Grilled Caesar Salad

I know people who are so obsessed with Caesar salad that they will do shameful things to get their fix. Of course, I don't know any of these people personally, at least I don't think I do, but nonetheless, I always think of them on those rare occasions when I whip up a bowl.

Organic Romaine was a hot ticket sale item last week, so I bought a few heads in anticipation of a good chopped salad and a Caesar salad and on a day when the Mercury headed to the triple digits, I marinated a thick steak and gave Ken a halved head of Romaine to toss on the grill. Yep; grilled Caesar salad is definitely in my summer repertoire.

Grilled Caesar salad came out of laziness on my part, and while I am fairly sure I didn't make it up myself, I couldn't tell you where I came up with the idea. I do know, though, that it's the perfect thing to toss on the grill leaving all the real 'work' to Ken, while all I need to do is whip up a good dressing.

Fortunately, or, maybe unfortunately, as a college student I spent a lot of time working in upscale restaurants and most of those restaurants had Caesar salad on the menu. That meant I had to learn to make a wicked good dressing table-side, and while I can do that, I personally like a little less heaviness to my dressing and my backside, so I've lighted the recipe over the years.

Here's my recipe:
Fat-free cottage cheese, preferably small curd
Anchovy paste (or anchovies)
Dijon Mustard
Parmesan cheese, as good as you can afford
Best Foods Light Mayo with Olive Oil
Garlic
Worcestershire sauce
Lemon Juice
Olive Oil
Fresh Ground Pepper
Tabasco
Sea Salt

Obviously, this recipe doesn't use eggs. I am not opposed to eggs, but I always have cottage cheese on hand (it's so versatile), so I don't bother with the eggs. Plus, when you use eggs, you do need more oil to emulsify the dressing. Also, I don't provide actual measurements since Caesar dressing is a definite by taste and by number of portions deal.

So...
Put a good sized scoop of fat-free cottage cheese into the bowl of a food processor along with the garlic. Process until smooth. Add the anchovy paste and mustard and process. Put a good heaping tablespoon of the Best Foods Mayo with Olive Oil in and process until dressing has a smooth texture and a bit of sheen. Add the rest of the seasonings to taste and about two teaspoons of olive oil per serving (you need the olive oil for texture and also for flavor); process. Stir in a few big handfuls of parmesan cheese and readjust the seasonings for the perfect taste.

As for the Romaine: split a head, wash, and shake dry. Blot excess water off with a paper towel and allow to air dry until all water has evaporated. Lightly spray with olive oil and pass off to your husband to grill it up.

Enjoy.