Simple Sides: Caesar Salad Leaves with Homemade Garlic Breadcrumbs

Yes, yes. I know I should probably be focusing on bringing you brand new recipes for things I’ve never published before, but as spring has started to creep in I’ve decided I can’t not share my new favourite side dish with you all: big, crunchy romain lettuce leaves, doused in my favourite cheats Caesar salad dressing, and topped not with croutons, but with generous handfuls of crispy, crunchy, make from leftover bread homemade breadcrumbs.

My Cheats Caesar Salad with Leftover Bread Croutons, topped with jammy soft boiled eggs and extra parmesan shavings is a meal in itself, my Brussels Sprout Caesar Salad is a festive treat perfect to serve alongside leftovers and cold cuts and this Caesar salad? This is the Caesar salad to serve alongside simple proteins to make a meal, from grilled chicken to salmon or even to go with a bubbly baked pasta dish to lighten things up. Perhaps my Classic Lasagna would be too much, but my meat-free Stupidly Simple Veggie Lasagna (incidentally adapted from Julia Turshen’s brilliant first solo book Small Victories #ad which also inspired my Caesar dressing) would be the perfect companion.

Oh, and did I mention how addictive they are? As in, for lunch today I ate every leaf pictured with my hands alongside a small bowl of roasted red pepper and pear soup? Lunchtime soup and salad goals, right there.

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Caesar Salad Leaves with Homemade Garlic Breadcrumbs

• Author: Rachel Phipps
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 5 minutes
• Total Time: 5 minutes
• Yield: 4 1x
• Category: Salads
• Cuisine: American

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Description

These easy Caesar Salad Leaves pair crunchy lettuce, creamy, tangy Caesar dressing and crispy homemade breadcrumbs to make a delicious side to serve alongside soups, grilled meat and fish, or even a veggie lasagna.

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Ingredients

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• 60g (2 oz) stale bread
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• heaped 1/4 tsp dried garlic granules 
• generous pinch sea salt
• 1 head romain lettuce
• 4 tbsp Caesar salad dressing
• freshly ground black pepper

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Instructions

1. First make the garlic breadcrumbs. Blitz the bread in a food processor until you have relatively fine breadcrumbs with a few larger chunks. Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan set over a high heat. Fry the breadcrumbs for 3-4 minutes until golden and crunchy, seasoning lightly with salt and sprinkling in the garlic granules during the final minute. Set aside.
2. Make the homemade Caesar salad dressing if you’ve not already got some in the fridge.
3. Pull apart the romain lettuce and sit them, curved side down to catch the dressing and breadcrumbs over a serving platter.
4. Drizzle over the Caesar dressing followed by the breadcrumbs. Finish the platter with a good grinding of black pepper and serve immediately. 

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