greek yogurt – Page 3

Our Perfect Caesar Salad

This Caesar salad recipe is a flavor explosion with creamy dressing, crunchy croutons, and salty Parmesan cheese. It’s perfect as…

This Caesar salad recipe is a flavor explosion with creamy dressing, crunchy croutons, and salty Parmesan cheese. It’s perfect as a side dish, or make it an easy lunch or dinner by adding protein!

Caesar Salad recipe on plates with Caesar dressing and lemon.

Some foods are classic for a reason, like frosty vanilla bean ice cream or hot crispy French fries. This classic salad is another basic, but truly one of our favorite recipes ever. Meet the perfect Caesar salad! Of course you can buy a packaged store-bought version, but make it homemade there’s absolutely no comparison.

Why we love this recipe: We’ve perfected all the elements to a great homemade Caesar salad. The savory, creamy Caesar dressing will become a household favorite. Those crunchy garlicky croutons—well, you’ll be eating them off the baking sheet. Alex and I have made this recipe more times than we can count, often topped with protein for an easy dinner. We hope you’ve love it just as much!

Ingredients in a great Caesar salad

From the first bite of this homemade Caesar salad, you’ll be singing its praises! Here are the ingredients to make this classic salad:

Croutons: It’s best with homemade croutons, but you can use store-bought in a pinch. For homemade, tearing the the bread into uneven pieces before baking makes fluffy, crunchy orbs.
Caesar dressing: This homemade Caesar dressing recipe is so good, you won’t want to buy it again. It’s made primarily of mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, Dijon mustard, garlic, and lemon juice. We’ve also got a lightened-up spin on it using Greek yogurt (keep reading).
Romaine hearts: Romaine hearts, the sweet and crunchy portion of a head of romaine, are best for a Caesar salad. These are sold usually in packs of 3 in the grocery. You can also use a large head of romaine lettuce, but the leafier dark green portions of the lettuce don’t taste as good.
Parmesan cheese shavings: You need grated Parmesan cheese for the dressing and shredded for the salad. If you don’t want to buy two separate types, grab a large block at the store.

Caesar Salad Ingredients: Mayo, garlic, Parmesan cheese, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, anchovy paste or Worcestershire sauce, croutons, Romaine lettuce.

Tips for homemade Caesar dressing

This Caesar dressing recipe is our favorite that we’ve been making for years! It’s easily made vegetarian using vegan Worcestershire sauce and vegetarian Parmesan cheese. Here are a few tips for this Caesar dressing:

Anchovy paste is optional, but adds great flavor. Traditional Caesar dressing gets its savory flavor from anchovies, and it adds a nice sharp flavor that’s the signature of the classic. A vegetarian Caesar dressing with vegan Worcestershire sauce (or this Worcestershire sauce substitute) tastes just as good.
Try our lighter version with Greek yogurt. Swap out the ¾ cup mayonnaise in this recipe for ¼ cup mayonnaise, ½ cup Greek yogurt, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. It helps reduce calories and makes the salad taste lighter and fresher. We like it even better!

Storing leftovers and make-ahead tips

Once you’ve got your creamy dressing and crunchy croutons, all you need is romaine hearts and Parmesan cheese shavings to bring together that perfect Caesar salad. Want a few time savers for putting it together? Here’s how to make it ahead:

Make the dressing up to 1 week in advance. The flavor tastes just as good made in advance.
Make the croutons 2 days in advance. Make the croutons and let them cool completely. Then store in a sealed container for up to 2 days. The flavor gets gradually staler over time, so the closer to fresh they are, the better.

Protein adders to make it a main dish

If you take all this time to make Caesar salad…why not turn it into a main dish meal? If you serve it topped with protein, it makes about 4 servings. Here are a few ideas:

Chicken Caesar salad: Top it with grilled chicken, Parmesan crusted chicken, or blackened chicken.
Salmon Caesar salad: Add poached salmon or grilled salmon.
Shrimp Caesar salad: Add sauteed shrimp, grilled shrimp or shrimp skewers.
Chickpea Caesar salad: For a vegetarian option, top with Seasoned Chickpeas or Crispy Chickpeas.
Tofu Caesar salad: Top with crispy tofu or baked tofu and vegan Caesar dressing.

