I love croutons on my Caesar salad but unless they are homemade they are difficult to eat because they are so hard. I have to scoop them up with my fork – forget stabbing them as they just fall apart. But I feel they are an important part of the salad. My croutons are made with a softer bread used for sandwiches – I used a soft sourdough bread once and the croutons were delicious.
When I saw the presentation and the ingredients I knew this was for me. The breadcrumbs are from thekitchen.com which I slightly adapted and I used my own Caesar Salad dressing.
Maybe a little messy eating each leaf with your fingers but what the heck have some fun and it’s summertime! If you’re grilling something like ribs or barbeque chicken your hands will be messy anyways! Just have plenty of paper towels on hand.
I also made a regular Caesar salad where I tore up the leaves and it was just as good that way and not so messy. I did miss the crunch of the croutons, just a little!
Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs Instead of Croutons on your Caesar Salad
The lemon zest really added some great flavor – we all know what citrus can do to a recipe!
- 3 large garlic cloves, minced
- fresh parsley, minced
- 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp. lemon zest
- 1-1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 2 mini romaine lettuce hearts
Melt 3 tbsp. butter in a large skillet and add the minced garlic. Cook, stirring until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add the panko breadcrumbs and stir to coat in the garlic butter mixture. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown.
Transfer the mixture to a bowl; add minced parsley, salt and pepper to taste and the lemon zest. Cool before adding the Parmesan cheese. Add 1/2 cup of the cheese and using your hands massage the cheese into the breadcrumbs until it is completely incorporated.
Cut the root ends from the romaine lettuce, tear apart the leaves and place in a bowl. Add the dressing to taste and coat each leaf using your hands. Add the breadcrumbs and additional Parmesan to taste and toss. Place in a large flat bowl and sprinkle more breadcrumbs and Parmesan if desired. Add cracked pepper to taste…
The dressing can be made ahead and leftover breadcrumbs can be stored at room temperature for up to 5 days. I kept them in the refrigerator.
Judi’s Caesar Dressing:
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1-1/2 tsp. anchovy paste
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Combine above ingredients and mix well to incorporate. Store in refrigerator.
Check out my homemade Parmesan croutons… just don’t buy the store bought croutons!
Recipe by cookingwithauntjuju.com
Can’t find the mini romaine or the salad above is too messy, the breadcrumbs are also very tasty tossed in a regular Caesar salad.
I have some romaine I plan to toss onto the grill today. 🥬🔥
Great idea as I like to grill romaine too! Little extra flavor for your summer meal 🙂 See https://cookingwithauntjuju.com/2013/08/10/grilled-romaine-with-blue-cheese-bacon-vinaigrette/
I totally agree with you about the croutons. Serving this salad in individual romaine leaves is a brilliant idea.
Thanks Bernadette – I liked the idea a lot – nice presentation too! Croutons are hard to pick up unless they are homemade 🙂
Great idea! I can also see this tasty mixture topping some other salads! 🙂
Thanks Ronit – most definitely on other salads. I just discovered Yuzu Juice (later post) and iti would be delicious spritzed over this salad 🙂
Yuzu juice is so wonderfully aromatic. I can definitely see it spritzed over the salad. 🙂