Caesar Salad

Toss the bread cubes with a portion of the olive oil and a smashed garlic clove, season with a little salt, and spread on a sheet pan. Bake at 190°C / 375°F for 12 to 15 minutes, tossing once halfway, until deep gold and crisp through the center. Discard the garlic clove. Let them cool on the pan so they crackle and stay crunchy.

In a wide wooden salad bowl (or a mortar), mash the remaining garlic with the anchovy fillets and a pinch of salt, grinding against the wood with the back of a fork until you have a smooth, sticky beige paste with no visible chunks. The salt acts as an abrasive; the anchovies dissolve almost entirely. This paste is the savory backbone of the dressing.

Whisk the coddled egg yolk, lemon juice, Worcestershire, and Dijon into the anchovy-garlic paste until smooth and pale. Then, whisking constantly, drizzle in the remaining olive oil in a thin stream so it emulsifies into a creamy, pourable dressing — thin like cold honey, not stiff like mayonnaise. Whisk in about half the grated parmesan. Taste: it should be bracingly tangy, salty, and savory. Adjust with more lemon for brightness or oil to soften.

Tear the cold romaine into large bite-sized pieces or leave small inner leaves whole. Add to the bowl with the dressing and toss thoroughly with your hands or tongs, lifting from the bottom, until every leaf is glossed and lightly coated — not drowned. Add the croutons and most of the remaining parmesan and toss once more. Plate, then finish with parmesan shavings and a heavy crack of black pepper. Serve immediately while the leaves are crisp and the croutons still crackle.