Simple Caesar Salad
Serves about 4, but today it was just us two. Shut up! It’s the holidays!
For the Dressing:
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic, pounded to a puree
- 2 teaspoons chopped salt- packed anchovies (I used about 2 tablespoons!)
- salt & pepper
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 egg yolk
For the Salad:
- 2 heads romaine lettuce
- CROUTONS!! (see recipe below)
1. Remove the outer darker green leaves, leaving only the smaller light green leaves of the romaine lettuce. Cut off stem ends and separate into leaves. Keep the small leaves at the heart intact, and tear the larger leaves in pieces. Wash well and spin dry in batches. Keep cool until ready to dress.
2. To make the dressing, mix the vinegar, lemon juice, garlic & anchovies in a bowl. Add olive oil and the egg yolk and mix the dressing with an immersion blender until well incorporated. Toss in 1/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese. Add salt & pepper to taste. It’s best to dip a lettuce leaf in the dressing to figure out if you need to add more acid or seasoning.
3. Put your lettuce in your tossing bowl. Add dressing a bit at a time and mix it up with some more Parmesan. Taste to see if it’s been properly dressed. Arrange leaves on a plate. Throw the croutons in the empty bowl, scraping up the last of the dressing. Scatter them on top of the salad. Top with a little Parmesan cheese, and a some fresh ground pepper and ENJOY!!!
How I make big batch of Croutons:
From this-
to this!
Ingredients:
- Half a loaf of day old country bread
- olive oil
- salt & pepper
- dried herbs (I make a thyme, basil & oregano combo)
- garlic powder
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut the bread up into small cubes. Layer on a cookie sheet. Add a few glugs of olive oil and toss around. Top with a few dashes of garlic powder & some dried herbs. Season top with salt & pepper and toss again.
2. Place prepared croutons into the oven and bake for 10 minutes, stir and bake another 5-8 minutes until golden brown.
You MAY have some croutons leftover, but if you are me…you probably won’t
Croutons— the reason Caesar salads were invented.