I can only imagine how much money the salad dressing industry makes these days. Almost half of an aisle at the supermarket is devoted to salad dressing of all flavors from the basic Balsamic Vinaigrette to Mango Pineapple Tropical Island Breeze Low Fat No Oil Delight. Wow! I can only imagine where these concoctions originated. Do people really hate the taste of vegetables that much that they need to cover it in a perfume like dressing?
Maybe I’m alone in this but I always make my own dressing. My Mom always made homemade dressing growing up and I’m sure it is in my genes. My favorite is lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Very French and fresh.
This is a unique dressing I came up with while looking into an almost empty Vegenaise jar. The herb oil I used here is my new favorite condiment. It is slightly adapted from the cookbook Vegan For Carnivores Over 125 Recipes So Tasty You Won’t Miss The Meat by Roberto Martin. This is a great cookbook for anyone that is looking to explore vegan cooking. It is written by Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi’s personal chef. He has done a great job translating traditional recipes to vegan versions. The Herb Oil seriously goes on everything. Use whatever fresh herbs you have left in the house.
After visiting your Sunday farmer’s market and throwing together a fresh salad try whipping up this creamy and zingy dressing.
Creamy Herb Dressing
2 tablespoons vegan mayo (such as Follow Your Heart Vegenaise or regular mayonnaise if you have it)
2 tablespoons Herb Oil (recipe follows)
1/2 teaspoon whole grain dijon mustard
1/2 lemon, juiced
Salt & Pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a jar and shake vigorously until combined. I used the Vegenaise jar that had only a few tablespoons of mayo left.
Makes 5 tablespoons of dressing. Enough for about 2 large salads.
Herb Oil
2 cups of water
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
7 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/8 cup parsley
2-3 sprigs thyme leaves
1 1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Bring water to a boil. Place all the herbs in a mesh strainer and pour the hot water over them. Turn out herbs onto two sheets of paper towel and squeeze dry. Place damp herbs and remaining ingredients into a blender and process until smooth. Pour oil into a squeeze bottle or jar and refrigerate for at least a few hours before using to mellow the garlic flavor and meld the herbs. Store oil in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. Let oil return to room temperature on the counter to liquify before use.
Makes 1 1/2 cups
My mom makes her dressing all the time and for some reason I never got into making my own. Now my frig is filled with way too many store bought dressings. I am off to pin this and now try making my own. These both sound really good!
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