It’s a New Year! Holiday parties are over and it’s time to pay attention to healthy eating again. Salads are an easy way to get back on track. But sometimes it’s the dressings that can derail an otherwise healthy meal. Today’s post features four guest contributors sharing their favorite homemade salad dressings.
Meet Antimo Cimino – experiential travel expert and owner of Voomago, health enthusiast and certified fitness coach, as well as cookbook author.
There are unusual ingredients in Antimo’s Earl Grey & Saffron Vinaigrette, that can turn a ho-hum salad to WOW!
- 6 tablespoons of Earl Grey Tea (done with 2 bags in just 1 cup of water
- 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (golden yellow)
- 1 teaspoon of honey
- 3 tablespoons of pomegranate juice
- 1 spoon of pomegranate kernels
- 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar
- The pulp of 1/2 orange
- 1 teaspoon of chopped dill
- 1 Spoon of Rock Salt
- 2 pinches of Persian Saffron*
- Put the rock salt and the saffron into a bowl and crash it till fine. Set aside.
- In a shaker add all the liquid ingredients and shake well to mix into a vinaigrette.
- Add in the pomegranate kernels and the chopped dill.
- When ready to add to your salad, use the Saffron Salt you obtain to finish your dressing.
- *Persian saffron can be found at Amazon if your local markets don't have it in stock.
- I highly recommend adding fennel and using butter lettuce in your salad when using this dressing.
Robyn Feldberg, owner of The Abundant Success Coach, is also a fellow food enthusiastic who contributes her Caesar Salad Dressing. This salad dressing resulted in a proposal of marriage! Here’s her story:
“I first learned to make this delectable salad when I was a child. The owner of a small Italian restaurant that my mom used to take me to knew how much we loved her Caesar and was kind enough to not only share the recipe but teach me how to make it. Sometimes we’d go to this restaurant just for this salad, and then go home and make dinner.
- 4 anchovy fillets
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 yolk from a coddled egg
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- juice from a lemon (do not substitute)
- 4 to 5 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (or to taste)
- 1 head Romaine lettuce, washed, torn, and dried
- croutons, if desired
- Parmesan cheese
- freshly ground pepper
- Coddle egg by placing in very hot water for 3 minute.
- Meanwhile, in a wooden salad bowl, smash together garlic and anchovy until the mixture resembles a fine paste.
- Separate the egg and add the yolk to the garlic/anchovy mixture, mixing well.
- Mix in remaining ingredients (with the exception of pepper and Parmesan cheese), one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add the olive oil in a fine stream and stir well to emulsify the dressing.
- Add the prepared Romaine and croutons, and toss salad well.
- Serve with freshly ground pepper and freshly grated Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Cheri Papini is the only person I know who has a dedicated shelf in her fridge for salad dressings. I crown her Queen of Salad Dressings.
Cheri’s contribution of Honey Lime Dressing is sure to please anyone’s palate. She uses this dressing particularly when she is making a Grilled Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salad in the summertime, but it’s good anytime of the year. The original recipe came from Jehan Can Cook.
Serves 4
Save RecipeIngredients
- Juice of one lime
- 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- Dash of cayenne pepper
- Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
- Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl.
Nutrition
Julie Walraven, a triple Certified Resume Writer (Design Resumes) by day, and chef by night is sharing her Dill Dressing. It is so versatile it can be used as a dip or sandwich spread by slightly altering the thickness of the dressing. A note from Julie:
“When Christina asked me to share a dressing recipe, at first, I really struggled. I am starting to experiment with salad dressings and have only made a few. Honestly some of them didn’t go well. However, I have made this recipe for years, mainly as a vegetable dip but most recently, I have been using it on my salads.”
- 2/3 Cup Miracle Whip
- 2/3 Cup Sour Cream
- 1 tbsp dried onion
- 2 tsp Lawry’s Seasoning Salt
- 1 tbsp dry dill weed
- 1 tsp Parsley Flakes
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 drops Tabasco Sauce
- Mix all ingredients well. Chill for 12 hours to flavor through.
- Use as Salad dressing with the consistency of a Thick Bleu Cheese-type dressing. It comes out thick but could be thinned with some milk if you don’t like it too thick.
- Recipe Alternatives: Can used plain Greek Yogurt in place of the Miracle Whip and Sour Cream.
My recipe, is a version of a Green Goddess dressing with lighter ingredients. Green Goddess dressing is hard to find in restaurants these days or on the grocery store shelves. It was one of my favorites from “back in the day.”
This newer lighter version recipe appealed to me for the combination of flavors, marrying avocado and garlic – what’s not to like, right? In all fairness, most of the time I tend to drizzle salads with good olive oil from Italy or locally grown sources like Oregon Olive Mill and a few dashes of Italian balsamic vinegar brought back to the US from our visits to Modena, or our favorite NY variety Lombardi’s. It’s quick, easy, and low in calories. However, I love a variety of salad dressings since I eat a salad most days for lunch. This Creamy Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing is repeated often.
- 1 avocado
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup low-fat sour cream or greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (can substitute lemon juice or white vinegar)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup water (or more to thin dressing)
- Place all ingredients (except water) in a food processor or blender.
- Pulse until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides.
- Thin the salad dressing with about 1/3 cup water.
So there you have it – a post full of salad dressings you can choose from to make your next salad, and the next, and the next. Enjoy!
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