Caesar salad with French toast

I ask you to excuse me in advance: today I will talk about commonplace things – about a hackneyed, simple, devoid of originality dish. This is Caesar salad with French toast, invented over a hundred years ago by the head chef of a small restaurant in the Mexican town of Tijuana, Caesar Cardini. Yes, yes, despite the fact that I oppose the general obsession with this salad, I nevertheless decided to write a couple of lines about it. Why? Simply because for me there is a story behind this dish.

Once upon a time, when my culinary skills left much to be desired, this simple dish was central to my “repertoire”. It was exactly the same dish for special occasions that did not leave anyone indifferent, and gave me a slight sense of pride in myself and the hope that someday I could cook more complex dish with the same success (and, fortunately , and so it happened!). Therefore, for me, Caesar is not just a handful of lettuce leaves with chicken breast, bread, cheese and dressing. These are memories, emotions. This is the memory of who I was, and the opportunity to assess my current abilities, my growth precisely through the prism of this dish.

I used to fry a breast for a salad, and now I boil it in a fragrant French court-bouillion broth, and I also seasoned the salad with mayonnaise mixed with grated cheese, and now I myself am preparing an egg-based dressing with Dijon mustard, capers and anchovies. And don’t tell me Cardini didn’t have anchovies in the recipe! I know! But this is my Caesar, my story! There are other “chips”, atypical for the traditional Caesar. For example, I always cook it with croutons! Soft toast with herbs instead of garlic croutons decorated my very first Caesar – and I still serve salad in the same form. I say: this is my story, my vision of this stellar representative of the menu of all modern cafes and restaurants.

ENERGY VALUE PER SERVING

• CALORIE CONTENT–599KCAL
• PROTEIN–45GRAM
• FATS–39.5GRAM
• CARBOHYDRATES–12.3GRAM

* CALORIES CALCULATED FOR RAW FOODS

INGREDIENTS/PORTIONS   

Cherry tomatoes–200 g

Iceberg lettuce–200 g

Chicken fillet–2 pieces

Chicken bouillon–1 l

Egg–3 pieces

Grated Parmesan Cheese–4 tablespoons

Anchovies–4 pieces

Capers–1 tablespoon

Lemon juice–1 tablespoon

Ground black pepper–taste

Dijon mustard–1 teaspoon

Olive oil–100 ml

White bread–4 pieces

Milk–¼ glasses

Herb Blend–½ teaspoon

Worcestershire sauce–1 teaspoon

COOKING–30 MINUTES + 5 MINUTES

INSTRUCTIONS  

• Boil chicken in broth.

• Let cool, then cut into slices. Toss with Iceberg lettuce and halved cherry tomatoes.

• For dressing, combine chopped anchovies with half parmesan, capers, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard, and pepper. Place two eggs in boiling water for one minute, then beat into a bowl and whisk until fluffy. Combine with the prepared mixture, beat again. Pour in 1/4 cup olive oil in a thin stream, stirring occasionally.

• For French toast, cut the crust off the bread. Combine a lightly beaten egg with milk and herbs, pour the mixture into a deep bowl. Put pieces of bread in it and leave for 10 minutes, turning the bread over once during this time. Heat the remaining butter in a skillet and fry the bread slices in it until golden brown.

• For serving, add the dressing to the salad, mix well. Arrange on plates. Place French toast cut into triangles on top. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

RECIPE TIP

Traditionally, Romano salad is used in Caesar salad. But do not pursue authenticity at the expense of quality! Choose the freshest lettuce on the market. You can use salmon or shrimp instead of chicken. And once I tried a vegetarian version of Caesar salad, cooked … with prunes!

Caesar Salad With French Toast Video