Caesar Salad Top Supreme

Submitted by CHEF GRPA

"Whether it's at home or in restaurants, We are always spoiled by good, fresh, Caesar dressing. This recipe sounded too good to be true, so curiosity got the better of me and I dared to try it. P.S.The garlic croutons that top this classic salad are wonderful, as is the anchovy-infused, very creamy dressing."

 

• Ready In: 35mins
• Ingredients: 13
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 6 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3⁄4 cup mayonnaise
• 5 anchovy fillets, minced
• 6 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• salt
• ground black pepper
• 1⁄4 cup olive oil
• 4 cups day-old bread, cubed
• 1 head romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
• 6 roma tomatoes (see my note)

directions

1. 1. Mince 3 cloves of garlic, and combine in a small bowl with mayonnaise, anchovies, 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
2. 2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cut the remaining 3 cloves of garlic into quarters, and add to hot oil. Cook and stir until brown, and then remove garlic from pan. Add bread cubes to the hot oil. Cook, turning frequently, until lightly browned. Remove bread cubes from oil, and season with salt and pepper.
3. 3. Place lettuce in a large bowl. Toss with dressing, remaining Parmesan cheese, and seasoned bread cubes.
4. My Note: I scaled this down to 2 servings and, so as not to waste the better part of a can of anchovies, used a little dab of anchovy paste instead. Outside of the dressing being a little thicker than I liked, which I simply thinned with a little half and half, it was just wonderfully creamy, flavorful and a fine substitute for the "real" thing. I, however, followed it to a T - right down to the real anchovies and not anchovy paste. IT WAS EXCELLENT. I've been using an "authentic" caeser recipe for awhile, and this is much, much better (and easier to make). This is in my list of keepers and will replace any caeser dressing I make in the future. UPDATE: I put everything in a blender after chopping the garlic and anchovies. I've made it a second (and now a third) time and a small food processor actually works better than the blender. The ingredients were a little thick and wouldn't blend, so I added a very little bit of milk on the suggestion of my D/W and a little bit of red wine vinegar. Additionally, I added a couple drops of tabasco. After that, everything blended perfectly. I also used some grated parmesan in the dressing and then added some shredded parmesan after I mixed it with the lettuce. Finally, I also added some extra lemon juice at the end- over the top of the salad. I found that the dressing is better after it sits for a while (!) so the flavors can meld (before you add the lettuce), as is usually the case with homemade salad dressings. This was fairly garlicky, but I love garlic and usually add extra to recipes - I didn't add any extra garlic and I really liked this- perfect for me, but would be okay with more garlic as well. Finally, I definitely would keep in the anchovies- If you chop them fine (and I even chopped them before I put them in the blender) you don't even know they're there, it's not fishy, but it does add to the caesar dressing. Also, I found that all of the oil was needed in the blender for it to blend, but in the future, I will add the other ingredients (milk, red wine vinegar) to get it to blend and then slowly dri. A sliced roma tomato fanned on the edge of each plate is our favorite addition for both color and taste, but this is such an amazingly good recipe that the possibilities are endless. Grilled shrimp? Crab? Avocado? D/W, you are a certified Caesar genius.