Recipe Makeovers

Caesar salad

A crunchy, creamy Caesar salad with all the trimmings, but with less calories and more fiber and vitamins than the regular version.

If you were to ask me what my favorite salad was, a handful of salads would quickly come to mind: Greek salad, Salad Niçoise and tabbouleh would certainly make the short list. But in the end I would probably have to pick Caesar salad as my absolute favorite. (By the way, Caesar salad isn't named after a Roman Emperor, but an Italian chef named Caesar Cardini who, legend has it, invented the salad from leftovers at his restaurant in Tijuana, Mexico in the 1920s.)

The combination of crisp lettuce, crunchy croutons and creamy dressing, combined with flavorsome Parmesan cheese, is a true delight to the senses. Unfortunately, a typical Caesar salad isn't so delightful for your waistline. What with the calorie-rich croutons, dressing and cheese, a serve of Caesar salad can easily top the 500 calorie mark.

But why should this wonderful salad be a guilty pleasure, only to be enjoyed infrequently? Well, it doesn't have to be. Ric and I both adore Caesar salad, and we've spent a fair amount of time experimenting in the kitchen trying to come up with a healthy version.

I'm glad to report that after a few dismal failures we've finally come up with what we believe is the perfect Caesar salad: good tasting and good for you.

A healthy Caesar salad

The way we've made the salad healthier is to use olive oil infused toasted whole wheat bread pieces instead of fried croutons. The dressing in this recipe is relatively high in calories (mainly from healthy unsaturated oils), but it's also high in flavor, so a little goes a long way. We're also not going to go overboard on the Parmesan cheese. Finally, this Caesar salad is a deluxe version with bacon bits-- but we're going to use lean Canadian bacon instead of typical fatty bacon. (You can, of course, use soy bacon if you don't eat meat.)

Let's have a look at how these few small changes have impacted the nutritional content of a Caesar salad:

Our Caesar salad contains substantially fewer calories than a regular version. It's also lower in fat and higher in dietary fiber. And best of all, it tastes just as good as the regular version. Here's the recipe so you can try this recipe out at home. This recipe makes two servings.

Place 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon finely grated Parmesan cheese, 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 clove of minced (crushed) garlic, 2 finely chopped anchovy fillets, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper in a jar with a screw top lid and shake until well combined.

Broil (grill) 2 lean bacon rashers, such as Canadian bacon, (rind and fat removed) on both sides until cooked and chop into small pieces.

Brush 2 slices of whole wheat bread evenly on both sides with 2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil and toast until golden brown.

Remove the crusts and cut into croutons.

Place 3 handfuls of washed and dried romaine (Cos) lettuce leaves in a salad bowl with half the bacon bits and croutons, drizzle with the dressing and toss gently to coat well. Scatter the remaining bacon bits and croutons on top and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of finely grated Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

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