Well Dressed Greenery
"You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces - just good food from fresh ingredients." – Julia Child
Dropping to my knees I shoved an assortment of jars, bottles, and boxes out of the way and rummaged about in the back of the pantry until my fingers knocked over a long buried bottle. Faded though the label was from hiding for a year or two in the back corner of the pantry, the sell-by date boasted salad dressing freshness for two more months. A disconcertingly long area on the label entitled Ingredients caught my eye. Leading off the list was water, high fructose corn syrup, and soybean oil. Water was the number one ingredient? What surprised me more though, was the number of multi-syllabic words that might mean something to a food chemist, but not to a cook. The label assured me parenthetically that Potassium Sorbate and Sodium Benzoate were just there faithfully preserving the freshness so I could bury it in the pantry for a few years. Ok, but you can’t tell me Lactic Acid is in there for flavor. The length of this label, most of it distinctly Not Delicious Food, took me aback, so I emptied, rinsed, and thrust the offending bottle into the recycling bin.
Did you ever notice how stained and sticky the pages of a cookbook can get when they contain a much loved recipe? The pages of my favorite cookbook's salad dressing section remained perfectly pristine, proof as to my neglect. Well, no more. I would be like Julia and make good dressing from real food. The first vinaigrette recipe I found called for things like olive oil, vinegar, fresh lemon juice, garlic, cracked black pepper, and mustard. Not a single one called for water or assorted chemicals designed to make my dressing stay fresh for many years. So I tried mixing a single serving in a small bowl – a splash of olive oil, a smaller splash of vinegar, a twist of cracked black pepper, and a clove of garlic chopped fine. I spent a few pennies on the ingredients, made it in less than a minute, there was no need at all for Calcium Disodium EDTA, and it was wonderful.
Salad dressing recipes are simply a starting point – as are most recipes. Ignore all “rules” as you please. Experiment a bit and let your own personal taste buds lead the way, adjusting the proportions and ingredients as you see fit on that day. Try different types of oil, like a good fruity extra virgin olive oil or walnut oil. Try skipping oil altogether and add a squish of lemon, or a splash of infused vinegar.
Oil turns rancid with time and sunlight - and the oils used in dressing turns quickly, so purchase it in small bottles or you'll end up throwing a lot of it away. Keep olive oil at room temperature to maintain it's fluid nature. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (most typically used in salads) should last up to a year in a dark pantry. Light Olive Oil has a shorter shelf life due to sediments, and lasts only 3-6 months.
The Basic Vinaigrette at The CC Palate is easy and delicious. Make it different every time you use it by changing the spices, herbs, oil, vinegar, and juices as suggested in the notes section.
Toss Musicmissionary’s Grape Juice Dressing with the Nutty Salad, also found at The CC Palate, it’s a refreshingly different take on a fruity vinaigrette.
Light and creamy Buttermilk Dressing, at The CC Palate adapts very easily to being made as thin or thick as you like. Use it on salads or as a veggie dip!
Eating well and reaching your caloric goal is so easy and fun with your friends at Calorie Count!
Your thoughts…
Have you tried making your own salad dressing? Look at the ingredient list of your favorite dressing. Did anything in the list surprise you? What sort of dressing do you put on your favorite salad? Have you tried adding dressing to your sandwich instead of your usual spread? Have a great dressing recipe for me to try? Send it here!
Comments
I quit buying salad dressing a long time ago. I generally mix oils (I have several different types) various vinegars-depending on the salad, and spices. I don't have a "recipe", I just mix the flavors to compliment what I am putting on my salad. Tastes better and saves a fortune.
I almost always make my own dressing. I also like it tart, so I have a lot more of the acid (vinegar or citrus) than the EVOO. My only problem is that I sometimes don't pay attention to the measurements and end up with waaaay more dressing than I need.
I do wish Calorie Count had a Like button for all these wonderful comments!
thanks!
Great post! It's so true that when you read the ingredients on the backs of dressing bottles (and thousands of other things...) it's downright horrifying to think what we're ingesting! I too make my own dressings from olive oil and different vinegars, plus garlic salt and ground pepper - sometimes ground Italian herbs, parmesan cheese - whatever. It's fun, super-inexpensive, very tasty and SO MUCH BETTER than that nasty chemical-laden bottled goop! BTW - I love you, Calorie Count!
