Guy's Caesar Salad with Homemade Croutons

One of the most popular and well known salads in the world, the ingredients and preparation of a Caesar Salad is very simple: romaine lettuce and homemade croutons dressed with lemon juice, olive oil, egg, anchovies, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, Dijon mustard, Parmesan cheese and fresh black pepper. The salad's creation is generally attributed to restaurateur Caesar Cardini, an Italian immigrant who operated restaurants in Mexico and the United States. Cardini was living in San Diego but was also working in Tijuana at the time, which was a popular tourist destination that attracted Americans frustrated by Prohibition. His daughter Rosa recounted that her father invented the salad at his restaurant Caesar's at the Hotel Cesar, when a Fourth of July rush in 1924 depleted the kitchen's supplies, so Cardini made do with what he had, adding the dramatic flair of the table-side tossing "by the chef." Cardini's daughter also said that the original recipe included whole lettuce leaves, which were meant to be lifted by the stem and eaten with the fingers. Although the original recipe didn't contain anchovies, modern recipes typically include them as a key ingredient. This delicious Caesar Salad recipe created by my husband doesn't use Worcestershire sauce, and is absolutely fabulous. He also chills the salad plates and forks for the full 5-star luxe treatment.

Caesar Cardini photo courtesy of San Diego History Centre

Original advertisement for Caesar's in Tijuana in 1924

Guy's Caesar Salad with Homemade Croutons
Serves 2

1 head Romain hearts, washed and dried
3 slices of bread, crusts removed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano, shaved

Dressing:
3 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 egg yolk
1 large clove of garlic, minced
2 anchovy filets, minced
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Fresh ground pepper, to taste 


Whisk the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Add the vegetable oil to a small frying pan over medium-high, and once shimmering, add the bread and sauté until golden brown on both sides, about 2-3 minutes, then set aside on some paper towel to drain. Tear the romaine hearts into bite size pieces and place in a large salad bowl. Pour the salad dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Scatter the croutons overtop then garnish generously with shaved parmiginao to taste. Serve on chilled plates with chilled forks for a 5-star presentation.