Pre-heat your oven with the bake/broil option to 210 C (410 F)

Grab 3 slices of dense baguette bread and cut into evenly sized small cubes

Add the bread cubes to a bowl, drizzle a generous tablespoon of extra virgin Spanish olive oil, ½ teaspoon of dried parsley, ½ teaspoon of garic powder and a hint of sea salt and toss everything together

Add the bread cubes to a baking tray and add to the oven between 12-15 minutes

Meanwhile, finely mince 1 clove of garlic, add to a mortar and pound into a paste

Add ½ teaspoon of dried thyme, ½ teaspoon of dried parsley to the mortar and mash with the garlic

Next add 2 tablespoons of dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon of creamy balsamic vinegar and a pinch of sea salt to the mortar, and mix everything together

Add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin Spanish olive oil to the mortar and mix until you get a mayonnaise like texture, set aside

Roughly chop a head of ice berg lettuce, rinse and pat dry and add to a large bowl

Add the dressing in the mortar to the bowl with the lettuce and mix everything until all the lettuce is well coated, then transfer to a shallow bowl

Top your salad off with the homemade croutons and some freshly shredded queso Manchego