Friday, July 27, 2012

Summer Salad Swap

Linking up with Mel today for a:


This might be the best salad I've ever made. It is seriously SO good and definitely worth considering for dinner this week.

Dinner with friends: divine. This dinneralfresco, with friends, and an amazing rose´: a perfect Summer evening.


Starting with rose´ is totally optional, but honestly, why not? This lovely number is a french varietal bought at Trader Joe's.


A key to this delicious, flavor-packed meal is the lightly charred romaine. Oh my. Grilling the hearts makes for a more intense and smoky bite. I don't know that I'd ever make Caesar Salad again without grilling the lettuce--it's so worth it.


Add to the grilled romaine some tender grilled chicken, handmade croutons (not if you're grain-free like me), and a dressing so good it had me licking the spatula clean (a la` cake batter), and you have one unforgettable Caesar Salad. I've made this salad three times, and even without the homemade croutons, it is positively, absolutely, amazingly yummy and complete.


Scrum-didilly-umptious! 


Thanks for the great idea, Mel! Looking forward to enjoying lots of new salad recipes in the hot weeks to come.

Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
Adapted from epicurious.com

Serves 6-8

Dressing:
1/2 C freshly grated parmesan cheese (can do in food processor with grater blade)
8 anchovy fillets
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
3 garlic cloves
2 TBS Dijon mustard
3/4 C olive oil
Salt & pepper

Chicken:
4 breasts of chicken
olive oil
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
Salt & pepper

Croutons:
3 Tbs olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
3 3/4-inch-thick slices whole grain bread, crusts removed, cut into 3/4-inch cubes (4 cups)
Salt & pepper

Salad
3 hearts of romaine, sliced in half lengthwise
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Cracked black pepper

For dressing:
Combine all ingredients other than olive oil in a food processor; blend well. With processor running, add olive oil in a slow stream. Season with salt and pepper.

For croutons:
Preheat oven to 325F. Heat 3 TBS olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and fresh herbs and saute until fragrant, about one minute. Remove from heat and add bread cubes; toss to coat. Spread out bread cubes on a rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until croutons are golden, about 15-18 minutes, stirring occasionally.

For grilled chicken & romaine:
Preheat grill to high heat. Spray with cooking oil.

Smother chicken breasts with a little olive oil. Season evenly with fresh herbs, salt & pepper.

Grill chicken over high heat until cooked all the way through, or until internal temperature reaches 165F, about 4-6 minutes per side. After flipping chicken halfway through cooking, brush olive oil over cut sides of romaine. Place romaine, cut side down, on grill and cook until just charred, about 2-3 minutes.

To assemble salad:

On a large platter, arrange romaine leaves, cut/charred side up. Slice chicken breast and lay on top of romaine. Top with 1/2 cup grated parmesan, croutons, and cracked black pepper.


3 comments:

mel @ the larson lingo said...

This salad is AMAZING!!! Susan made it for book club last month & oh my word...YUM. So good! She kept telling everyone that our meal was brought to you by Becky's blog (she made your ice cream also!) Thanks for linking up!

Amy said...

Grilled romaine is the best! May have to grab that rose from TJ's....looks like a nice summer wine. Thanks for sharing! ;-)

Tiffany said...

This looks GREAT! Love that you grilled the romaine lettuce. Different but good sounding.