dressing options, but Dimitri’s International Grille in suburban Baltimore developed this Cherry Pepper Dressing specifically for its cheesesteak salad.

Serves 4
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1½ pounds rib-eye steak, thinly sliced, or 1 (28-ounce) box frozen sandwich steak
8 thin slices provolone cheese
1 (10-ounce) bag torn romaine lettuce
½ to 1 cup Cherry Pepper Dressing

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and fry until soft. Add the steak and cook until brown, about 5 minutes, chopping the steak and mixing it with the onion. Remove the pan from the heat. Place the cheese on top of the hot meat, and cover the pan until the cheese melts, about 1 minute.

Divide the lettuce among four plates. Top each plate of lettuce with a quarter of the meat and cheese mixture. Drizzle with the dressing and serve.

Cherry Pepper Dressing

Makes 1 cup
½ cup chopped hot cherry peppers
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
½ cup mayonnaise
3 teaspoons honey
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Place the peppers, vinegar, mayonnaise, and honey in a blender and blend for 1 minute. While the blender is running, very slowly pour in the oil and blend until well mixed.