This salad has been seriously hitting the spot, maybe all the spots, for a while around here and the dressing has been in our rotation (jk it completely became the rotation) for over a year. It never fails and is somehow always what I want, always just the amount of effort I’m willing to put in and always treats me right. The following recipe makes 2 big salads like the one pictured in the post or would make several people happy as a side salad, with plenty of hemp seed parmesan and dressing leftover. The ingredients all stored separately will last a week, so make extra tempeh while you’re at it because reaching into the fridge and having this ready to go is the closest we’ll get to heaven. Believe that.

The hemp parm is so good and really elevates all sorts of dishes in such a simple but profound way. Always having a jar full of it next to the stove for easy sprinkling access is very recommended. You can make a version with almost any nut and seed combo, I’ve done many in the past but fell on hemp seeds for the perfect fat content, nutrition and price.

Cashew Caesar with Smokey Tempeh Crumble and Hemp Parm

(serves 2 as a meal or 4+ as a side)

ingredients

1 large head of romaine, chopped

3-4 tbsp vegan cashew caesar (recipe follows)

~2 tbsp hemp seed parm (recipe follows)

1 package of tempeh (6 oz)

1 tbsp smoked paprika

1 tbsp maple syrup

1/2 tsp liquid smoke

1 tsp soy sauce

2 tbsp olive oil

salt + pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper (not required but helpful). In a medium size bowl, mix together the paprika, maple, liquid smoke, soy sauce and olive oil then crumble in the tempeh. Stir to coat, then bake for 15 minutes (or longer depending how crispy you want it but watch it closely as it burns quickly).

Toss the cut romaine with the cashew caesar dressing, coating well. Sprinkle with the smokey tempeh crumble and hemp parm.

Cashew Caesar Dressing

(makes at least 6 large salads)

ingredients

1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight (only necessary if you don’t have a high powered blender. If using unsoaked, add up to 1/4 cup water)

3 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 tsp soy sauce

2 tbsp tahini

4 cloves of garlic, minced

3-4 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to a high powered blender (I use a blender cup as it gets it smoother with less volume needed) and blend until smooth. Add water until desired consistency, however I like to keep it a bit thicker than normal as it’s almost always coating freshly washed lettuce with a higher water content, so it thins out.

Hemp Seed Parm

ingredients

1/2 cup hemp seeds

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1/4 tsp salt

optional 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Add all ingredients to blender or spice mill and pulse until well incorporated.