I spent a lot of time in my paternal grandmother’s kitchen watching her cook. She was English, so the meat was usually overcooked and the vegetables cooked to death, but for her time and generation, she was an amazing cook. Tender sweet pies, home canned chili sauce, homemade bread & cakes, Welsh cookies, sugar cookies, oatmeal cookies and homemade ice cream are just some of the wonderful foods I remember from her kitchen. She had a huge garden with all types of vegetables, several fruit trees and raspberry bushes she turned into pints and pints of raspberry jam. My mother claimed she sent me to my grandmother’s house because she was afraid she was going to just up and kill me one day, but I think she was prone to exaggeration. There was no way I was that bad of a kid…
I ate everything and anything my grandmother made. I was the opposite of a picky eater as a child. As a matter of fact, I never met a food I didn’t like until anchovies came into my life. I remember it distinctly. Nearly every Tuesday night, we went as a family to a little Italian pizza joint for dinner. One night we had some friends with us and they ordered anchovies on their pizza. I remember asking them what anchovies were and being horrified at the answer. Who would want to eat little canned fish on their pizza, or anywhere else for that matter!
For years I would say I liked all foods except anchovies. It became kind of a catch phrase (I was a food geek from way back).
Then, one enchanted evening when I was in my twenties, while eating out, probably for an anniversary or something, I ordered a Caesar Salad. The heavens opened up, light shone from above, and I had a culinary moment of euphoria. I believed I had found the best salad ever!
I had to try it at home. The next issue of Gourmet (my Bible at the time) had an article on Caesar Salads and I ran from the mailbox back into the house, made a cup of coffee and sat down to devour it. I glanced at the ingredient list and froze. Anchovies? Hello? Really? I tried making the salad without the anchovies and it was good, but not the heaven opening culinary epiphany I had at the restaurant.
On my next trip to the market, I wore dark glasses and skulked in the tuna fish aisle, praying I wouldn’t meet anyone I knew. I was such an outspoken critic of the little critters, that it would be hard to explain why I was buying some. Even the cans looked disgusting. Then I saw a tube of anchovy paste. That might be a good compromise. I took it home and tried the salad again. Better, but not spectacular.
Finally, I swallowed my pride and with much sighing and moaning, bought a can of anchovies. I tentatively opened the can, sniffed inside and nearly gagged. I muscled through and made the salad and it was absolutely wonderful. In true obsessive compulsive fashion, I started searching out recipes that used anchovies and made them all. I’ve made hundreds of Caesar Salads since then, constantly tweaking the recipe. Now I buy salt packed anchovies from specialty shops and put them whole on top of the salad as well as in the dressing.
I had to move away from my little town because of the shame, but it was worth being able to openly buy and eat those little savory salty suckers!
I still love a good Caesar Salad. Here’s the version I am currently making:
If you aren’t absolutely sure of the freshness and origin of your eggs, don’t use the egg yolk, the dressing with be ok without it.
PrintCaesar Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups cubed sour dough bread
- 3 T plus 1/2 cup of EVOO
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 6 anchovy filets
- 1 T Worcestershire sauce
- 2 t red wine vinegar
- 2 heads of romaine lettuce
- 1 egg yolk
- Parmesan shavings
Instructions
- Put the cubes on a baking sheet, toss with 3 T of olive oil and a good sprinkling of salt
- Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown
- Peel the garlic and smash in the bottom of a large bowl with 1/2 t Kosher salt
- Smash 4 of the anchovies into the garlic mixture
- Whisk in the egg yolk Worcestershire sauce, vinegar and 1/2 t pepper
- Drizzle in 1/2 cup of olive oil, while whisking constantly
- Chop the lettuce and dump it over the dressing
- Mix thoroughly and then add croutons
- Mix again
- Garnish with additional anchovy filets
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I dunno — they are way too salty for me! But you make them sound good… maybe I’ll have to try your recipe!
Glad you can eat them without sneaking around now!!
Yes, there is nothing like a homemade Caesar salad, I will be right over my friend!
I love anchovies Any way, great photos!
I am not a huge fan of them, but I think they would be great with your homemade croutons.
So funny. I guess it’s always good to have an open mind.
Yum! It looks delicious 🙂 Lovely photos, too.
Hugs,
Scudds
Hehe you are too funny! I must admit the first time I tried them I didn’t like them but in a caesar or indeed a white anchovy is a thing of deliciousness! 😀
Although that looks delightful, I am not brave like you. Oysters and anchovies are two things that make me run. Mostly it’s the smell, but I can’t guarantee you wouldn’t see projectile vomiting. I know…TMI. LOL.
I am totally guilty of avoiding anchovies and have never even smelled one. I have let others, who probably have never eaten one either, form my opinions. Hum,I wonder if I could be that brave—-
I think you have to acquire a taste for anchovies. I always thought they were too salty, until I had them in a salad. They added the right kind of flavor, texture and saltiness to the salad, which made me come back for more.
d for drooling!,!!
haha, glad you’ve lost the difficulties! I have no interest in eating them (no fish for me, thanks) but it’s always nice to see other people’s food loves 🙂
I didn’t know Caesar salad had anchovies! I like sardines – as I call them, and will have to try them in my next salad! Hope the heavens open for me! {:-D
I have seen modern cooks on TV cookwith anchorvies. In South East Asia, we have a dried form of anchovies, and it very pungent when we cook them.
I love Caesar Salad and yours looks especially yummy. I never tasted an anchovy until I was in college (I was not a foodie). I actually loved them at first taste and still do. My husband, not so much.
MMMMM love caesar salad… but a creamy sauce is what I make.
Your salad looks so tasty. Mmhhhh
Happy weekend
Tina
Oh dear, I’m afraid I’ve never gotten over my anchovy phobia. When we moved to Italy in 1968 I was a few months pregnant and suffering from 24/7 morning sickness. We were living in a hotel and I’d travel to a nearby bar (more a snack bar type place) where they had individual size pizzas in a case. When I felt like eating something pizza usually had appeal. I’d always point to one without an anchovy and I’d always get one with an anchovy. I could peel the anchovy off, but the fishy taste remained. I finally asked a fellow American how to say no fish in Italian. I tried, but still got that darn anchovy. Finally I just gave up on pizza. To this day the anchovy and I do not get along.
I’m so scared to make my own caesar but I want to so bad!!!
Is it true that Worchestershire sauce has anchovies as one of the ingredients? I do know that the addition of the little salty fish in a Caesar salad makes it Delightful! Great post!
Wonderful story of your anchovy relationship♫
Ick… Anchovies!
I must admit this recipe does sound quite delicious though…
It’s a shame you had to move away for being such a deviant and switching to the dark side… (((winkwink)))
Delightful post for the letter “D”!
Thanks for linking.
A+