My Favorite Caesar Salad
Romaine or Little Gem lettuce leaves
Recommended Videos
parmesan cheese, grated on a microplane
celery, small diced
Caesar dressing, recipe below
shaved croutons, recipe below
For the croutons, freeze a baguette until it’s solid enough to slice thinly while a sharp chef knife. You can also use a Japanese mandolin. Arrange the bread shaving on a sheet pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and Aleepo or red crushed chili flake. Top the bread slices with another sheet of parchment paper and a second baking sheet. Bake in a preheat 350 degree oven until golden brown and crispy, about 10-12 minutes.
Caesar dressing:
2 cloves confit garlic plus 1 teaspoon of the garlic oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice from ½ a lemon, freshly squeezed
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 anchovies
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon Worcestershire
1 cup mayonnaise
water, if needed
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Combine everything but the water and grated parmesan cheese in a blender. If the mixture is too thick, you can add a tablespoon or two of water to thin the dressing. Stir in the grated parmesan cheese by hand and season to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve:
Toss romaine lettuce leaves, diced celery, parmesan cheese and shaved croutons with as much Caesar dressing as desired. Serve topped with extra shaved parmesan cheese.
We severed our Caesar salad with grilled swordfish skewers that were flavored with a little pesto compound butter from the freezer.
Note: to make garlic confit, simply cover garlic cloves in neutral oil (like canola) and cook over very low heat until the garlic is soft but not browned. Allow to cool and store in the oil in the refrigerator.