Fool Proof Caesar Salad

So everyone loves a Caesar salad. That isn’t even up for debate, but I think we tend to get lost when it comes to making the dressing especially using raw eggs make us feel queasy and unfamiliar. So there are many modifications that can be made here(very out of character for me but hey!).

So personally I like a full flavored dressing with a generous amount of anchovies, if you prefer it to be less, then add it in gradually while tasting every phase of the way. Just dont skip them they are an explosive source of umami!!

If you are using egg yolk, please note that the dressing cannot be stored for the next day and must be consumed within 5-8 hours.

If you prefer to do without the egg yolks, that’s fine! more than fine actually. You can replace the egg yolks with spoonful's of mayonnaise and the result will be super creamy and yum. Now I want to stress the importance of the oil you are using here. When you make an emulsion(the process of mixing two conflicting agents such as water and oil) it’s important to not use a very flavorful oil such as olive oil as your sole oil. Here’s why. Olive oil tends to leave a bitter taste in aioli and emulsions. So it’s important to divide the oil into a neutral oil such as grape seed, avocado oil, or canola with the olive oil so that you aren’t left with a bitter aftertaste in your dish. That would suck wouldn’t it?

Also when it comes to using parmesan in this dish, this doesn't mean you throw on any cheese that says parm on the package. Parmigiano Reggiano in the only way to go. That stuff is aged to perfection and with the perfect nutty flagrancy and milky sweet kisses. it holds the highest standard and should never be substituted. I mean it.

Another important thing about making an emulsion such as this one, is adding in the oil gradually rather than filling a blender with all the ingredients and sending them off to work. Slowly and gradually adding it in to the top of the blender while blending the other stuff ensures a creamy and more secure way to not have your sauce break(meaning the oil diving from the rest.)

Hey you are almost a pro now!!!

If I can give one more tip about making sauces and cooking in general it’s

TASTE AND SEASON AT EVERY PHASE

it’s so important to taste your food, sometimes we need to fix things and we won’t know until it’s too late if we don’t taste. If bakers can taste raw dough when they are baking, you can taste your dressing!!

So here goes

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Prep: 15 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

For the Dressing

5-6 Anchovy fillets

2 large garlic cloves

2 egg yolks

Juice of half a lemon

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup grape seed oil

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon french Dijon

1/3 cup of Parmesan

Fresh black peppercorns

Fine sea salt

Romaine Lettuce

Summer Crisps

Rustic bread such as sourdough or cibatta

Method

1. Slice up rustic bread into cubes and toss with olive oil and Trader Joe’s chili lime salt, and put into oven or toaster at 350 for 10-15 minutes until crispy.

2. In a Vitamix or food processor, add the garlic, egg yolks(or Mayo), grated Parmesan, Worcestershire, lemon, anchovies and salt+pepper.

3. Combine your oils into one cup and once other ingredients are blended add the oils in slowly while the blender works on low- medium.

4. Taste your sauce and adjust accordingly to taste.

5. Take romaine, summer crisps or little gem lettuce and cut into quarters or smaller bite sized cuts(however you prefer, I’m not afraid of making people work for their food)

6. Toss dressing in a bowl with lettuce, transfer to plate with extra Parmesan on top through a microplane of fine grater.

7. Add the croutons, some chives and enjoy!