Vegan variation

Want a plant-based or vegan variation? Whip up this Vegan Caesar Dressing! You’ll use a blender to mix chickpeas with Dijon mustard, garlic, olive oil and more. It might sound odd, but trust us. We think this Vegan Caesar Salad is just as tasty!

More variations: grilled and kale Caesar

Here are a few more variations on Caesar salad that put a fun spin on this classic salad:

Make it with kale: Our Kale Caesar Salad features leafy green kale and a showering of breadcrumbs. To die for!
Make it grilled: This Grilled Caesar Salad features grilled romaine lettuce and grilled avocado to bring big flavor.

Caesar Dressing Recipe

Kale Caesar Salad

Salmon Caesar Salad

Vegan Caesar Dressing

Dietary notes

This Caesar salad recipe is vegetarian without anchovy paste. For gluten free, use gluten-free bread for the croutons. For vegan, use Vegan Caesar Dressing and omit the Parmesan cheese, or go to Vegan Caesar Salad.

Frequently asked questions

What type of lettuce is best for Caesar salad?

The classic Caesar salad uses romaine lettuce. Its sturdy leaves hold up well to the dressing and croutons without getting soggy. However, you can experiment with other lettuces like butter lettuce or even chopped kale for a different texture.

Can I make my own croutons for Caesar salad?

Yes, and we recommend it! Making homemade croutons is a great way to customize the flavor and texture. Simply cube bread, toss with olive oil and garlic powder, and bake until golden brown.

Do I need to use anchovies in Caesar dressing?

Anchovies are a traditional ingredient in Caesar dressing, but they mainly add a savory umami flavor that’s not overpowering. If you’re not a fan of anchovies, you can omit them or use a substitute like Worcestershire sauce or miso paste.

What if I don’t have Parmesan cheese?

You can substitute another hard cheese like Pecorino Romano or Grana Padano for the Parmesan cheese.

Can I make Caesar salad dressing ahead of time?

Yes, you can! Homemade Caesar dressing will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week in an airtight container.

Caesar Salad Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6

Print Recipe

Description

This Caesar salad recipe is a flavor explosion with creamy dressing, crunchy croutons, and salty Parmesan cheese. It’s perfect as a side dish, or make it an easy lunch or dinner by adding protein!

Ingredients

For the Caesar dressing (makes 1 cup)

1 medium garlic clove, minced or grated
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons lemon juice (1/2 lemon)
¾ cup high quality mayonnaise (or ¼ cup mayonnaise, ½ cup Greek yogurt, and 1 tablespoon olive oil*)
½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon anchovy paste or Worcestershire sauce (or omit)
¼ teaspoon each kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper

For the Caesar salad

1 recipe Homemade Croutons (or purchased)
3 romaine hearts** (or 1 large head romaine)
½ cup Parmesan cheese shavings
Optional protein adders: Parmesan crusted chicken, baked salmon, sauteed shrimp

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Instructions

Make the croutons: Make the Homemade Croutons, tearing the bread into pieces instead of slicing it into cubes. (This makes the best Caesar salad, but homemade croutons are optional).
Make the dressing: Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a bowl. Store leftovers refrigerated in a covered jar for up to 1 week.
Make the salad: Tear or chop the romaine leaves into bite-sized pieces. Top each salad with Parmesan cheese shavings, croutons, and dressing.

Notes

*Make a lighter version of the dressing by swapping in Greek yogurt and olive oil for part of the mayo. We like it even better!

**Romaine hearts are easy to find packaged separately in the produce aisle.

Category: Salad
Method: Raw
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian

Keywords: Caesar salad, Caesar salad recipe

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Why this recipe is the perfect strawberry smoothie

It’s my job to make the best smoothie recipes on the internet. I’ve created over 65 smoothie recipes focusing on natural fruits and vegetables and healthy proteins like yogurt, while avoiding sugary juices. Along with my co-author Alex, we’ve made green smoothies, vegetable smoothies, fruit smoothies and energy smoothies.

