Extra Hearty Cobb Salad

I have always been a pretty hearty eater. So it isn't shocking that this is one of my favorite salads. I like making it extra hearty by adding more than one kind of cheese and along with the eggs, chicken and bacon, adding shrimp can be great too. As with any kind of salad, feel free to make this your own. Skip the shrimp of you aren't into seafood, add whatever kind of cheese you want, my husband isn't a fan of avocado so I add it to my bowl, not to his. Usually this salad is paired with a cream based dressing like ranch or blue cheese but honestly, you can use an oil based dressing too. The possibilities are endless! This is perfect for a Summer night dinner when you're wanting something that'll stick but being a salad it is still on the lighter side.

• 6 slices of bacon (Should have a certain level of crisp so it is easy to chop but I also like to try to leave a bit of chew too.)
• 3 hard boiled eggs
• 1 head of lettuce or any kind of mixed greens for salad
• 2-3 cups of chopped cooked chicken (I usually like to use an already cooked rotisserie chicken.)
• 1 or 2 chopped tomatoes or a couple cups of cherry tomatoes
• About a cup of cubed cheddar cheese (Shredded is fine too.)
• 3/4 cup or 1 cup of blue cheese crumbles (I love clue cheese so I add a good amount, up to you though!)
• 1 cup of chopped onion (I usually do a white onion but choose your favorite or skip the onion if you aren't a fan of it.)
• 1 peeled, pitted and diced, ripe avocado
• 1 chopped jalapeno (Optional. This actually isn't common but I think it adds a little kick.)
• Half of a cucumber chopped (Also optional. I am just a huge cucumber lover so I can't resist adding a bit of it but as usual, you can skip this.)
• The salad dressing of your choice. An option with serving this, create a little salad bar in your kitchen. Everyone can create their own, use their own dressing...ect...

1. Place eggs in a medium to large pot and cover with water, turn the heat on all the way and bring the water to a boil. Let it boil for a minute then cover with lid and turn off the stove top. Let the eggs sit in the hot water for about 10 minutes.
2. Then drain the hot water, run cold water over the eggs. This will make it so the shells peel right off. Peel the shells and chop them up.
3. While the eggs are boiling, cook the bacon however you usually cook bacon. You can fry them in a pan or put them on a cookie sheet and bake them in the oven. I like for the bacon to get crispy so they are easier to chop but still having a little chew to the bite is good too.
4. Once the bacon is cooked, pull out of the oven and chop it up.
5. Next...chop up the onion, avocado, tomatoes (if you're using a whole tomato) head of lettuce, chicken, jalapeno and cucumber.
6. If you are doing a salad bar, put everything in separate bowls or dishes and everyone can help themselves. Or put everything in a large bowl and give it a few mixes. Pull out the dressing you want and mix again after pouring it over the salad.