Homemade Croutons on your Simple Caesar Salad

I came into this idea of making Caesar salad when we had an Aussie friend who came to visit in our place a while ago so I am planning to make him a treat for his breakfast. But then again I have a problem; I was not able to find sold Croutons available in the stores so I decided to prefer making this at home to complete my recipe! Why not?! (Well...hoping this would taste right for him! and yeah! I was given a cool thumbs up from him though!) *smileys

Croutons are breads cut into small pieces and can be served as fried or toast. These are used to garnish on served soup or salads. This is a very easy yet healthy thing to prepare; so here is another simple recipe for you if you are looking for garnishing on your favorite green leafy salads!

This time I’m going to share you how I made my homemade croutons and of course my simple Caesar salad as well. For you to have a beautiful salad, choose the clean and fresh lettuce available in the market! By the way the only kind of lettuce to use in this salad is only Romaine, so check this out in grocery stores in your place.

Ingredients:

Croutons

• 2 slices of bread (preferred brand), cut into cubes

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (or you can use 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper)

Procedure for Croutons:

Take the slices of breads and cut these into cubes as shown above. Place them in a plate. In a separate clean bowl, mix olive oil and garlic powder (or pepper and salt, if using) until well combined. Pour pieces of bread into the mixture and mix everything up until the breads are well coated with the ingredients. (You can also brush the slices of breads with olive oil mixture  first by using a pastry brush, before you can slice it into cubes to properly coat them). Meanwhile place a pan over medium heat. Once hot, lower the heat and scatter evenly the breads into the pan. Cook for about 2-3mins or until the breads are nicely browned. (Flip the breads once in a while and make sure not to burn it. You can also bake the cubes for about 10 mins if you like). Remove from the pan and transfer to a clean bowl. Set aside. (You can place it in the fridge to preserve the crisp of the croutons until ready to use).

Caesar Salad

• 1 medium bunch of Romaine

• 2 tablespoons of ready mixed salad dressing (preferred brand)

• 3 tablespoons grated cheese

• 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese

Procedure for Caesar Salad:

Pull the leaves of the head of the Romaine. Wash and clean properly each of the leaves with cold water. Using your hands, carefully tear the Romaine into small pieces or bite sizes and place them in a strainer. Shake off until excess water is drained. Transfer them in a bowl, add-in the croutons. Spread the dressing and mix everything to combine. Sprinkle parmesan and grated cheese then toss. Serve immediately.

So there you go, you’re delicious and healthy salad is done! Remember to add more ingredients little by little to achieve your desired taste. And also, never mix the Romaine with the dressing or with the other ingredients if you are not about to eat them right after you prepare or else your salad will become 'wetty' or soggy. If you prefer to prepare it ahead, you can place the cleaned Romaine in the fridge, then just spread the dressing and other ingredients when ready to serve.