Recipe: Better Than Caesar Salad

Better Than Caesar Salad

Serves 6 to 8

This recipe is from our friends Cedric and Francine. Although it bears a close resemblance to a Caesar salad, there are no anchovies and the chopped mint in the dressing adds a taste that is light and refreshing. We don't serve Caesar salad at the restaurant, but if we did, this would be the one.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
1 clove garlic, halved
2 tomatoes, cut in eighths (optional)
2 heads Romaine lettuce, torn in 1-inch strips
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
1 pound rendered bacon, finely chopped

Dressing
1 egg
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh mint
1/4 teaspoon crushed dried oregano

1 cup croutons

Pour the 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a large wooden bowl. Sprinkle lightly with salt and rub the bowl firmly with the half cloves of garlic. Remove the garlic. Combine the tomatoes, lettuce, scallions, cheese, and bacon.

Coddle the egg by simmering it in the shell for 4 to 5 minutes, over medium heat, until the white is solid, but the yolk is still liquid. Cool to room temperature.

Pour the olive oil, lemon juice, pepper, mint, and oregano into a bowl. Add the egg and whip until frothy.

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss. Toss in the croutons and serve immediately.

Bob Chinn's
Crab House Cookbook
By Serena Joew Lucchesi
with Marilyn Chinn Le Tourneau
Ten Speed Press
Cloth, 160 pages, $29.95
Publication Date: September 1998
ISBN: 0-89815-964-4
Recipe Reprinted by permission.