Every household and every restaurant serves them. People living alone or large families serve them.

Some say green “salat” — others say mixed salad, fresh salad, tossed salad, garden salad, etc.

Regardless of the name you use, this dish is part of the menu for every household and restaurant, with the recipe varying based on ingredients you deliberately purchase or those you find in your fridge.

Today’s recipe for a layered salad is an old one and a bit dressed up from the basic green salad, and, unlike the basic green salad, can and should be made a day ahead of use. If you don’t have this among your recipe collection, consider adding it and making the dish soon.

It is from the late Ruby Baskin of Unity Baptist Church in Simpsonville, and her recipe was among those in the church cookbook published in 2004. Mrs. Baskin died a few years ago. She had been a member of Unity for several years, moving her membership from Standing Springs Baptist Church (also in Greenville County). She was active at Unity, where she taught Sunday school and was the WMU leader at one time. Her husband is also deceased. They had three sons — John, Jerry and David.

Unity — organized Oct. 8, 1900 — averages around 80 each week and is currently pastored by Rev. Larry Ledford, who came there in October 2012. This is his first full-time pastorate, having served previously as an associate pastor.

Back to the “tossed salad.” There are reasons for the perpetual popularity of the simple “green salad”: It is easy to prepare; often the ingredients are on hand; it fits with almost all other foods on the menu; it’s pretty on the table; and it’s versatile.

This green salad can be made with only lettuce and a dressing and be part of your menu of meat and veggies — or you can add other ingredients to the salad mix, increase the amounts, and, voila, the salad becomes a light lunch.

One writer suggests that fruits and vegetables should not be combined in the same salad. Use all vegetables with their dressing, or all fruits with their dressing.

The simplest salad includes only the greens — whether lettuce, romaine, endive, young tender spinach, etc. — topped with a simple dressing. The greens should be bite-sized. Purists would say the lettuce leaves should be torn apart, never cut. Well, maybe, but who hasn’t had to deal with a large piece of lettuce on his or her fork? Cut or tear the lettuce into one-inch (or smaller) pieces.

To this you may add many other raw vegetables: carrots, celery, cucumber, radishes, chopped cauliflower, chopped or finely sliced onion (especially green spring onions), etc.

It can be served dressed simply with an oil and vinegar dressing, or with one of the many commercial salad dressings at your grocery. The dressing should be tossed with the salad greens immediately before serving, or it can be offered on the side.

We are glad that Ruby generously shared her Layered Lettuce Salad recipe with the cookbook committee, and therefore with the rest of us, and we thank her for that. This is a healthy, easy-to-make dish. It has more ingredients than the simple greens/dressing salad, and gives you protein in the eggs, bacon and peas.

Make this pretty and fresh-tasting salad the day before you plan to serve it for a church gathering, family reunion, or to enjoy at your own home for family and guests for … Sunday Dinner.

Layered Lettuce Salad

1 head crisp lettuce, cleaned
1 cup celery, diced
4 eggs, hard-cooked, sliced
1 10-ounce package frozen English peas, uncooked
1/2 cup diced green pepper
1 medium sweet onion, sliced
8 slices bacon, fried and diced
2 cups mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sugar
4 ounces cheddar cheese, grated

Tear lettuce into small, bite-sized pieces and place in a 9×12 glass dish.

Layer celery, eggs, frozen peas, green pepper, onion and bacon on lettuce.

Add the sugar to the mayonnaise and spread over the top as you would frosting. Top with the grated cheese, cover and refrigerate for 8-12 hours. At serving time, garnish with additional bacon and parsley. Serves 10 or more.

Have a recipe? Send your recipes to: sundaydinner@baptistcourier.com