My Caesar Salad
Typically for Oscar’s week, I like to pair food and drink to the nominated movies. This year it was tougher to pair the movies with the food. I mean what would you pair with American Sniper?
Instead I thought we should go classic and glamorous like the 1920s when the Academy Awards first started.
The first Caesar salad is said to have been made in the mid 1920s in San Diego. History says that the restaurant was sold out of most ingredients so with what was remaining, they created a salad and tossed it tableside to make it seem more glamorous than just leftover ingredients.
I love Caesar salad and have been making my version for years. I like to make a big bowl for parties, and it’s always the first thing gone. You can take just a few ingredients and make a classic dish!
- ½ a baguette
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 garlic cloves
- salt
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ½ a lemon, juiced
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 hearts of romaine
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Melt butter with olive oil in a saucepan over medium low heat; add in minced garlic and just cook till it sizzles.
- Cut baguette in half lengthwise and then slice top and bottom again in half and cut into cubes.
- Toss cubes with butter and garlic mixture and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until they are golden brown and crispy.
- In a mortar and pestle, smash the garlic with salt into a fine paste. Add in the Worcestershire sauce, fish sauce, and lemon juice. I then scrape this mixture into a small jar with a lid and add in the ½ a cup of olive oil. Shake mixture together and let rest for at least and hour before serving. Shake before dressing salad.
- Wash the hearts of romaine, and then cut into 1 inch slices. In a large bowl, drizzle enough dressing just to coat and toss with Parmesan cheese. Lastly, add in croutons and toss again. To be a bit fancier, I like to use a vegetable peeler and slice ribbons of Parmesan from a block of Parmesan to sprinkle on top.
