SHARON LEE’S CAESAR SALAD

 SHARON LEE’S CAESAR SALAD

Before cooking animal-free, my all-time favorite salad was Caesar Salad. Although my own Caesar Salad now contains no animal products, I derive the same satisfaction and pleasure from this recipe as I did back then.

Serves 4-6

1/2 c. peanut oil (Planter’s is only brand with enough peanut flavor for this dressing, unless you use an import)

1/4 c. white vinegar

1 garlic clove, peeled and cut into a few pieces

1 t. mild curry powder

3/4 t. sugar

couple dashes salt plus to taste

1 lg. head romaine lettuce, crisped and torn into larger than bite-size pieces

1 c. homemade croutons

1/4 c. pine nuts

freshly ground black pepper

Combine first 6 ingredients in blender container. Blend on medium speed till creamy and thoroughly blended. Adjust for salt and blend again. Refrigerate till ready to use.

When ready to serve salad, place lettuce into large bowl. Sprinkle with croutons, pine nuts and a liberal amount of freshly ground black pepper. Stir dressing well, then drizzle over salad and toss gently till well-coated. Serve at once.

Notes: Do not use wet lettuce; it will water down the dressing. And, please do not substitute iceberg lettuce for the romaine; it does not go well with this dressing.

To make croutons: Cut a couple of slices of French or Italian bread into 1/2 inch cubes. Place on baking sheet, and bake in 350 degree oven till dry and crisp, approximately 5 minutes. Watch carefully that they do not over bake and burn.