Caesar Salad

I never thought I'd like a Caesar Salad since I knew it had anchovies in it and I never cared for anchovies before. Oh, I really liked the kind you make that comes in a box. All you add is the Romaine lettuce. (Linsey makes the Et Tu Caesar Salad Kit available at the grocery stores. If you try it the "original" is best, the "light" is not so good.) However, when I was faced with a glut of lemons and I was trying to find out different ways to use them I decided to give the homemade Caesar a try.

I got out our trusty Betty Crocker's Cookbook (Golden Press, 1986) and followed the recipe. It wasn't very difficult, and it tasted great! I found a new favorite salad. Over time I've tweaked the recipe just a bit to suit me better and it has not hurt the flavor at all. Below is my version.

The ingredients are: 2-3 minced garlic cloves; 6 mashed up anchovy filets (you could probably use the paste that comes in a tube but I haven't tried it yet); 1/3 C olive oil; 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard; 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper; 1 large or 2 small heads Romaine lettuce, washed and cut or torn into bite size pieces; 1 egg; 1 lemon; 1/2 C grated Parmesan cheese.

Mash the anchovies in a large bowl, add the minced garlic.

Add the olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Be careful with the mustard because too much will give it a bitter flavor. Mix well.

Add the lettuce and toss. Break the egg into the bowl, squeeze the lemon into the bowl (try to catch the seeds) and toss again. I like to use my fingers to make sure everything gets equally coated. Add the Parmesan cheese and mix again. You can check for seasoning when you lick your fingers. :)

I'm not real big on croutons but you can add them after you put the salad on your plate. That way they'll stay crunchy.

Roasted goose with Caesar salad.

If you prefer a creamy Caesar dressing it's just as easy to make. Simply put the ingredients (sans lettuce and oil) in a blender and whir it up until everything is mixed. Then with the blender on a medium speed, slowly add the olive oil. Pour over the lettuce.

NOTE: You can substitute 1 - 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard for the dry mustard in both versions.

CAESAR SALAD

6 anchovy filets

2-3 cloves minced garlic

1/3 C olive oil

1 t Worcestershire sauce

1/2 t salt

1/4 t dry mustard

1/2 t ground pepper

1 large or 2 small heads Romaine lettuce

1 egg

1 lemon

1/2 grated Parmesan cheese

croutons, optional

Place anchovies in a large bowl and mash with a fork. Add minced garlic cloves. Add olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, salt, mustard, and pepper. Stir well until mixed. Cut or tear lettuce into bite sized pieces and add to bowl. Toss to coat with mixture. Break egg into bowl, squeeze lemon into bowl, toss again. Add Parmesan cheese, toss again. Serve with croutons if desired.