Chicken Caesar Salad ~ Jaime Oliver's Version

Chicken Caesar Salad ~ Jamie Oliver's Way

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Jaime's method seemed terrific.

Rip about a 9 ounces loaf of fresh ciabatta bread into 'thumb' size pieces, placing them into a roasting pan which will snugly hold the chicken. He rubs chicken thighs and legs with chopped fresh rosemary, salt & pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Toss all together in the pan with the ripped ciabatta pieces to coat everything with the olive oil. Arrange the chicken on top of the ciabatta pieces, and roast in a preheated 400*F oven for about 45 minutes; the chicken will crisp up. Then lay a few strips of pancetta or thin-sliced bacon over the chicken and continue to roast until the bacon is nicely done; about 15 to 20 more minutes. Remove from oven to allow chicken to cool slightly, then pull meat from bones. Make the salad dressing.

Please see my evaluation below.

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Jaime's recipe for Caesar Salad Dressing ~

1/4 clove peeled garlic 4 anchovy fillets in olive oil, drained 3 ounces freshly grated Parmesan, plus a few shavings to serve 1 heaped tablespoon creme fraiche 1 lemon, juiced Extra-virgin olive oil 2 or 3 heads romaine lettuce, outer leaves discarded

Pound the garlic and anchovy fillets in a pestle and mortar until you have a pulp. Scrape into a bowl and whisk in the Parmesan, creme fraiche, lemon juice and 3 times as much extra-virgin olive oil as lemon juice. Season dressing, to taste, with salt and pepper.

To assemble salad, toss lettuces, torn chicken, and bacon pieces in a large bowl, drizzle with dressing and toss well to coat; add croutons and toss again.

Garnish with Parmesan cheese shavings.

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My evaluation:

I was disappointed with this recipe. The croutons did not crisp up during the baking time. To remedy this, I removed the chicken when it was done and continued roasting the croutons in an attempt to rescue them from their soggy state. They were not tasty, and were overly greasy because of the fat from the chicken and the bacon. I felt they were inedible, so I cubed up some additional ciabatta bread and lightly toasted them in a small amount of the residual fat.

The dressing was bland ~ I prefer a traditional Caesar dressing with more of a garlic punch.

1/4 of a clove of garlic was not enough, although I did like using only fresh lemon juice as the acid in this recipe. I would make the dressing again; but I would increase the amount of garlic; using a clove and a half, or two cloves.