But when it comes to picking favorites, it all comes back to this strawberry smoothie recipe for both of us! Here’s why it’s perfect, to us:

Light and creamy texture. It’s easy for smoothies to turn out too icy or thick. This one is light and creamy, with just the right icy and airy texture.
Subtly sweet, fruity flavor. Often smoothies are too bitter or overly sweet. This strawberry smoothie is lightly sweet, with just the right berry essence.

Ingredients for this strawberry smoothie

Here’s what you’ll need to make this strawberry smoothie! Strawberries have a lot of nutritional punch for very few calories (per Cleveland Clinic), making them one of our favorite ingredients to incorporate in smoothies. We were careful to choose healthy ingredients for this smoothie: no overly sugary juices or syrups. Here’s what we selected:

Frozen strawberries: It’s easy to find and store frozen berries, and they add a great icy texture to this smoothie. If you prefer using fresh berries, use a frozen banana instead of one at room temperature.
Fresh banana: Many smoothie recipes call for frozen bananas, but we don’t often have them on hand or have the time to wait for freezing. So we customized this recipe to use a fresh banana!
Greek yogurt: Greek yogurt gives this recipe a protein boost and helpful probiotics. (If you love yogurt, you could add a touch more.) It also makes for a perfect creamy texture.
Ice: Here’s the most important part — ice is essential to a perfect strawberry smoothie! It makes just the right frothy texture. We’ve tried it without and it really makes a difference. Do not omit it!
Milk: You need just the right amount of liquid in a smoothie to get it to blend. Not enough and the blender gets stuck (the worst!), and too much it tastes milky. You can also use non-dairy milk.
Maple syrup: Adding a hint of maple brings out the sweetness in the berries. If you eat a low sugar diet you could omit, but it doesn’t quite taste sweet enough with no sweetener.

Add-ins and options

Of course, you can mix in whatever you’d like to customize your healthy strawberry smoothie! But if you want it to be perfect, you’ve got to use flavors that work. Here are some ideas:

Almond butter. Almond goes well with strawberry. Use about 1 tablespoon, 2 for a stronger almond flavor (it will also dull the color a bit).
Vanilla. Use ¼ to ½ teaspoon vanilla to heighten the flavors.
Mint or basil. Add a few fresh mint or basil leaves for an herbaceous spin.
Cocoa powder. Craving chocolate? Go to Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie.

Things not to add? Handfuls of spinach leaves! They turn this smoothie into an unappealing shade of brown. If you want a green smoothie, go to our Green Smoothie.

Strawberry smoothie variations

Craving a flavor twist? Don’t stop at strawberries! This versatile smoothie base can be transformed into a tropical paradise with a handful of mango or pineapple. Mix in blueberries for a tart and tangy upgrade, or add even more banana for extra sweetness. We’ve created separate recipes for each variation:

Pineapple. Substitute 1 cup of the frozen berries for 1 cup frozen pineapple (see Strawberry Pineapple Smoothie).
Mango. Substitute 1 cup of the frozen berries for 1 cup frozen mango (see Strawberry Mango Smoothie).
Banana. Add another ripe banana and remove the Greek yogurt (see Strawberry Banana Smoothie).
Blueberries. Substitute 1 cup of the frozen strawberries for blueberry (see Strawberry Blueberry Smoothie).

For a strawberry recipe without banana, try this one from smoothie expert The Blender Girl.

Ways to make it plant based

You can make this strawberry smoothie plant-based or vegan by doing the following:

Make our strawberry banana smoothie. Try our Strawberry Banana Smoothie: it’s vegan and uses only 2 ingredients!
Omit the yogurt and use non-dairy milk for the milk. We like using oat milk or almond milk. Oat milk is usually a little sweeter and creamier, so it’s our default for smoothies. You could also try coconut milk, which adds a nice coconut essence, or soy milk. To compensate for the yogurt, add a splash more milk as necessary to get it to blend.

Strawberry smoothies in two cups with straws and strawberry garnish

Storing leftovers

Smoothies are best eaten immediately. But this strawberry smoothie actually lasts 1 to 2 days refrigerated, stored in a sealed container or a mason jar with the lid on. It may separate, which is perfectly natural. Just shake it up and you’re good to go!