Tag Archives: Romaine lettuce

Scrumptious Caesar Salad

Caesar Salad

It is believed that Caesar salad was invented in Mexico by Caesar Cardini, a famed restaurateur. This brings vivid memories of my trip to Mexico City many years ago where I relished on a scrumptious tableside Caesar Salad. I don’t generally like to purchase the packaged dressings as they are processed and full of sodium. Today, I am sharing with you my homemade Caesar dressing, but don’t fret, it has raw eggs in it. I recommend you to use the Grade A eggs as they are pasteurized (You will not even know about). This recipe is ideal even for the finicky eaters like my son who doesn’t like anchovies and my mom who cannot stand the thought of consuming raw eggs. Everyone enjoyed it, and not until after they were done, I revealed to them that there were anchovies and raw eggs in the salad. They were in shocked! I know, I was a little sneaky!

   Ingredients: 

  • 3 heads of Romaine lettuce, chopped
  • 2 can of anchovies, flat, in olive oil – save some for garnish
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 4 egg yolks – room temperature Grade A
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil + more for bread
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • salt to taste
  • 1 load of bread, cut in cubes to make croutons
  • Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated, and shaved for garnish
  • Oregano

    Preparation:

    1. In a food processor, combine, 1.1/2 cans of anchovies, lemon, eggs, oil, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt. Pulse the ingredients until they are blended together. Set aside in the fridge.
    2. Place bread on a flat tray, drizzle liberally with olive oil. Add grated Parmigiano Reggiano, (Parmesan cheese) and oregano. Broil for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown.
    3. In a large bowl, arrange the lettuce, sprinkle with salt, and add the dressing. Mixed well. Garnish with croutons, shaved Parmesan cheese, and whole anchovies to taste. Serve with a protein of your choice.

    Wine pairing suggestion: a sparkling wine made with 100% Riesling from Ca’ d’Or winery.

    Caesar Salad

    Caesar Salad

    Happy Cooking and sipping from my kitchen to yours,
    Gina Martino Zarcadoolas, aka Foodiewinelover
    Culinary Personality, Food & Wine Blogger
    Author of the cookbook: Cuisines, Corkscrews & Cultures
    Level-2 Certified world-renowned – “WSET: Wine, Spirit, Education, Trust”
    Level-2 Certified Sommelier
    Winner of 2019 “Salice Salentino USA Bloggers” Award
    Exclusive photos by Gina Martino Zarcadoolas
    All rights reserved.

Fattoush Salad, A Lebanese Delight

Fattoush Salad

Recently, my hubby and I were heading to Aventura mall, to celebrate his birthday. We missed the exit, made a u-turn, and ended up at  Gulfstream Park instead. We stumbled upon this Lebanese restaurant called Mijana.  We ordered an assortment of mezze, (or meze) that are small dishes, or plates in Middle Eastern cuisine. It’s spelled differently, depending on the region of the world.  We had their luscious, and traditional Lebanese Fattoush salad. It is considered a peasant salad, made with fresh greens, veggies, toasted pita bread, and a lemony dressing. We could not get enough of the intense flavors, and the freshness of the salad. I knew, it wasn’t going to be long, before I attempted to make it in my kitchen. You will need a spice called Sumac, that is tart and full of flavors.

Serves: 4 as a side dish  Level of difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

  • 5 ounces of romaine lettuce, chopped
  • 5 radishes, sliced
  • 1 handful of cherry tomatoes
  • 1/2 of an English cucumber, sliced * (Do not peel)
  • 2 scallions, chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
  •  2 small pita bread, cut up in squares, broiled


Dressing:

  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 4 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, + more for pita
  • 1/4 tsp. sumac + more to sprinkle
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • freshly ground pepper

Preparation:

  1. Arrange the lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, cucumber, scallions, parsley, mint in a large bowl. Set aside.
  2. Cut pita bread in small squares, place on a tray, and drizzle with olive oil. Broil for about 3 minutes. Make sure you don’t burn them. Remove them.  Place on top of the salad.
  3. Whisk  lemon juice, olive oil, sumac, salt & pepper until blended.
  4. Pour over the salad. Toss well. Sprinkle more sumac to garnish, and drizzle more olive oil, if necessary.  Serve with a piece of chicken or fish, for a delicious and nutritious meal.

Fattoush SaladI hope you will try this refreshing salad, and share your experience with us.

Lebanese food

Lebanese food at Mijana Restaurant

 

Tips: 1) English cucumbers are generally long, with fewer seeds, and the skin is tender. If you don’t have this kind, the regular cucumber will do the job.
2) Some authentic recipes call for pomegranate molasses, but I didn’t have it on hand.  Purslane, a nutritious weed, can also be used, but not easily found in my area.

Happy Tossing!

Gina, Foodiewinelover
My food, wine, & Travel Lifestyles

Recipe inspired by Mijana restaurant, made in my kitchen
Pictures by Gina for Foodiewinelover

 

 

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com