Easy Caesar Salad
This Easy Caesar Salad is a great addition to a solid collection of salad recipes! Super quick– just throw together the homemade dressing and then toss with chopped romaine lettuce and some croutons. I like to add roasted sunflower kernels and a squeeze of lemon too. So yummy! A wonderful side to serve with just about any main dish, from simple pastas to grilled meats. And topping this Easy Caesar Salad with some grilled salmon, chicken or shrimp makes for an excellent choice for lunch or dinner as well.
A couple of things to note. First of all, do not be put off when you see anchovy paste in the ingredient list. I cannot stand anchovies and would never knowingly eat them in any other capacity! But they add a salty depth to the dressing that you just cannot duplicate. And I promise — you won’t know that they are in there! No fishy or weird taste in the dressing at all. You can pick up anchovy paste in your local grocery store, where they stock tuna and other canned fish.
Secondly, the base of the dressing is mayonnaise… Ok so I rarely eat mayo. I just honestly do not like it at all! So trust me when I say that the dressing does not taste mayonnaise-y. The mayonnaise brings the necessary creaminess and is a substitute for the raw egg yolks called for in traditional Caesar dressing. This dressing recipe is yet another example of “not my favorite” ingredients working together to yield a super delicious outcome!
As the weather warms up, I’m always thinking of having salad for lunch or dinner and this Easy Caesar Salad is a great recipe to have on hand. Last week I drizzled this dressing on a simple bowl of iceberg lettuce and some chopped cherry tomatoes and it was wonderful! This is one of my “binder” recipes (recipes from my family recipe binders built over many years), and is one of the most versatile of my homemade dressings. Creamy, flavorful and simple to make. The best!
Easy Caesar Salad
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise I use Hellman's light mayonnaise
- 1/8 cup olive oil approximately; use more or less to get desired consistency
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1-2 cloves garlic, minced I use two frozen garlic cubes from Trader Joe's (Durot brand)
- 1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- juice of one lemon
- Romaine lettuce, chopped I use one package of triple washed romaine lettuce
- 1 – 2 cups Croutons homemade, or I use Texas Toast brand
- extra Parmesan cheese, sunflower seed kernels, black pepper, squeeze of lemon juice optional, for topping
Instructions
- Make the dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise and next nine ingredients with a large whisk. Can add more or less olive oil to get dressing to consistency desired. I use approximately 1/8 cup olive oil but will add a little bit more if I want to be able to pour the dressing easier.
- Place chopped Romaine lettuce in large bowl and add croutons. Toss with desired amount of dressing, a squeeze of lemon, and top with more Parmesan. Add additional black pepper and sunflower seed kernels if desired. Enjoy!