Rustic Italian Caesar Pasta Salad: A Simple, Satisfying Recipe for Home Cooks
Ciao, you Beautiful People!
I hope you are enjoying a wonderful summer so far. Wanted to share this Caesar pasta salad recipe, as once you learn the dressing and crouton techniques, they can be used for quick meals throughout the year. A summer pasta salad that can be pulled from the fridge for a light, fresh meal is wonderful.
For those of you who are Italian cuisine purists, I know the salad was created in Tijuana, Mexico, by Chef Caesar Cardinian, an Italian Immigrant. It’s a classic and is traditionally made tableside in fine dining. I’ve done tableside meat and fish carving but never a Caesar. If you want to do a deep dive into its history here are an interesting article from Univision (it’s in Spanish but worth the translation), a quick breakdown from CTV, or a culinary exploration from The Guardian.
I have created my version by adding red wine vinegar and a few other twists, but feel free to adjust it to your tastes. The full written recipe is below. Also included is a classic way to make croutons out of fried bread. Bruschetta is a great use of fried bread as well.
My cooking classes are back this fall. We start off on September 22nd with Mamma’s Rolled Fettuccine and Puglia Pasta the Short Shapes. Here is a link to my September and October events. Hope to see you there.
Until then try the recipe, let me know your thoughts, and always #EatWithThoseYouLove ®
Peter
Caesar Pasta Salad Recipe
As with any recipe always use safe cooking procedures, & food safe practices. Health Canada is a great site for all food safe guidelines. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/topics/food-safety.html
Equipment:
1 pot for boiling pasta
Colander for straining pasta
Cutting Board
Juicing Utensil
Chef’s knife
Frying Pan
Toaster
Blender, Food processor or Immersion Blender
Ingredients:
This recipe can be made with anchovies or without, depending on your preferences or dietary needs.
6 to 8 anchovy filets – You can substitute ½ a teaspoon of fish sauce or Worchester sauce if you don’t have anchovies
3 cloves garlic
2-4 TBSP of Olive Oil
100 ml of olive oil
50 ml of lemon juice
50 ml of red wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper – Season the salad to your tastes. Be frugal with the salt because the anchovies are salty. I go heavy with the black pepper as that is my preference.
¼ head of Romaine lettuce leaves washed, dried, and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 small head of radicchio leaves washed, dried and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 cup of arugula leaves washed
225 grams – ½ pound of farfalle (bowtie) pasta
¼ cup of grated parmesan cheese
2-3 slices of sourdough bread (if you have sliced bread, you can make that work too)
Instructions:
Pasta
Boil your pasta. Salt the water so it tastes like to the sea. When the water has come to a boil, add your pasta.
Cook the pasta to al dente. Use the suggested cooking time on the pasta packaging and taste for doneness 1 minute before the given time.
Drain your pasta and rinse with cold water until the pasta has cooled. The only time you rinse pasta is when making a pasta salad. Do not rinse when coating with sauces. Drain your rinsed pasta thoroughly and place in the fridge to chill.
Croutons
Slice your sourdough bread into nice thick slices that will fit into a toaster. 2 to 3 bread slices are needed to make a decent amount of croutons, and 4 slices are required if you like extra croutons.
Add 2 TBSP of Olive oil to your fry pan, and add two cloves of crushed garlic. Add a pinch of salt to the oil and garlic. Gently sauté over a medium-low heat. Immediately place your bread in the toaster.
Toast your bread in a toaster until it is lightly toasted.
When the garlic has begun to brown, add your slices of toast to the pan. Do not let your garlic burn before or after adding the toast.
Let the bread sauté gently on each side, flipping when it has taken on a golden colour. Remove the garlic when golden and set aside to incorporate into the dressing.
Remove the toast when both sides are golden. Repeat as necessary for extra bread, and add oil as required. The bread should not be greasy but may glisten a little. Place on a paper towel if needed.
You can skip the toaster and pan-fry the bread directly, which is more traditional, but this way speeds up the process and requires less oil.
Once all your bread is toasted, rub each slice with the last garlic clove. This is a traditional method for preparing toast before placing bruschetta toppings on them. Cpaut them into cubes for your rustic homemade croutons. Set aside.
Dressing
Add the lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, and anchovies to your blender. Add a tablespoon of finely ground pepper to your dressing mixture. Blend until the ingredients are fully incorporated and smooth.
Begin to slowly drizzle in your oil if using a blender or food processor while your ingredients are mixing. If using an immersion blender, add small amounts of oil until incorporated, then repeat.
Once your dressing has thickened, taste it for seasoning. I like mine very peppery and tart. If you want a thicker dressing, add a tablespoon of Dijon mustard. If you want a less acidic dressing, add olive oil or parmesan cheese and blend in until thick.
Assembly
Add a third of your lettuce to the bottom of a deep bowl. Then, add half your pasta on top of the lettuce layer. Finally, add half your croutons to the pasta, plus a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. Repeat until you’ve layered all your ingredients. Leave the top layer without cheese and croutons.
Add dressing and toss all the ingredients thoroughly. Add some of the remaining croutons, cheese, and any reaming dressing, to the salad and toss. Taste. Add salt and pepper as needed.
Top with remaining cheese and croutons and serve immediately.
Options
You can turn this into a chicken Caesar salad, use the dressing for greens alone, or just toss cold pasta in it adding cucumbers, tomatoes, and olives. So many variations from a simple dressing. Now that you know my dressing and homemade crouton recipe, go and make this for someone you love.
Always remember to #EatwiththoseyouLove ®
Peter
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Peter Ciuffa
Pasta Boy Peter Inc.