Wow, those look good.
More deets on the croutons and caesar dressing?
Croutons:
one large loaf sourdough, uncut and unsliced around 8" round to 10" round
4tbs unsalted butter
5tbs evoo
1-2 tsp dried italian seasoning
1tsp oregano
1 tbs granulated garlic
1 tsp ground black pepper (amount varies to your taste)
pinch of kosher salt - don't oversalt
cut sourdough into 1 inch slices
then cube the slices into 1 inch by 1 inch cubes
place into very large work bowl, enough room to toss all of this
in a small saucepan melt the butter and add the evoo
add all the above spices from italian seasoning on down through the salt
mix with spoon to incorporate
make sure the butter oil mixture isn't too hot so it won't burn or burn the garlic
dip a single cube into the seasoning to finalize salt profile or adjust seasoning to your liking
when all is fragrant and incorporated, gently drizzle over your bread cubes. toss the cubes as you're adding in the drizzle so the top cubes don't get al the seasoning and the bottom ones are bare.
fully toss to ensure even distribution of seasoning.
heat oven, convection bake 400F.
line baking sheet with parchment paper and gently pour out the seasoned cubes. one even layer is desired. tightness doesn't really matter.
bake in oven until cooked to desired doneness. mine usually go around 15 mins+ to get the darker color I prefer.
these crouton had a nice crispy outside with just the center bit on the soft side. once these cooked croutons sit at room temp, they will dry out further so avoid overcooking them. you want croutons, not rocks.
sometimes i'll dust them with a fine pecorino dust. the finer the better as you're enhancing the crouton flavor, not making a cheese crouton.
serve and enjoy. it's tough to have leftovers on these. everyone just eats them up.
this batch was dinner for 6 people. less than two cups of croutons were leftover. they'll be gone by tonight, for sure.
i'll post the caesar recipe shortly. i texted home for my son to send it to me. i'll post my modified version, not the original one as i think my version has a more traditional flavors of more acid (lemon), and W sauce (anchovy/umami). which are profiles i prefer versus a heavy, mayo creamy type of caesar. basically, a cleaner, fresher profile.