Description
A slightly healthier twist on the classic chicken Caesar salad with a homemade healthy Caesar dressing. This restaurant quality salad is easy to make, and is impressive.
Ingredients
1 batch of healthy Caesar dressing
Croutons (optional)
- 3 cups French bread, torn into small pieces (About 1/4 to 1/2 inch)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Chicken
- 4 chicken breasts
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
Salad
- 3 large heads romaine lettuce, chopped, rinsed and well dried
- 1/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Make the healthy Caesar dressing: First, make the Caesar dressing, if you haven’t already. Click here to get the recipe. It’s easy, only takes 10 minutes to make. It can also be made up to several days in advance.
- Prep: Preheat your oven to 175 degrees Fahrenheit. Tear the bread into the 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces and spread them out on a medium-sized baking sheet – set aside. Prep the salad ingredients, and chicken so they’re ready to go when you’re ready to assemble the salad. For the romaine lettuce: chop the romaine into chunks, rinse under cold water and dry. Set aside.
- Dry out the croutons: Place the torn bread into the oven and let them cook for 4 to 10 minutes, tossing every 3 minutes. The timing will depend on if you are using fresh bread, or stale break – either one works great, you just need to dry fresh bread out a little longer. You will know they’re dried out when they feel crusty, and no longer tacky to the touch – they won’t take on any color yet. Set them aside. Turn the oven temp up to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Pound the chicken: Place your chicken breasts on a plastic cutting board. Cover the chicken with 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Use the flat end of a meat mallet (or, use a rolling pin, can, or bottom of a heavy skillet) to pound the thickest parts of the meat so they are even with the thinner parts of the chicken. The point of this is to help the chicken cook faster, and more evenly – allowing for a more juicy end result. Set the chicken aside.
- Finish the croutons: Once the oven has heated up to 350 degrees, toss the olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder onto the croutons directly on the baking sheet they’re on. Toss until the bread cubes are really well coated in everything. Spread them back into an even layer. Bake the croutons for 14 to 18 minutes, tossing them halfway through. You will know they’re done when they look golden brown, and feel hardened. You can pop them under the broiler for 30 seconds to a minute if you want a little more color. Allow them to cool down on the baking sheet until you’re ready to use them.
- Cook the chicken: Heat a large skillet over medium high heat (I love using my cast iron skillet for a crispy crust). Sprinkle one side of the chicken with a generous amount of kosher salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place the chicken seasoned side down in the skillet, season the other side. Cook about 3 minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reads 160 degrees Fahrenheit (it will reach 165 with residual heat). Remove the chicken to a cutting board.
- Rest the chicken & slice: Rest the chicken for 5 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute in the meat. Then, slice the chicken, or cut it up into cubes.
- Assemble: Add the romaine to a large mixing bowl. Add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the Caesar dressing to the lettuce, toss to combine well. Toss in the 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese. Transfer the tossed salad to your serving bowls, or plates. Top with the cooked, sliced chicken, and sprinkle some of the croutons on top. Serve immediately. Note: you could alternately cut up the chicken, and toss it with the lettuce, along with the croutons and serve it family style that way.
Notes
Serving size: This salad serves about 4 to 5 people. If you don’t plan to serve it to that many people at once, no worries – just toss the lettuce for as many people as you’re going to make it for and assemble it accordingly. Store the remaining ingredients separately (suggestions below).
Storing the ingredients: If you’re not going to eat the entire salad when it’s fresh, here is how to store it. Store the washed, cut, and dried lettuce in a salad keeper, or a ziplock bag with a paper towel in side. Store the dressing in a jar, or air tight container in the fridge. Store the chicken in an air tight container in the fridge. Store the croutons in an air tight container on the counter – if you dried them out enough, they should remain crunchy for several days. Only assemble as much salad as you plan to eat at one time. Once the dressing is on the salad, it will make the lettuce wilt. For leftovers, you can either re-heat the chicken, or eat it cold – either options are delish.
Dressing: You may have some Caesar dressing leftover. It’s great on any salad, really, and it’s great on plain chicken.
parmesan cheese: I highly suggest using a higher quality, fresher parmesan cheese for this recipe, since it’s such an important ingredient.
Croutons: Croutons are iconic in a Caesar salad, they are delicious. However, if I were making this for myself for a quick weeknight dinner, I would omit the croutons. Both, for ease, and to cut back on calories a little. However, if I am serving this salad to guests, or I am feeling fancy, they are totally worth the effort of making them.
Gluten free: To make this recipe gluten free either omit the croutons, or use store bought gluten free croutons. Or use gluten free bread to make your own.
Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts are an estimation. I did include the calculation for about 1/4 of the Caesar dressing ( you may use a little more, or a little less for this size of a salad). Keep in mind the nutrition facts will vary if you omit the croutons.
