Caesar Salad With Heart Croutons Recipes

CAESAR SALAD CROUTONS

Steps:

• Combine garlic and oil in a small saucepan. Simmer until cloves are a light gold color, about 15 minutes. Pour oil through a fine sieve, squeeze all juice from cloves, and then discard the solids. Set garlic oil aside.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Lightly oil a baking sheet.
• Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on baking sheet. Bake, turning bread cubes periodically, until lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
• In a large, non-stick skillet, melt 1/3 cup ghee with 1/3 cup garlic oil over medium heat. Cook toasted bread cubes in batches until light to medium golden brown, turning frequently. Add more ghee and garlic oil as needed. Turn out into basket lined with paper towels, and drain for about 20 minutes.

CAESAR SALAD WITH HEART CROUTONS

Steps:

• For the dressing: Place egg yolk, mustard, garlic, anchovies, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor; process until smooth. With processor running, slowly add the olive oil until mixture is smooth and thick. Add 1/4 cup Parmesan; pulse to combine;set aside.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Make the croutons: Using a 2-inch cookie cutter, cut out heart shapes from the bread slices. Brush each heart with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet, and bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and set aside.
• Cut lettuce crosswise in 1-inch slices. Place in a salad bowl. Add enough dressing to moisten; toss to combine. Add remaining 3/4 cup Parmesan and reserved croutons; toss again. Serve.

CAESAR SALAD WITH CRUNCHY CROUTONS

Steps:

• Make the croutons:
• Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Hand-tear the bread into small pieces and put them into a bowl. Add the olive oil, Parmesan, and thyme leaves; season with salt and pepper. Mix this well to combine all the flavors. Spread the cubes out onto a baking sheet and bake until they are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Let them cool before tossing them onto the salad.
• Make the dressing: Put the anchovies, garlic, lemon juice, and water into a blender and process for 30 seconds until the mixture is smooth. With the blender running, pour the olive oil in slowly for the dressing to emulsify. Stir in the Parmesan and a couple of grinds of black pepper. Season, to taste, with salt and set aside. (Refrigerate the dressing if you will not be using it right away.)
• Assemble the salad: Tear the lettuce into a large bowl. Add enough dressing to coat the salad to your liking. Add the croutons and some extra Parmesan and toss the salad well. Serve immediately.

CLASSIC CAESAR SALAD WITH HOMEMADE CROUTONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place bread on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Whisk together oil, butter, garlic, salt, and pepper in a liquid measure. Pour mixture over the bread and toss with your hands until evenly coated. Spread bread mixture into a single layer. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown and toasted, yet slightly soft in the center, 15 to 18 minutes, tossing croutons a few times during baking. Remove from the oven and let cool completely while you prepare the salad.
• Place garlic, anchovies, and salt in a large salad serving bowl; press the mixture with a fork until a paste forms. Stir in egg yolk, lemon juice, Dijon, and Worcestershire sauce until well combined. Slowly whisk in olive oil until all is incorporated and mixture is well blended and smooth. Stir in 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Remove about 1/4 cup of dressing and set aside for another use.
• When ready to serve, add lettuce and 1/2 of the croutons to the bowl with the remaining dressing; toss until well coated. Reserve remaining croutons for another use.
• Sprinkle salad with additional Parmesan and pepper if desired. Serve immediately.

CAESAR SALAD WITH "CRUSTY" CROUTONS

Steps:

• Put 1/4 cup of oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat and heat until hot but not smoking. Add 1/4 cup of the cheese to a medium bowl and set aside.
• Brush a work surface with a little oil and press the dough into a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick. Cut the dough into thin strips, about 1/4-inch wide. When the oil is hot, using kitchen scissors, carefully hold the dough strips, 2 at a time, over the pan and snip off 1/4-inch pieces, letting them gently fall into the hot oil (this may take several batches). Shallow-fry the dough pieces, tossing frequently with a slotted spoon, Chinese strainer or tongs, until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the croutons to the bowl with the cheese and toss to coat. Continue frying and dredging the dough in the cheese until all the dough is used.
• When ready to serve, add the romaine to a large bowl, drizzle with lemon juice and add the remaining 1/4 cup oil. Season with salt and pepper, to taste and toss well to evenly coat the lettuce. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese and the croutons and toss well until combined.
• Transfer to a serving platter and top with additional cheese, if desired.

