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Caesar Reinvented

Crisp Romaine lettuce coated in a creamy lemon-garlic dressing with almond oil and unroasted almond butter, served with crunchy toasted garlic almond flour croutons, crispy almond-seed crackers and vegan parmesan, a blend of nutritional yeast and almond protein powder. Created by Chef Jill Houk of Culinary Culture.
Almonds

Difficulty

Foodservice

Ingredients
Serves: 50
Almond Caesar Dressing
  • 485 g almond butter, unsweetened, blanched, raw
  • 400 g lemon juice, fresh
  • 16 g apple cider vinegar
  • 325 g extra virgin olive oil
  • 155 g almond oil
  • 80 g white miso
  • 12 g nutritional yeast
  • 12 g whole garlic cloves, smashed
  • 8 g kosher salt
  • 4 g fresh lemon zest
  • 1 g fresh ground black pepper
Gluten-Free Almond Croutons
  • 450 g defatted almond flour, blanched
  • 90 g coconut flour
  • 60 g flaxseed meal
  • 60 g psyllium husk
  • 22.5 g baking powder
  • 8 g sea salt
  • 45 g almond oil
  • 7.5 g apple cider vinegar
  • 755 g water
  • 375 g olive oil
  • 37.5 g sea salt
Almond-Seed Crackers
  • 15 g ground flax seeds
  • 20 g rice flour
  • 1.5 g sea salt
  • 100 g sliced skin-on almonds
  • 12.5 g chia seeds
  • 20 g raw hemp seeds
  • 20 g raw pepitas
  • 310 g boiling water
Vegan Parmesan
  • 60 g defatted almond flour
  • 35 g nutritional yeast
  • 2.5 g garlic powder
  • 2 g fine sea salt
Salad Assembly
  • 12-14 Heads Romaine Lettuce, Chopped (about 125 cups)
  • 1 recipe Almond Caesar Dressing
  • 1 recipe Vegan Parmesan
  • 1 recipe Gluten-Free Almond Croutons
  • 1 recipe Almond-Seed Crackers
Preparation
Almond Caesar Dressing
  1. Place all ingredients except for lemon zest and pepper into the bowl of a blender. Blend on high until emulsified, about 60 seconds.
  2. Stir in lemon zest and pepper.
  3. Transfer to a storage container. Wrap, label and chill until service.
Gluten-Free Almond Croutons
  1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Brush a sheet pan with oil.
  2. Fit a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. In the mixer's bowl, add almond flour, coconut flour, flaxseed meal, psyllium husk, baking powder and first-listed salt.
  3. Mix on low 1 minute.
  4. In a separate bowl, whisk oil, vinegar an,d water.
  5. Add wet ingredients to dry and combine with the paddle attachment for 1 minute, scraping down bowl occasionally.
  6. Rest for 10 minutes to allow the dry ingredients to hydrate.
  7. Break dough into thirds. Moisten gloved hands and shape each 1/3 of dough into a loaf shape that is 2 inches high, 4 inches wide and 8-10 inches across. Using gloved hands, smooth surface of each loaf to eliminate any holes.
  8. Bake until the center of each loaf registers 210ºF on a thermometer, about 35-40 minutes.
  9. Turn broiler on high. Position loaves 1-2 inches from broiler and broil until dark brown, about 1 1/2-2 minutes.
  10. Remove pan from oven and allow bread to cool completely on pan, at least 3 hours.
  11. To make croutons, preheat oven to 450ºF.
  12. Cut bread into 1/2-inch x 1/2-inch x 1-inch cubes. Toss in oil to coat evenly. Spread out in a single even layer on rimmed sheet pans.
  13. Bake until cubes are lightly toasted, and slightly crispy, about 15-20 minutes.
  14. Remove from oven and transfer croutons to a large bowl. Add salt and toss to coat. Shake off excess.
  15. Spread out croutons on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Allow to cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
Almond-Seed Crackers
  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line several rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper.
  2. Whisk together flax meal, rice flour and salt. Add almonds, chia seeds, hemp seeds and pepitas and stir to combine.
  3. Pour boiling water over mixture and stir to moisten completely. Cover and let sit until the seeds have absorbed the water and mixture is thick, about 15 minutes.
  4. Transfer mixture to the prepared baking sheets. Using an offset spatula, spread into as thin and even a layer as possible, using as many sheet pans as necessary to use all the batter.
  5. Bake until set, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cut into 1 inch by 2 inch crackers.
  6. Return to oven and bake until crispy and lightly browned, about another 15-20 minutes. Let cool completely on baking sheet and break into serving pieces.
  7. Transfer to airtight containers. Seal, label and store at room temperatures for up to one week.
Vegan Parmesan
  1. Mix all ingredients. Transfer to an airtight container. Seal, label and store at room temperature until ready to use.
Salad Assembly
  1. Per salad, mix 2 1/2 cups chopped romaine with 30 g/2 Tablespoons dressing and toss until well coated.
  2. Transfer dressed lettuce to a chilled salad plate.
  3. Sprinkle with 1 tsp. vegan parmesan.
  4. Garnish with ¼ cup croutons and two almond-seed crackers.
Did you know?

This recipe is just the starting point. The Food Professional Hub brings food professionals the research, trends, and application insights needed to innovate with all forms of almonds. Discover how almonds deliver flavor, texture, and versatility across culinary and product development.This recipe is just the starting point. The Food Professional Hub brings food professionals the research, trends, and application insights needed to innovate with all forms of almonds. Discover how almonds deliver flavor, texture, and versatility across culinary and product development.