Caesar Salad with Chicken and Slow Roasted Tomatoes
Randomly food blog browsing one morning, I came across a recipe from Smitten Kitchen that looked - and sounded - absolutely fabulous: slow roasted tomatoes. And very, very easy - just the way I like it. All it takes is time (3 hours give or take). That sounds scary, but other than the 5 or so minutes of prep time, you mostly just wait - and there's no need to be anywhere near the kitchen while you do. When they're done, you'll see the wait was worth it - the tomatoes are intensely full of flavour and your kitchen will smell amazing.
I figured they would go great with the Caesar's salad I had in mind for lunch. They did, but I'll let you be the judge...
Ingredients (serves 2):
6-8 leaves romaine lettuce (or 2 heads baby gem lettuce), washed
50g parmesan cheese
1/2 baguette (sliced, to make the croutons)
1 anchovy, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
optional: 150g grilled chicken thigh filet
slow roasted tomatoes:
cherry tomatoes (as many as you want)
olive oil
cloves of garlic, whole and unpeeled
salt and pepper
Instructions:
1. Start by making the slow roasted tomatoes. Preheat your oven to 110°C (225°F). Cut the cherry tomatoes in half - around the 'waist', not from pit to pit. If you're using mini roma tomatoes, then halve them lengthwise. Line a tray with baking parchment and arrange the tomatoes, cut side up, along with the garlic cloves.
2. Leave in the oven for approximately three hours. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper (you can also add herbs at this point, like thyme or rosemary). Place in the oven for approximately three hours (this may vary depending on the size of your tomatoes and your oven), until the outsides are dry but they still have a little juice on the inside. Use immediately, or keep in the fridge with olive oil.
3. For the salad, start by mixing the olive oil with the garlic. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the garlic flavour to infuse the oil.
4. Mince the anchovies and add to the olive oil and garlic, along with the egg. Whisk until you get a creamy, even consistency. At the end, whisk in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Voilà: Caeser's salad dressing - with a distinctive flavour that has a lot to do with the anchovy. If you’re not vegetarian but your ordinary instinct (like mine) is to avoid anchovies - don't. I promise you this works.
5. Turn your oven to its grill setting, with the temperature up high. Line a tray with baking parchment. Slice the baguette and place them on the tray. Brush with olive oil. I added some black Hawaiian salt, which gave a really nice flavour. Place in the oven until toasted and nicely golden.
6. In the meantime, cut the chicken thigh filet into bite size strips and grill (use a grill pan) until golden brown.
7. Tear the romaine lettuce into chunks. Toss with dressing, chicken and slow roasted tomatoes. As for the baguette - you decide. Leave the slices sliced as they are (I did), or tear up for 'real' croutons and toss with the rest.
I figured they would go great with the Caesar's salad I had in mind for lunch. They did, but I'll let you be the judge...
Ingredients (serves 2):
6-8 leaves romaine lettuce (or 2 heads baby gem lettuce), washed
50g parmesan cheese
1/2 baguette (sliced, to make the croutons)
1 anchovy, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
optional: 150g grilled chicken thigh filet
slow roasted tomatoes:
cherry tomatoes (as many as you want)
olive oil
cloves of garlic, whole and unpeeled
salt and pepper
Instructions:
1. Start by making the slow roasted tomatoes. Preheat your oven to 110°C (225°F). Cut the cherry tomatoes in half - around the 'waist', not from pit to pit. If you're using mini roma tomatoes, then halve them lengthwise. Line a tray with baking parchment and arrange the tomatoes, cut side up, along with the garlic cloves.
2. Leave in the oven for approximately three hours. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper (you can also add herbs at this point, like thyme or rosemary). Place in the oven for approximately three hours (this may vary depending on the size of your tomatoes and your oven), until the outsides are dry but they still have a little juice on the inside. Use immediately, or keep in the fridge with olive oil.
3. For the salad, start by mixing the olive oil with the garlic. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the garlic flavour to infuse the oil.
4. Mince the anchovies and add to the olive oil and garlic, along with the egg. Whisk until you get a creamy, even consistency. At the end, whisk in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Voilà: Caeser's salad dressing - with a distinctive flavour that has a lot to do with the anchovy. If you’re not vegetarian but your ordinary instinct (like mine) is to avoid anchovies - don't. I promise you this works.
5. Turn your oven to its grill setting, with the temperature up high. Line a tray with baking parchment. Slice the baguette and place them on the tray. Brush with olive oil. I added some black Hawaiian salt, which gave a really nice flavour. Place in the oven until toasted and nicely golden.
6. In the meantime, cut the chicken thigh filet into bite size strips and grill (use a grill pan) until golden brown.
7. Tear the romaine lettuce into chunks. Toss with dressing, chicken and slow roasted tomatoes. As for the baguette - you decide. Leave the slices sliced as they are (I did), or tear up for 'real' croutons and toss with the rest.
Comments
Post a Comment