Vegan Caesar Salad With Crisp Chickpeas Recipe • 5★

Published January 8, 2020

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.

There are many ways to mimic the rich, creamy texture of emulsified, egg-based Caesar dressing: Tofu, vegan mayonnaise, aquafaba whipped with oil, the list goes on. Blended raw cashews prove themselves the best base in this version, which is fortified with garlic, mustard, miso paste and caper brine to achieve the tangy-salty-punchy balance found in the real deal. Crisp chickpeas and hand-torn croutons add a crunchiness that plays well with the velvety dressing.

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½ small loaf crusty bread, such as sourdough, torn into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (14-ounce) can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and thoroughly dried

1 large bunch lacinato kale, stems removed and roughly chopped into 1-inch pieces (about 4 cups)

1 large head romaine lettuce, roughly chopped into 1-inch pieces (about 6 cups)

1 cup whole (unroasted) cashews

1 snack-size (2-by-3-inch) sheet roasted nori, crumbled (optional)

¼ cup nutritional yeast, plus more for serving

¼ cup fresh lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)

2 teaspoons brine from a jar of capers

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon white miso paste

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Step 1Heat the oven to 400 degrees. On a medium baking sheet, toss the bread with 2 tablespoons olive oil; season generously with salt and pepper. On a second baking sheet, toss the chickpeas with remaining 2 tablespoons oil; season generously with salt and pepper. Bake both until chickpeas and croutons are browned and crisp, stirring both halfway through, about 10 minutes for the croutons and 20 minutes for the chickpeas. Set aside.

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. On a medium baking sheet, toss the bread with 2 tablespoons olive oil; season generously with salt and pepper. On a second baking sheet, toss the chickpeas with remaining 2 tablespoons oil; season generously with salt and pepper. Bake both until chickpeas and croutons are browned and crisp, stirring both halfway through, about 10 minutes for the croutons and 20 minutes for the chickpeas. Set aside.

Step 2While the chickpeas and croutons roast, prepare your dressing: To a high-speed blender, add all the dressing ingredients, plus ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon pepper and ¾ cup water; blend until completely smooth, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula every now and again. Set dressing aside. (You should have 1 ½ cups).

While the chickpeas and croutons roast, prepare your dressing: To a high-speed blender, add all the dressing ingredients, plus ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon pepper and ¾ cup water; blend until completely smooth, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula every now and again. Set dressing aside. (You should have 1 ½ cups).

Step 3In a large bowl, add the kale and the dressing. Using your hands, massage the kale until slightly softened. Add the lettuce, croutons and half the roasted chickpeas; toss to coat and season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with additional nutritional yeast. Top with remaining roasted chickpeas; grind black pepper over, and serve immediately.

In a large bowl, add the kale and the dressing. Using your hands, massage the kale until slightly softened. Add the lettuce, croutons and half the roasted chickpeas; toss to coat and season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with additional nutritional yeast. Top with remaining roasted chickpeas; grind black pepper over, and serve immediately.

The best vegan caesar dressing recipe I've ever tasted. I didn't have the nori on hand but next time would add to give the dressing an even "fishier" flavor (I usually make my caesar with tons of anchovies). I will keep this dressing in my fridge constantly. I'm happy to see more and more vegan options on NYT cooking- keep them coming!!!!

What a weird day. Jan. 6, 2021. Made this while watching a coup. Best vegan caesar I've ever had. I know this salad isn't named after Julius Caesar, but wow irony huh? Oh and didn't use nori.

So delicious... just made it for a second time in 3 days because I'm CRAVING it. TIP: for the cashews, put them in a small pot/saucepan and add water until they are submerged, bring them to a boil, then turn off the burner and let them sit with the lid on for ~20 minutes. Made the consistency super creamy. It was a little chunkier the other (non-boiled) way, but still great!

I make this recipe all the time it is fantastic. Every time it drives me crazy that the dressing ingredients don’t include the water it’s only in the directions. AND the directions call for salt and pepper even though there is salt and pepper in the ingredients. Why aren’t the ingredients in the ingredients list??? Whyyyy?

@Tate lots of people have asked this question. It is standard across-the-board to not list water in an ingredients list because everyone is assumed to have access to water. How could you ever cook anything without it? Everyone is also assumed to have salt and pepper.

Excellent. I am a vegetarian, not a vegan so I did mayo instead of the cashews- just half a cup was enough and topped with Parmesan. The chickpeas were a great addition though I did roast them for 10 minutes longer than the recipe called for (30 min total) to get them extra crispy. Will absolutely go into the rotation.

Delicious! I boiled the cashews per Anna's suggestion.

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020763-vegan-caesar-salad-with-crisp-chickpeas