NET RECIPES
Fabulous NET Caesar Salad
The key to an unctious, body-ful Caesar salad is in the dressing. The same ingredients combined in different ways create different results. Your tableside, mixed with a spoon vinaigrette-style Caesar salad is all fine and good, but me likes the creamy. The same ingredients in the same quantities here, are prepared as if you were making a mayonnaise.
2 large egg yolks
2 T Dijon Mustard
1 t Tabasco or other hot sauce (I like Tapatio)
1 cup Olive Oil
1 cup Salad Oil
4 cloves garlic
1 1/2 t Kosher Salt
Juice of 2-3 lemons
2-3 T Red Wine Vinegar
2 t Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup canned anchovies, drained of oil and chopped fine
Fresh ground black pepper
1 cup fresh medium-small grated parmesan cheese (1/16 - 1/32" wide
strands about 1/4" long are best), divided in half
fresh homemade croutons (3/4" diced bread tossed with Olive Oil
and dried in warm oven)
washed and dried Romain lettuce leaves (hearts are the sweetest)
whole anchovies for garnish
In a flat bottomed mixing bowl set on a folded kitchen towel, whick together the first three ingredients. Very slowly drizzle in the Olive Oil while constantly whisking to emulsify your dressing base. If the dressing base appears too thick and verging on rubbery, add a few drops of red wine vinegar or water to loosen and keep whisking. Once all Olive Oil has been incorporated, drizzle in the Salad Oil - you can go a bit faster here. After incorporating all of the oil, set base aside. In a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic cloves with the kosher salt until completely liquid. Add juice of 2 lemons to mortar and swirl around. Invert contents into dressing base, whisking just to combine (dressing will begin to become much more liquid now). Add vinegar, Worcestershire Sauce, chopped anchovices, black pepper and half of the grated parmesan and whisk to combine. Taste for salt and "lemoniness" - adjust as appropriate. More lemon juice (or water) will make the dressing looser/more liquid - but this dressing works best when you can keep it as "tight" as possible, given the liquids which youneed to add. Store dressing, sealed, in fridge until ready to use or up to 4 days, but no longer as it contains raw egg yolk..
To prepare salad, in a very large mixing bowl (the largest you own!), put lettuce leaves, croutons and half of the remaining parmesan (1/4 cup). Add salt and freshly ground black pepper and toss once. Add about 2-3 oz. of dressing per plate of finished salad to the bowl and toss lightly but thoroughly, coating front and back of every leaf (and the croutons and your hand - yes your hand - in the process). Do not use tongs to toss - use your hand (clean, of course). Stack leaves on plate from largest to smallest, sprinkle dressing tossed croutons over leaves, sprinkle with remaining parmesan cheese and garnish with two whole anchovies.
Dinner Menus by Samsunshine Levy
NET RECIPES
Appetizers
Fantastic NET Caesar Salad
Orange-Ginger Shrimp Ceviche
Salt Cod Brandade (Baccala/Bacalao)
Main Dishes
Chipotle Pork Posole Stew
Dover Sole (or Tilapia) "Meuniere"
Tenderloin Filet Au Poivre
Easy Summer Grilled Pizza
Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino con Gamberoni, Zest and Body!
Soup & Sides
Famous NET MAN Steamed Broccoli
Perfect & Easy Tuscan White Bean Soup
Bacon Mustard Brussel Sprouts
Creamy Polenta
Crunchy Vegetarian Quinoa Tabouli
Drinks
Limoncello
Dark and Stormy cocktail
Homemade Santa Fe Hot Cocoa Mix now with the power of chipotle
Dark Rum Egg Nog
Sweets
Apple Scone Cobbler
Nina's Birthday Cardamom Peach Cobbler
Italian Semifreddo Cassata
Rich & Dark Pecan Pie
Easy No-Bake Chocolate Pots de Creme
Moistest German Chocolate Cake
Christmas Morning Bacon Doughnuts
Paste di Meliga (Italian Cornmeal Cookies)
Even More Foolproof Vodka Pie Crust
Ginger Pecan Pie
