Let’s start off 2014 with a salad (and kale!), shall we?
Lately I’ve been all about making food the way it was intended.
Cookies? Need white flour and white sugar.
Mushroom lasagna? Requires homemade béchamel.
And caesar salad? A dressing with egg yolks*Â and anchovies.
(Kale is always allowed in my world.)
Real caesar salad dressing must have egg yolks and it must have anchovies. There are no ifs, ands or buts about it!
The egg yolks emulsify the dressing and give it richness. The anchovies give it the umami flavor that we all love in caesar salad dressing. Both totally necessary.
While the caesar dressing isn’t light, this version is so bright and flavorful that  you don’t need much parmesan cheese or croutons to finish it off. To make it a complete meal, top the salad with grilled chicken breast or salmon. You’re going to love it!
Classic Caesar Salad Dressing
by
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Keywords: salad entree side
Ingredients (about 1 cup)
For the Dressing
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 Tbsp anchovy paste
- pinch of salt
- 2 egg yolks
- 4 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup oil (blend of olive and canola)
- salt & pepper
For the Salad
- thinly sliced romaine
- thinly sliced kale (if desired)
- shredded parmesan
- croutons
Instructions
For the Dressing
Mash garlic, anchovy and salt into a paste with a knife blade. Put in a medium size bowl.
Whisk in egg yolks, lemon juice and mustard.
While constantly whisking, add in oil, drop-by-drop until glossy.
Salt and pepper to taste.
For the Salad
Toss lettuce with dressing and top with shredded parmesan and croutons.
*Consuming raw eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness, especially if you have a medical condition.
Chelsea @ Designs on Dinner
I never really thought I cared for Caesar salad until my friend made her family’s recipe, which is made with the homemade egg yolk dressing. It’s soooo good! I don’t know if she uses anchovy paste, so I’ll have to convince her. 😉
Emily
It is so much better than stuff from the store! You can’t really taste the anchovy flavor (I’m not a huge fan of them either) but it just adds good savory flavor.
Mercedes
The simplest things always seem to taste the best! I would love this salad for lunch right now!
sarah k @ the pajama chef
in college i loved getting the chicken caesar salad. so much dressing, so much goodness. as good as that was, i think your version looks way better!
Amari @ Eat Chic Chicago
LOVE homemade Caesar dressing! This recipe looks awesome and super easy!