It all started when I seen a photo of a Grilled Caesar Salad on Instagram from the Canola Eat Well team. I had heard of grilled romaine before but I had never tried it. I love Caesar salad and I BBQ as often as I use the stove so it was high time I grilled some lettuce.
Grilling the romaine makes it very tender and gives the salad an amazing texture. The dressing is so fresh with the perfect hit of garlic and fantastic tanginess from the balsamic vinegar and grainy mustard. The buttery fruitiness of the reggiano is the perfect finish to compliment the dressing.
The recipe looks long with a lot of ingredients but it is actually quick and easy once the mise en place is done. Arranging the ingredients takes more time then preparing the actual salad. You will find that after you make the salad once you will be able to get it together and plated within 15 minutes.
A quick note: Make extra croutons. They are so good you may find yourself and anyone else hanging around the kitchen snacking on them while dinner is being prepped.
Grilled Caesar Salad
Romaine Hearts
2 lemons – zested
2 tablespoons of canola oil
croutons:
cheese bread sticks – cubed
2 tablespoons of canola oil
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder
pinch of dried parsley
pinch of dried basil
salt and pepper
dressing:
2 cloves of garlic – grated
1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of grainy mustard
2 tablespoons of grated parmigiana reggiano
1 teaspoon Worcestershire
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1/4 cup of canola oil
For the croutons: Heat 2 tablespoons of canola oil in a pan over medium. Add the cubed bread sticks, tossing to coat. Cook until nice and toasty, 5 – 6 minutes. Add the garlic powder, a pinch of salt and pepper, 2 tablespoons grated parmigiana reggiano, 1 teaspoon of lemon zest and the dried herbs, stirring well. Pour into a large bowl and let cool.
For the dressing: In a small bowl combine the grated garlic, balsamic vinegar, grainy mustard, 2 tablespoons of reggiano, Worcestershire and 1 teaspoon of lemon zest. Whisk in the 1/4 cup of canola oil. Set aside.
Drizzle the romaine hearts and halved lemons with 2 tablespoons of canola oil.
Grill the romaine hearts and lemon over medium high heat flipping as needed. The romaine is done when it has a nice char on the edges.
To serve place a romaine heart on a plate, slice in half length wise. Top with croutons, dressing, freshly grated parmigiana reggiano and finish with squeezing the juice of half a grilled lemon over everything!
