Chicken Caesar Salad Bites

I come from a large family. I have three sisters and we all have our significant others. Add our parents and kids and we are a hungry bunch. To make sure no one person is responsible for feeding everybody, we tend to do our get-togethers potluck style. We all make and bring one or two things and ta-da! Instant buffet. Appetizers, main dishes, sides, and desserts - we've got it all covered. It works out pretty well. Last time we had a party, I wanted to make something different and this is what I came up with. They looked quite impressive on the plate, and everyone loved them.


Chicken Caesar Salad Bites
Makes 45 bites

What I use:

• 1 c. fresh grated Parmesan cheese (the good stuff - not the green can)
• 1 c. cooked, finely shredded or diced chicken (I poach mine)
• 1/2 c. caesar dressing
• 1 c. finely shredded romaine lettuce
• 45 phyllo cups (they come in 15-packs in the freezer section where I live)*

How I do it:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. Put the Parmesan cheese in 1 teaspoon mounds on the baking sheet, 2 inches apart.

4. Bake for 9 minutes. The cheese mounds will flatten while they bake, becoming like crackers. (These are actually pretty good as-is; not very healthy, but really tasty.)

5. Let the cheese (crackers) cool on the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

6. While the cheese is baking, mix the chicken and dressing until well combined, and shred the romaine lettuce.

7. To assemble, put 1 teaspoon of lettuce in each phyllo cup. Top with 1 teaspoon chicken. Place the cheese on it any way you like - sticking up the back (like the pic above), standing straight up in the center of the chicken, or laying flat across the top.

Serve cold.

*Follow the directions on the package for baking if you want them to be a little crispier.