Caesar Salad Dressing with Roasted Garlic

A delicious, creamy dressing, packed full of flavour.

This tastes a thousand times better than anything you can buy in a bottle, and you can tweak it to your own tastes.

It's also incredibly easy to make, and if you're gluten free, there's an easy substitution you can make for one of the ingredients, plus if you don't like the flavour of anchovy, you can skip it.

It will keep in the fridge for a week, so get yourself some Cos lettuce (tip: soaking the leaves in ice cold water whilst you prepare other ingredients will crisp it right up), and any 'illegal' toppings you fancy adding to it - I like grilled chicken and crispy bacon, but shhhh, don't tell the purists!

I'm confident you're going to love this, and never go back to bottles from supermarkets!

Ingredients

• 1 to 1.5tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (tbsps are 15ml, the amount wll depend on the acidity of your lemon, so go with 1 tbsp to start with) - add to a medium bowl
  
• 4 roasted garlic cloves, peeled and pushed through a garlic crusher (if you're using raw garlic, just one clove)
• 1/2 to 1 tsp anchovy paste (I use this one*)
• 1/2 tsp dijon mustard (e.g. Maille or Grey Poupon brand)
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce OR use Henderson's relish for gluten free
• 125g Mayonnaise (e.g. Hellman's)
• 25g finely grated parmesan cheese (plus extra to top your Caesar salad)
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• A pinch of salt if desired, after tasting

Method

1. Mix together the lemon juice, garlic, anchovy paste (I find this gives a smoother result rather than using anchovies, and keeps longer), dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce / Hendersons' relish until thoroughly combined. Easiest done in a medium-sized bowl with a small whisk. 

2. Add the mayonnaise, parmesan and black pepper. Mix until thoroughly blended and then taste for seasoning. I add just a pinch of salt for my tastes, and the extra 1/2 tbsp lemon juice. So if you want it to be sharper, extra lemon juice, and if you want it more savoury, a pinch of salt, or even a little extra anchovy paste. It's even nicer the next day, when the flavours have blended more, and should keep for 5 to 7 days in the fridge. 

3. For a classic Caesar salad, simply toss coarsely cut cos leaves with just enough dressing to coat them, and top with croutons and an extra grating of parmesan cheese.

Notes

To roast individual garlic cloves, keep their skin on, and spray with a little olive oil. Wrap loosely altogether in foil, and put in a pre-heated oven, gas mark 6 for 12 to 15 minutes or until tender. If you want to roast a whole head, you can either halve it through the middle, or cut off (and discard) the top, exposing the very top of the flesh of the cloves. Spray, brush or rub with olive oil, wrap loosely in foil (or the cloves might stick to the foil), and bake for around 30 to 40 minutes or until tender. If you squeeze the cloves out of their skins, you can freeze them for future use.

*Affiliate link - it won't change or increase the price you pay, but I will get a tiny percentage of the total price to go towards the upkeep of my blog.