Tahini caesar with toasted sesame crumbs
I absolutely love a Caesar salad, but who doesn’t? It’s a cheese-forward salad and that’s all I needed to know to be sold on it.
My Caesar salad recipe doesn’t use raw egg yolks or anchovy. It’s garlic heavy, has pep from dijon mustard, and includes lots of cheese! I also add tahini so you get the richness you expect from Caesar dressing.
The sesame-y and cheesy breadcrumbs on top are a riff on the ones in this pasta dish from Alison Roman. I didn’t think there was a way to improve upon crunchy, cheesy panko breadcrumbs but I think the toasted sesame seeds compliment the tahini-rich dressing.
Serve this on its own (this is one of my go-to lunch salads!) or add salmon or chicken to make it more of a meal.
Tahini caesar with toasted sesame crumbs
Ingredients
- 2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped
Tahini Caesar salad dressing
- 4 cloves garlic, finely grated
- 1/4 cup tahini
- 1/4 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 lemon, juice
Toasted sesame breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- 3 tablespoons finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the garlic, tahini, Pecorino Romano, water, olive oil, dijon mustard, and lemon juice. Season with freshly grated pepper. Set aside. The dressing will thicken as it sits, but you can add more water to loosen it up if needed.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan on medium heat.
- Add the breadcrumbs and sesame seeds to the pan, stirring to coat both ingredients in the oil. Once the mixture is getting slightly golden toasty, add in the Pecorino Romano stirring to allow the cheese to melt. Remove the pan from the heat when everything is golden brown.
- To serve, toss the romaine in the dressing. Top the salad with the sesame panko breadcrumbs and even more finely-grated cheese on top.