Little Gem Salad with Candied Walnuts & Caesar Dressing
By Spring
Published on 14 December 2018
"There is nothing better than a really good Caesar salad. At its finest, it’s a simple, beautiful combination of ingredients, laced and stitched together by an unctuous dressing. The dressing is easy to get right but so often very disappointing – the trick is to use the best possible ingredients. I like to serve this salad with bruschetta, placed on the idle of the table, for everyone to mop up all the wonderful flavours." - Skye GyngellTime and servings
30 minsTotal time
4Servings
20 minsPrep time
10 minsCooking time
Ingredients
- 1 small bunch of flat leaf parsley, leaves only, finely chopped
- 1 small bunch of chives, very finely chopped
- 2 little gem lettuce
- 50 g of parmesan, plus 2tbsp freshly grated for the Caesar dressing
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped, for the Caesar dressing
- 1.5 tsp of mustard powder, for the Caesar dressing
- 3 anchovies, for the Caesar dressing
- 1 free range egg, yolk, for the Caesar dressing
- 1 lemon, juice, for the Caesar dressing
- 200 ml of extra virgin olive oil, for the Caesar dressing
- 2 tablespoons of creme fraiche, for the Caesar dressing
- 150 g of walnuts, shelled, for the Candied walnuts
- 100 g of granulated sugar, for the Candied walnuts
- 1 large pinch of sea salt, for the Candied walnuts
Method
Step 1
First prepare the candied walnuts. Preheat the oven to 200oC/Gas 6. Lay the walnut halves on a baking tray and toast on the middle shelf of the oven for a couple of minutes, being careful that they don’t burn. Remove from the oven and set aside.Step 2
Tip the sugar into a small heavy based pan, place over a medium and stir with a medium heat until the sugar melts and begins to colour. Cook for a minute or so, until the sugar syrup is a warm amber colour. Add the nuts and stir to coat the nuts in the syrup. Remove form heat and spreads out on a tray lined with baking parchment to cool. Sprinkle with salt and set aside until ready to use.Step 3
For the dressing, put the garlic, mustard powder, anchovies, egg yolk, lemon juice and Parmesan into a food processor and blitz for a few seconds to combine, then will the motor running, slowly drizzle in olive oil through the funnel, (It is important that you do this as slowly as possible to ensure that the dressing doesn’t curdle.), transfer to a bowl and stir in the creme fraiche. Thin to a pouring consistency with a little warm water.Step 4
Separate the lettuce leaves, leaving them whole. Wash and pat dry, then arrange attractively in individual bowls or on a large platter. Spoon over the dressing, then shave some Parmesan over the salad, scatter over the candied nuts and finish with chopped parsley and chives.