Romaine Caesar Salad

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This popular salad was first made in 1924 by Italian chef Caesar Cardini at his restaurant in Tijuana Mexico. As coincidently the first time I had Caesar salad was in Mexico while on vacation. It was prepared right at the table and what a show that was.

A "real" Caesar salad has salad greens that are tossed with a garlic vinaigrette with grated Parmesan cheese and anchovies.

Romaine Cesar Salad
Serves 4-6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 head romaine lettuce
  • 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • ½ tablespoon Dijon like mustard
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 ½ cups garlic croutons
  • 1 ½ teaspoons anchovy paste or 4 anchovy filets, minced
  • Black pepper, freshly ground
  • Kosher salt to taste

    Instructions:

    Wash lettuce and dry on paper towels. Refrigerate until crisp.

    For the vinaigrette: In a bowl or jar combine oil, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt, mustard, garlic and pepper. Whisk until well blended.

    Coddle egg by heating 3 cups of water to boiling. Drop in egg (still in shell) and let stand for 1 minute. Remove egg from water and let cool. Once cooled crack open and whisk egg into dressing. Whisk until thoroughly blended.

    Add anchovy paste or mash desired amount of anchovies and whisk them into the dressing.

    To assemble, place torn lettuce leaves in a large bowl. Pour dressing over the top and toss lightly. Add the grated cheese, garlic croutons and freshly ground pepper, toss. Serve immediately.

    Terri’s tips:

  • Make your own croutons by cutting French, Italian or wheat subs into 1 inch cubes. Coat with olive oil and any seasoning of your choice (garlic powder, fresh minced herbs, chili powder)
  • You can eliminate the anchovies from the dressing if you prefer but you will eliminate a lot of flavor

    Cooking Wiser:

    If you have concerns about using a raw egg for the dressing, use egg substitute equal to one egg. Egg substitute is pasteurized and bacteria free
    Or you could use a store brand Caesar dressing

    Make it your own
    Add grilled chicken, tuna or salmon for a complete meal

    I like to toss in sunflower seeds

    I thought if you can add chicken, why couldn't you add anything you wanted to so I tried adding steamed snow peas and zucchini and it was delicious.