Grilled Tossed Caesar Salad

This Grilled Caesar Salad uses halved head of romaine on a very hot grill just long enough to char the romaine yet keep the lettuce crisp. The dressing uses grilled lemons, and of course, slices of grilled baguette make the croutons

Ingredients

• 1 head of romaine

• Grapeseed oil, or other neutral high heat oil

• Presliced baguette, as many as you want to grill, substitute with any bread you have or would prefer

• Melted butter, to brush on the bread

• 1 bulb garlic, only a few cloves are used in this recipe, leaving leftover roasted garlic for other recipes. You may substitute grated fresh garlic to the dressing to taste

• 2 lemons

• ½ cup mayonnaise

• ½ tsp spicy brown mustard, more to taste

• ½ tsp anchovy paste, more to taste

• Freshly grated parmesan cheese, to garnish

• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

1. Prepare for the grill: Preheat the grill to high. Chop the head of romaine in half. Rinse the halves with cold water and pat dry. Brush with grapeseed oil.

   Slice the lemons in half horizontally and set aside.

   Melt some butter and add grapeseet oil if needed. Brush the bread on both sides and season with salt.

   Slice the top of the bulb of garlic, enough to expose all the garlic cloves. Dress with oil and season with salt and pepper.

2. Grill: Once the grill is very hot, add the romaine halves cut side down. Let the romaine sear for a minute, just until it is charred, and remove. Set aside, or store covered in the refrigerator once cool up to a day ahead.

   Sear 3 lemon halves on the hot grill, cut side down, keeping one lemon half fresh. Allow to cook until charred, then let cool. The charred lemon heats its sugars, mellowing the flavor of the lemon.

   Add the garlic bulb to the grill at any time the grill isn't extremely hot and allow to cook until the top is very charred and the cloves are soft, about 20-30 minutes.

   Cook the pieces of bread on the grill on both sides, flipping and removing quickly.

3. Make the dressing: In a medium sized bowl, squeeze two of the charred lemon halves and a squeeze of the fresh lemon and remove the seeds. Squeeze two cloves of garlic from the grilled bulb. Add to the bowl and break it up with a whisk. Add the anchovy paste, mustard, and some black pepper. Whisk in the mayonnaise until everything is combined. Taste and adjust for salt, acid (fresh lemon), and pepper. Add the other charred lemon juice as well, or reserve it for garnish or a cocktail. The dressing is good in the fridge up to a week.

4. Toss the Caesar: Just before serving, add half of the dressing to a large bowl. Grate parmesan into the dressing if desired. Chop the romaine into bite sized pieces and add to the bowl. Use tongs to toss the romaine until it is evenly dressed, adding more dressing if desired. It's much easier to dress the bowl first rather than adding dressing to the lettuce.

5. Serve: Chop the grilled bread into desired crouton size. Add the tossed romaine to a plate and add garnish with grated parmesan. Add the croutons and serve immediately.

   Serves 2-4 as a side salad, 1 if making it an entree. Try adding grilled shrimp, chicken, or steak to it!

   Everything in this dish can be made ahead of time. Just store separately and toss immediately before serving.