This salad is so simple and so good. Crisp green lettuce generously dressed in a creamy and spicy dressing and then covered in golden bread crumbs and freshly grated parmesan. This is another one inspired by eating at Jon and Vinny’s in LA – I was clearly obsessed with that meal. I’ve tried to keep the dressing lighter by making it yoghurt based and it’s still super delicious.
I went to this restaurant for my last meal in the USA before jumping on the plane to New Zealand and it was so good, my friend Lianne never disappoints with her restaurant choices, I’m so lucky to have surrounded myself with people who value good food as much as I do. This was one of many ridiculously yummy meals I had overseas that will be the source of much inspiration in the coming months and I can’t wait to share it all with you. Imma try to do what I did with this one and do slightly lighter or healthier takes on things without compromising on how yummy it was. Watch this space.
About this particular salad: You can use any breadcrumbs you like in this and if you’re gluten free use the gluten free variety or replace with almond meal for grain free.
I love having this salad with a big bowl of pasta to share amongst friends. Leaving everything in the table for people to fill their plates with their ideal balance of carb and greens. Or you could serve it with grilled chicken or steak. There’s a bit of heat in that dressing from the chilli and if you don’t think it’s spicy enough you can do what i initially did and add an extra dried chilli. But try it as is first! You know I’m not afraid of some spice but too much overpowers the crispy coolness of the lettuce.
If you can’t get baby gem you could use any other firm crisp leaf. Anything to soft or bitter will not work as well though as you want the crispness to stand up to that creamy dressing. A soft leaf could be weighed down and no one likes a soggy salad.
This needs to be eaten pretty much as soon as you add those bread crumbs to make sure all the right textures are there. It’s so simple and so good.
Serves 4 as a side
Ingredients
2 baby Gem lettuce, leaves separated and washed
4 Tbs bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
Dressing
1/3 cup plain greek yoghurt
1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 dried chilli, finely chopped
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp tomato paste
Directions
Heat oven to 180 degrees celisus and line a tray with baking paper. Spread bread crumbs in an even layer and bake for 5 minutes or until golden.
To make the dressing, heat the oil in a small sauce pan over medium heat and add the garlic and chilli with a pinch of salt and sauté for 2 minutes making sure you do not burn the garlic, remove from heat and let it stand in the hot oil for 5 minutes. Pour this mixture into a small bowl with the yoghurt, lemon juice and tomato paste and stir well to combine. Season with salt to taste.
Toss the lettuce with the dressing in a large mixing bowl. Add 1/2 the parmesan and toss again. Spread over your serving dish. Combine the bread crumbs with the remaining parmesan and then sprinkle generously over the lettuce leaves. Serve any extra on the side to add as you eat.
HH. x