CAESAR SALAD WITH HOMEMADE TAPENADE CROUTONS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• 2. Make the croutons: In a medium bowl, combine the oil, cheese, garlic, oregano, and thyme. Add the bread and toss, coating all the croutons.
• 3. Arrange the croutons in a single layer on a baking tray and bake until golden, turning to brown all sides. Cool and store in a cool, dry place.
• 4. Make the salad: Trim the lettuce and toss with some of the Caesar Vinaigrette . Arrange on salad plates and sprinkle with a little Parmesan cheese, if desired.
• 5. Spread one side of your croutons with a thin layer of the Black and Green Olive Tapenade . Arrange atop the salads and serve immediately.

CAESAR SALAD WITH HERBED CROUTONS

Steps:

• Make dressing:
• Combine 1/2 cup Parmesan, anchovies, lemon juice, 3 garlic cloves, and mustard in processor; blend well. With processor running, slowly add olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
• Make croutons and salad:
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, thyme and rosemary; saut until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add bread cubes to skillet with garlic-herb oil and toss to coat. Spread out bread cubes on rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake just until croutons are golden, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.
• Place romaine in large bowl. Add 2/3 cup dressing and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese and toss to coat. Add croutons and toss well. Serve, passing remaining dressing, Parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper separately.

SIMPLE, SCRUMPTIOUS CAESAR SALAD WITH QUICK GARLIC CROUTONS

Steps:

• To make croutons: Heat large skillet over low heat. With motor running, drop garlic cloves through feeder tube of food processor to mince. (A blender works as well.) Scrape down sides of bowl and add oil through feeder tube. Continue to process so that garlic releases its flavor into oil, about 30 seconds. Strain garlic from oil through a fine-mesh strainer; reserve half of garlic for dressing and set aside remaining half for another use. You should have about 3 tablespoons of garlic oil.
• Raise heat under skillet to medium. Place bread cubes in medium bowl. Drizzle 2 tablespoons garlic oil evenly over bread, along with a big pinch of salt; toss to coat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil; toss again. Add bread cubes to hot skillet and toast, turning cubes and shaking pan often, until crisp and golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Return croutons to bowl and set aside to cool while preparing salad.
• To prepare salad: Cut off bottom 1 1/2 to 2 inches of core from bottom of each romaine heart. Separate heart into individual leaves. Put leaves in large bowl.
• Whisk lemon juice, mayonnaise, Worcestershire and reserved garlic in a small bowl. Drizzle lettuce with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss lightly, carefully, and thoroughly so that lettuce is evenly coated with oil. (Clean hands work well.).
• Drizzle lemon mixture over lettuce; toss again. Sprinkle 1/4 cup Parmesan over greens; toss again. Sprinkle croutons over salad, toss, and serve, sprinkling each portion with a little more Parmesan cheese.

CAESAR SALAD CROUTONS

Steps:

• Combine garlic and oil in a small saucepan.
• Simmer until cloves are a light gold color, about 15 minutes.
• Pour oil through a fine sieve, squeeze all juice from cloves, and then discard the solids.
• Set garlic oil aside.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• Lightly oil a baking sheet.
• Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on baking sheet.
• Bake, turning bread cubes periodically, until lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
• In a large, non-stick skillet, melt 1/3 cup ghee with 1/3 cup garlic oil over medium heat.
• Cook toasted bread cubes in batches until light to medium golden brown, turning frequently.
• Add more ghee and garlic oil as needed.
• Turn out into basket lined with paper towels, and drain for about 20 minutes.
• Note: For other uses- garden salad, soup, etcetera- you can add dried herbs of your choice, but if you do, don't use them with a Caesar salad -- too many flavour contrasts.