Loyal Portola Valley Bianchini’s shoppers, Patrick and Karen, shared a delicious new take on the classic Caesar salad, which is said to have originated in Tijuana. While dining at Pepe’s restaurant on Cozumel Island, Patrick and Karen were treated to a table side preparation of this delectable salad. They loved it so much, they wanted to share.

Cozumel Caesar Salad

A yummy twist on the traditional salad

Ingredients
Croutons

• 1/2 sourdough baguette
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt, to taste
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced

Salad

• 2 extra large eggs
• 4 large cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Half of a 3.3 oz. jar anchovies, or one 2 oz. can
• Liberal amount of ground black pepper
• Juice of quartered lemon, not Meyer
• 3 generous shakes Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, more for topping
• 2 Romaine lettuce hearts

Directions

To make croutons: Slice half of the sourdough baguette into 1/4-inch slices. Pour the olive oil into a non-stick pan. Bring to medium heat and place the baguette slices in the pan. Lightly season with salt and pepper and add the garlic cloves. Flip bread slices when golden brown. Watch carefully because they can easily burn. Transfer to paper towels. Makes about 6 slices per person. The croutons can be made a few hours before the salad.

To make the salad: Coddle the eggs. Put eggs in cold water and bring to almost boiling. Cook more eggs than you’re going to use to get it right. Cook until the white just begins to solidify but the yoke is runny. Discard the whites and just use the yolks.

Using a garlic press, mince garlic cloves. Put the garlic in a bowl and add the extra virgin olive oil. Add half of the oil from the anchovy’s jar. Chop the anchovies into fine paste using a large knife. (Do not use anchovy paste.) Add a liberal amount of ground black pepper and the lemon juice. (If someone doesn’t like the taste of anchovies, some extra lemon juice cancels most of that flavor in their serving.) Shake in the Worcestershire, add the grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Add the coddled egg yolks. Beat the ingredients together with a fork. Taste it and if it’s too acidic, add a pinch of sugar.

Use the best romaine lettuce hearts, and only the hearts. Wash and dry. Place 6-8 leaves per person in a large flat bowl. Toss the leaves gently with the dressing. Place the romaine hearts onto two large, chilled plates. Garnish with shaved or grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and add the croutons.

Servings: 2