Whip up a restaurant-style classic Caesar salad recipe at home! Crisp Romaine lettuce is tossed with traditional Caesar salad dressing, shaved Parmesan, and homemade croutons.
In a food processor or blender, pulse together the anchovies, garlic, ½ teaspoon salt and a dash of pepper to combine and form a paste. Add the egg yolk, Dijon mustard and Worcestershire; pulse again. With the food processor or blender on low speed, gradually stream in the olive oil and vegetable oil. Finally, add the lemon juice and grated Parmesan. Taste; season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
MAKE THE CROUTONS:
In a cast iron skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the cubed bread and cook, stirring regularly, until toasted and golden brown. Season the warm croutons with a pinch of salt.
ASSEMBLE THE SALAD:
In a large bowl, toss together chopped Romaine, croutons and dressing. You might not need all of the dressing, so just use enough to moisten the lettuce. Serve extra dressing on the table, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Garnish with Parmesan shavings; season with freshly-ground black pepper. Serve immediately.
Notes
If you don't want to use a food processor, you can prepare the salad dressing by hand. Just mash the anchovies, garlic, salt and pepper into a paste before whisking in the egg yolk, mustard and Worcestershire. Then gradually stream in the oil while whisking so that the dressing emulsifies.
You might not need all of the dressing for one salad, so save any extra in a jar in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
To easily shave Parmesan from a wedge, use a vegetable peeler!
Pick a loaf of good, crusty bread for the croutons. Sourdough, French or Italian bread adds the best flavor and texture to the salad.
For ease, use anchovy paste instead of a tin of whole anchovies.