caesar salad
For the most part, I don’t develop recipes. Sure, I adapt and change recipes I’ve found that I like, but creating recipes from scratch is difficult for me. My caesar salad recipe is one of my favorite recipes that I can take full credit for. The dressing is garlicky, salty and rich, but surprisingly it does not contain any eggs. This salad is great as an appetizer, but with some chicken on top, it makes a satisfying meal.
First, you have to make the dressing. In a blender, add six drained and rinsed oil-packed anchovy filets.
Next, throw in two cloves of garlic.
A quarter cup of lemon juice, a tablespoon of dijon mustard, one and a half teaspoons of worcestershire sauce, and one and a quarter teaspoons of granulated sugar follow.
Then I add about a half cup of shredded parmesan cheese. If you use grated (i.e., powdered) parmesan cheese, use about six tablespoons.
Lastly, the olive oil. The recipe I originally developed calls for a half cup of olive oil, but I’ve taken to using 1/4 cup of olive oil and 1/4 cup of water. Using all olive oil results in a slightly thicker dressing, but other than that, it’s hard to discern a difference.
Now blend the dressing together. Blend it for a minute or so, the extra time really helps the dressing emulsify.
See how thick it is?
Now that the dressing’s ready, all you need is a big bowl of romaine to dress.
Dress the salad generously.
Then toss in a handful of parmesan cheese.
If you want croutons in your salad, lightly coat bread cubes in a bit of the dressing and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.
For the chicken, I just broil chicken breasts or cutlets that I have brushed with the dressing until they’re done. This varies but it generally takes me about 7 minutes per side. Then I cut it into chunks and toss with the salad. That’s it! You’ve just made a delicious meal in about a half an hour.
