Best Ceasar Salad Recipe Ever

I have always loved a good Caeser salad. In order to be great it can't be too heavily dressed and I love when it has fresh anchovies (I realize they aren't for everyone). Over the years I have experimented with various incarnations and recipes but I have never found one that is as good as a great restaurant version.....until now.

This month's Food and Wine has an incredible version from April Bloomfield. I have made this dressing three times since I first found it. It is a game changer. Enjoy.

1. Here are the ingrediants: 
2. 1/2 pound day-old rustic Italian bread, crusts discarded and bread torn into bite-size pieces
3. 10 anchovy fillets, plus more for garnish
4. 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
5. 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
6. 2 garlic cloves
7. 1 large egg
8. 1 cup vegetable oil
9. 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus finely shredded cheese, for serving
10. Kosher salt
11. Freshly ground pepper
12. 18 ounces Little Gem lettuce, leaves separated and chilled
13. Preheat the oven to 400°. Spread the bread pieces on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 12 minutes, until golden and crisp; let the croutons cool.
14. Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the 10 anchovy fillets with the vinegar, mustard and garlic and puree until smooth. Add the egg and pulse until just incorporated. With the machine on, gradually drizzle in the vegetable oil until emulsified. Scrape the dressing into a bowl and stir in the 1/3 cup of grated cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the dressing with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled and thickened, at least 30 minutes.
15. In a very large bowl, toss the chilled lettuce leaves with half of the dressing, gently rubbing the dressing onto the leaves with your hands. (Save the remaining dressing for another salad or to serve with grilled chicken.) Arrange the dressed lettuce on a platter and scatter the croutons on top. Garnish with anchovy fillets and serve right away, passing shredded Parmigiano cheese at the table.

Baz Luhrmann and Rereading Classics

Baz Luhrmann's luscious adaptation of "The Great Gatsby" hits theaters next month. This movie seems to suddenly be everywhere. Carey Muligan is even on the cover of Vogue this month draped in gorgeous twenties-inspired clothes. I am pretty sure I want to see this film. Luhrmann's movies tend to be a visual feast but they sometimes leave me a bit cold in the actual story department.

I read the book in a high school English class on American literature. We had a teacher named Ms. Stone who had a profound impact on all of us. She demanded excellence in the class and I can still recall little things she said about particular passages in the book. I am curious to read the book again now. What impact will it have on me now in my thirties versus sixteen-year-old me who read it so many years ago? This book should take me less time to tackle then "Anna Karenina" (I hope!).

Lurmann did have one movie that I loved. I think it probably had more to do with Leonardo DiCaprio, a post-"My So Called Life" Claire Danes and me being just the right age to love everything about this movie. It came out when I was still a teenager. 

Finished!

I felt like Maria on top of the hill when I finally finished!

I was an English Major in College. Tackling enormous and sometimes overwhelming books was par for the course back then. When I graduated I had a lofty goal of reading a classic every fourth or fifth book that I read. I think it did stick for a while. I read Middlemarch and Moby Dick after college. These days I tend to choose mostly contemporary books. That is why I chose to challenge myself recently by rereading Anna Karenina. Perhaps I was inspired by the lush Keira Knightly film and wanted the book fresh in my mind before I watched the latest retelling on film. I figured I would plow through this book. I am embarrassed to admit it took me well over a month to finish, closer to two months if I am being really honest. Last night I was a bit shocked when the book finally ended. I felt a bit of relief mixed with sadness. Even though it had taken me a while to put it mildly, it felt like it ended so abruptly. I quickly started reading Junot Diaz' latest collection of short stories and devoured three stories in one gulp. I frankly could have finished the book last night if I had allowed myself to stay up. I don't know why reading old books is a bit more of a chore for me. Despite the challenges I am going to continue to force myself to tackle on older classic now and then. I often want to revisit the books of my college courses. I wonder if they will mean more now.

Our Weekend

This weekend was a bit less frantic than the previous one. We stayed in Friday night. Saturday morning Mike played Tennis and Hank and I road my bike over to the zoo in Griffith Park. We enjoyed the ride over and our little visit. We also met some new neighborhood friends with a son almost the exact same age as Hank. Hope everyone's weekend was as lovely.

Spring is coming

Pretty soon we spring ahead on our clocks! I can't wait. I love warm nights when the sun lingers past 7:00 pm and the world is full of possibilities. We get a bit of a modified version of spring in Los Angeles since winter tends to be so mild but I still can't wait. Also it hopefully means Hank will sleep a bit later. To get into a spring mood here are some gorgeous clothes by Emerson Fry that will have you dreaming of spring too.

Weekend

Checking out the animals at the Zoo

 This was our first weekend home in a bit where we had no plans, except watching the Oscars of course. We ended up packing in lots of activities. Highlights included a costume pot-lock party at Hank's school on Saturday morning, an impromptu trip to Disneyland Saturday night and specifically Radiator Springs since Hank is fully obsessed with Cars now, and Hank and Mike's trip to the zoo. I am exhausted just writing it all on paper but it actually was a wonderful weekend.

Hank as an astronaut making a call at the school party 

Waiting for a Ride 

Another View of the Mater Ride

Radiator Springs

Treat for the Oscars

Oscar Sunday

When I lived in New York my cousin Robin and I had an Oscar tradition that I've tried to carry on during my time in Los Angeles, but my husband isn't always the most willing partner-in-crime. For years I would head over to my cousin's apartment in the East Village in the late afternoon (we never wanted to miss a single moment of the red carpet even that awkward hour when there are no celebrities and it's all Giuliana and Ryan and filler). We would both wear our pajamas, drink champagne and eat cheap Chinese food. It was literally one of my favorite days of the year. Mike will drink a bit of champagne and of course eat Chinese food but getting him to break down the pros and cons of Cate Blanchett's dress or that awkward Anna Hathaway moment is a lot tougher. Regardless I can't wait for Sunday.