Carolina’s Caesar salad with anchovy croutons
They say you teach best what you most need to learn, and when it comes to entertaining, I know exactly what lesson I’m working on: Keep it simple. That is not, let’s say, my strong suit. The last big party I hosted was for 150 people, and it took six hired helpers and more than that in friends to put together a “little taco spread” that spanned a 12-foot buffet table. It was a fun party, and the food was delicious (if I do say so myself). But it was no small task.
When I look back at that night, the moment that really sticks in my mind was the end of it, when we sat around — those friends who’d helped, a few organizers from the charity the party was benefiting and the random (but welcome) stragglers — in my kitchen, naturally, and ate quesadillas.
These weren’t fancy quesadillas, just white melted cheese sandwiched between warm, griddled, flour tortillas that we’d had delivered from a nearby taquerìa. We had a stack of 20 of them, 2 feet high, in the center of the table, each one served on a paper plate wrapped in foil that we unwrapped and tore apart, dipped in salsa or opened up to stuff with pickled jalapeño peppers that came in little Styrofoam containers along with the quesadillas. The moment was relaxed, spontaneous, inviting, and the food, the epitome of simple, was absolutely delicious.
This, for me, is the recipe for a perfect dinner party.
Determined to change my ways, I decided to create a dinner party that took place in the kitchen with those quesadillas as the main event. Chili seemed obvious as the main dish. And, in another unprecedented attempt at keeping it simple, I decided not to serve pork or beef, because not everybody eats pork or beef.
I landed on turkey, but instead of making regular chili and just substituting turkey for the beef (the idea of tomato with turkey just didn’t appeal to me), I wanted to make a turkey chili that really took into consideration the flavor of the bird. I got lost for a while down an Italian road where no chili maker wants to find herself until Carolynn showed me the way back with the bright idea to turn it into chile verde. I’d had pork chile verde but never seen turkey treated that way. It turned out to be delicious.
I always have to have a salad, no matter how pared down a menu, and I knew that a Caesar was the only thing to serve with my chili spread. First, it originated in Tijuana, so in my mind it goes with the border-inspired chili meal. What’s more, the way I make Caesar salad (and the way it was originally made), the romaine leaves are left whole, not chopped, so you can easily pick them up and eat them with your hands. Still, I make it in batches. When the bowl starts to run low, I toss together some more salad. Note: Keeping it simple does not mean lowering your standards!
That’s it. That’s the 2014 Perfect Holiday Dinner Party. Do no more. OK … if you really want to go all out, you can stop by a bakery and pick up some Mexican wedding cakes, which aren’t cakes at all but round cookies made of ground pecans or walnuts and covered in powdered sugar that goes all over your face and your dress and the floor when you bite into one. Serve them with a pile of napkins (it’ll give you a reason to buy those pretty little paper napkins they sell at Christmastime).
Invite friends, including the 5-year olds. (They’ll love the food!) Open a bottle of red wine. Get out your spoons. Add a splash of water if the chili looks dry or a can of beans if it’s looking like it might not be enough. Relax, and stir.
Anchovy croutons
Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Halve the loaf of bread crosswise. Pull the bread out in 1- to 1½-inch chunks and put the chunks in a large bowl (save the remaining bread and crusts for another use, such as bread crumbs).
In a sauté pan, combine the oil and anchovies over low heat, breaking up the anchovies with the tines of a fork or a wooden spoon, and cooking until the anchovies have disappeared into the oil, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 1 minute (stir constantly so the garlic does not burn). Remove from heat.
Sprinkle the salt over the bread and drizzle with the seasoned oil. Toss the bread to coat the pieces evenly. Spread the bread in an even layer onto a rimmed baking sheet and bake until golden, about 30 minutes. Check the bread occasionally, using tongs to turn the pieces for even toasting. Remove any smaller croutons that are browning quickly to a plate, until all of the croutons are toasted. Cool the croutons to room temperature before adding to the salad.
Dressing
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the beaten egg yolk with the anchovies and garlic, pulsing to combine. Combine the olive and vegetable oils, and add a few drops of the oil blend to the food processor, pulsing to incorporate it in with the egg. Add the lime juice, vinegar, mustard, Worcestershire, several dashes of Tabasco and salt, pulsing a few times to incorporate the flavors. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the rest of the oil, forming the dressing (drizzle only a few drops a time at first, increasing little by little as the dressing emulsifies). Stir in the pepper and Parmigiano, and taste the dressing, adjusting the seasoning if desired. This makes about 1½ cups dressing, more than is needed for the remainder of the recipe; the dressing will keep, 3 to 5 days, covered and refrigerated.
Caesar salad
Remove and discard the outer limp leaves from outside the hearts of romaine. Trim and discard the delicate or limp dark green tips of the leaves (about 2 to 3 inches from the top), so that only the sturdy hearts remain; you want only the acid green or yellow hearts, nothing leafy or dark green. (You will chop away more than you feel comfortable throwing away, so find another use for it.) Separate the leaves from the cores, discard the cores and refrigerate the lettuce leaves until ready to assemble the salad.
To make the salad, put the leaves in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the salt and lime juice over the leaves, tossing to coat the lettuce with the seasoning. Drizzle the dressing over the leaves, gently tossing and massaging the dressing over each leaf. Add the croutons and gently toss the salad again.
Transfer the salad to a large wide-mouthed bowl, building it in layers with grated cheese and pepper between each layer. Grind pepper over the top of the assembled salad and serve immediately.
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