Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 3 – 4 anchovy fillets, about 1 1/2 tsp once mashed
• 1/2 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt
• 3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• Salt, to taste
• 1/8 tsp sugar
• 10 oz. dry penne pasta
• 4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, grilled then diced
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup freshly, finely shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 cup homemade or store-bought croutons, optional

Directions

1. Start the dressing by checking the anchovy fillets and pulling out any larger bones. Drop the fillets into a small mixing bowl, then use the back of a spoon to work them into a paste. Add the Greek yogurt, pour in the olive oil and lemon juice, then mix in the mustard, the Worcestershire sauce, the garlic, pepper, salt and sugar until everything is well combined. Tuck it into the refrigerator while you handle the rest of the salad.
2. Cook the pasta in salted water as the package directs. Drain it, give it a quick rinse just enough to keep the noodles from clumping, and set it aside to cool. In a salad bowl, combine the lettuce with the pasta and chicken, then add half of the tomatoes. Spoon the chilled dressing over everything, add half of the parmesan, and toss until the salad is coated all over. Finish with the rest of the tomatoes, add the croutons and the rest of the parmesan, and serve it right away.
3. A quick anchovy pep talk: the aroma is not shy, but those fillets are what give Caesar dressing its savory backbone. Once mashed in, they make the dressing richer rather than fishy, and anchovy paste is not quite the same as doing this little spoon-and-bowl moment yourself.