Caesar Salad with Bacon and Artichoke Hearts

Caesar Salad with Bacon and Artichoke Hearts

We have been really loving Caesar salads lately! It’s important to me to include some sort of vegetable in our dinners and often times that ends up being some type of salad. Some of our staples are greek salad, garden salad or lately, caesar salad. I know it’s a classic recipe but I wanted to put my own spin on it. It’s really the creamy caesar dressing that ties everything together and absolutely makes it! From the creamy mayo base to the salty parmesan cheese and capers, it really is delicious. I usually do a mix of hearty greens such as kale, spinach, spring greens and romaine to add a bit more nutritional value as opposed to just romaine which, don’t get me wrong, is also delicious!

This is such an easy thing to make and bring to your potluck, bbq or family dinner and it will always be a hit! All of the toppings blend so well together and the homemade croutons are the cherry on top. They are crunchy and flavourful and so easy to make that I wish I had been making my own croutons much sooner! It’s also a good way of using up that old bread and preventing food waste. You can add any spices you like to the croutons; I typically keep it simple and just add garlic powder, salt and fresh cracked pepper which compliments the caesar salad beautifully.

Caesar Salad Dressing

salad, caesar, caesar salad, green salad, summer salad, caesar dressing, homemade

lunch, dinner, appetizer

Italian

Yield: 8-10

Author: Courtney Sketchley

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Summer Caesar Salad

Creamy caesar salad with bacon, artichokes and homemade croutons; a delicious spin on a classic recipe!

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 30 Min

Ingredients

For the salad:

• 1 medium-sized head green leaf lettuce, or equivalent of mixed greens or romaine
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 10-12 strips of bacon, cooked and chopped
• 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
• 1 cup Grana Padano cheese, shredded
• 6 cups cubed bread
• olive oil spray
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper

For the dressing:

• 3/4 cups good quality mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tsp creamy dijon mustard
• 1 tsp anchovy paste
• 3/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp jarred capers, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Make the croutons:

1. Preheat your oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Add the cubed bread to a large bowl and spray with olive oil. Toss once and then spray again to evenly coat the bread pieces. Add garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste and toss again to coat.
3. Lay the bread pieces in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 13-15 minutes or until crisp and golden.

Make the dressing:

1. In a small bowl, add all of the dressing ingredients and whisk until fully combined.

Assemble the salad

1. Wash, chop and spin the greens and add them to a large bowl.
2. In the same bowl, add your desired amount of dressing and toss until all of the leaves are coated.
3. Add the artichoke hearts, green onions, bacon and Grana Padano cheese and toss again to combine.
4. Add the homemade croutons on top of the salad along with a little extra cheese and serve!

www.strawberrycreamkitchen.ca/blog/summer-caesar-salad

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