Citrus Caesar Salad
I’m calling this a Citrus Caesar Salad, it’s basically what happens when a Caesar-style salad dressing bumps up against all the beautiful citrus, lettuces, and avocados at the farmers’ market. Big craggy croutons are a non-negotiable. And toasted nuts and herbs make the whole situation very extra.
We had dinner with friends earlier in the week and it was a reminder that my favorite meals are nearly always made by home cooks. There was a stunner of a salad. In this case, a creamy Caesar salad-style dressing was tossed with beautiful magenta-streaked puntarelle. It had all sorts of other goodies and was topped with roasted citrus. We also had spring risotto topped with lots of Parmesan, and the most delicate whisps of lemon thyme. I made a version of the salad later in the week using up everything in the fridge and extra-large croutons made from the remnants of a sourdough loaf. Here are the details! It’s a gorgeous salad, perfect this time of year, and you can use any leftover dressing for all sorts of things.
Citrus Caesar Salad: Ingredients
- Lettuces: A strong romaine component is good (and classic) here, especially with the Caesar-style dressing. But I can’t help adding other in season lettuces to create a colorful mix. Play around!
- Dressing: This Caesar salad dressing is my go to. It’s delicious and works in our veg household.
- Citrus: The salad is finished with roasted citrus. You can make it ahead of time from whatever citrus you like, but I have some favorites outlined on that page.
- Nuts: I call for toasted pistachios in the recipe, but pine nuts would also be excellent. Same goes for almonds.
- Herbs: Don’t skip the mint. If you skip one of the herbs, skip the chives. The mint really delivers something special alongside the Caesar dressing and the roasted citrus.
- Croutons: I outline how to make easy croutons in the headnotes below. They’re infinitely better than store-bought. And you can make them extra big and craggy for this salad.
More Salad Recipes
- Grilled Wedge Salad
- Roasted Tomato Salad
- Raw Tuscan Kale Salad
- Summer Fruit Salad
- Egg Salad
- Quinoa Salad
- Coconut Corn Salad
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Citrus Caesar Salad
Adjust your salad with more or less of any of the components. You can do an all romaine version, I just like to add a bit of color and texture this time of year with the butter lettuce and radicchio. This is the version of Caesar salad dressing I like. To make great homemade croutons, slice the crust off thick slices of sourdough, tear into big pieces, and toss on a baking sheet with a few glugs of olive oil. Bake at 350F until golden and crunchy. Cool completely. This is how to make roasted citrus.
- 2 heads romaine lettuce
- 1 head red butter lettuce
- 1/2 small head of radicchio
- 1/4 cup mint, chopped
- 3 tablespoons chives, chopped
- 1/2 cup roasted pistachios, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups croutons
- 1/2 cup Caesar salad dressing, or to your liking
- 1 avocado, cubed
- 10-12 pieces of roasted citrus (see headnotes)
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Wash and dry the lettuces and radicchio, tear or cut into bite-sized pieces and place in a large salad bowl.
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Add the mint, chives, pistachios, and croutons. Just before serving, drizzle the salad with most of the dressing and toss well. Decide if you want to add more dressing.
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Add the avocado and gently toss a couple more times before serving the salad topped with the roasted citrus slices.
Serves 4-6.
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