Caesar Salad

(not my picture)

It's all about the dressing. After that, it's just piling things on a plate. You need to like anchovies and garlic for this one. It will have people saying wow. I started years ago with the Joy of Cooking recipe and messed about with it 'til I arrived at this:

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cloves garlic
• Salt - a good pinch
• Juice ½ lemon and a little of the zest
• 1 egg 
• 1 tbs mayonnaise
• 3 or 4 anchovy fillets
• Olive oil - about 120ml of the good stuff
• Black pepper
• PLUS: Romaine lettuce, croutons, parmesan

METHOD
If you don't have croutons ready, start by making some:

1. Cut slices of bread into cubes
2. Sprinkle with extra virgin olive oil (don't soak 'em to death) 
3. Put on a baking tray in a medium hot oven for 10 minutes, then shake about, and keep checking and shaking until they're just right. 
4. Season with salt and pepper

DRESSING

1. Chop the garlic and mash using the flat of a knife with salt on a chopping board to make a paste. 
2. Chop the anchovies and combine with the garlic paste. Scrape into a bowl.
3. Whisk-in lemon juice and zest, then the egg, then the mayo. 
4. Slowly add olive oil, whisking constantly to emulsify. 
5. Add pepper (you probably won’t want to add salt due to the anchovies being salty) 
6. Taste and adjust with more lemon, or oil, or mayonnaise to taste.

Arrange romaine lettuce (whole or chopped) on serving plates and add a handful of croutons, then spoon-over the dressing and finish with grated parmesan.

Let's see if I can think of a variation. Oh yes, that's it. Add chicken.