I haven't had a caesar salad since, well, I can't even remember. When I discovered the dressing contained anchovies, I was already well into my vegetarianism. Probably some time around age 17 or 18 (I went veg at age 14). Now I'm 27, so it's definately been a good while since I've tasted lettuce slathered in that creamy kinda ranch-y, tangy dressing. When I noticed a recipe for vegan caesar in the Nomicon, I was thrilled.
The dressing uses soft tofu, olive oil, lemon juice, and the key ingredient — capers. Interestingly, this was my first experience with capers. I've always been afraid of them. But I learned while prepping the dressing for tonight's salad that capers are surprisingly olive-like. And I do love me some olives!
I used romaine lettuce mixed with a little spring mix for the salad. But my fave were the croutons, baked fresh using stale French bread, roasted garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice!
Though it was probably loaded with fat, it was the good kind — unsaturated fats from oils. Which made me feel better about pigging out at lunch today at Pho Hoa Binh, Midtown's only Vietnamese tofu buffet. For $5.19, one can easily gorge down a pound or more of fried tofu. So much for watching portion sizes.
Don't fear the caper.
ReplyDeleteI love experimenting with capers. And now that I know the Caesar dressing tastes ranch-y, I am making it on the fly. I have been on a search for vegan ranch dressing (that tastes authentic) for years. And any attempts have disappointed me.
It's been too long since the last time I went to Pho Hoa Binh. The more I eat there, the better my abilities will become to make lemongrass tofu that good. That logic is flawless.