I only use flavored vinegars on salad (even taking mine with me when I eat out if I know I am going to be somewhere where they won't be offered). My current fav is pomegranate - looks like wine in my little container 
christine032550 - Thanks! This site is wonderful and one of the reasons I've become a dedicated label reader, and I hope, much healthier.
strawberry-roan, I've done that too - my fave is a raspberry balsamic reduction vinegar. Gorgeous and just right as is...well, except for maybe a twist of black pepper.
I've been trying a lot of different oils - some considerably more nutritious then the typical vegetable oils. Like Avocado Oil - a wonderful, light, fine oil, with very high amounts of A.B1,B2, D&E, lecithin, and essential fatty acids. Black Cumin seed oil, borage seed oil and many others ... pumpkin seed oil! Wonderful. Available at www.mountainroseherb.com. Sometimes I use just a good red wine vinegar and one of my fabulous oils to dress my salad.
Excellent. I make dressing exactly that way. Usually in the bottom of the salad bowl in which I'm making the salad.
My first experience with a homemade vinaigrette was the recipe in Nora Ephron's Heartburn, in '83, and I've never looked back.
:)
It's true. As simple and inexpensive as it can be to dress your greens, I am so surprised at what a large section of store is dedicated to preserved salad dressing, some at $6 a bottle, and you know they end up in the trash at 3/4 full when the fridge doors are purged once a year. I grew up in a home where we always had 3-4 bottles of this goop in the fridge, and therefore thought it was a necessity if you were to have a salad. I always chose the one I found least offensive instead of adding them for pleasure. Years and wisdom have since caused me to choose simplicity. My daughter now experiments with new flavors to dress up greens, yesterday making an excellent dressing using a natural hummus, some raisins and a little water. mmmmm
Thanks for the great article, and I LOVE your writing style, Jannid. It was a joy to read.
Thai and southeast Asian cooking has a lot of low-oil dressing options that include citrus juices, chilis, onions and spices. My personal favorite is this one Thai salad we have on occasion that uses lots of cilantro, diced mango, red onion, red chilis, garlic, lime juice, like 1 Tbsp of oil for the whole thing, and a bunch of spices. You could probably leave out the oil and just add a bit of water, but I love the taste of the soy/sesame oil mix we have...
I just drizzle EVOO and what ever vinegar I might be using straight onto my salad. I eat salad almost every day for lunch so I try to be creative and change it up often by adding all kinds of different and good things. By the time I'm ready to dress it I guess I'm to hungry or just lazy lol
I have a large salad daily.
A bed of Romaine lettuce generally followed by whatever I ave for veggies on hand. Tomatoes, cooked corn cut off the cob, black olives cukes, carrot shavings etc. And 3 ounces of cooked meat of choice cut up small.
To top it off I take a lemon and cut it in half and squeeze some lemon juice on the top. Maybe grind some pepper as well. That's it. thats my salad dressing. Fat Free always fresh.
I then plop the remainder of the lemon in a glass of water and sprinkle in some stevia in it.
I don't feel at all deprived over lack of salad dressings.
I also gave up on bottled dressing a while ago. This is my favourite time of year because my garden has lots of chives, dill, oregano, thyme, etc. Every day I go out and grab some herbs, add to EVOO and lemon juice or some kind of vinegar, add some dijon mustard and a bit of honey, shake and then pour on my fresh garden greens. Yum!
I agree that recipes are just a starting point, however, it's nice to have a recipe to start from. Here's one, kind of sweet, from Michael Smith that's good on dark greens like spinach. I like adding a bit of feta and pumpkin seeds to the salad with this dressing, maybe some fresh raspberries too.
2 tbsp raspberry jelly
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
4 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper
Place ingredients in a jar and shake until blended.
Olive oil, vinegar and salt isn't a big discovery. It's what everyone ate and still eats. The difference is that now other dressings, that aren't very appreciated where I live, appeared like those ranch and thousand islands sauces....
I think it's kind of scary that you weren't brought up eating this mix with your salad. It was a staple in my life, but then again I live in Portugal, so that might be the difference...
yes, that is exactly the difference. You are a most fortunate person indeed. In the US in the 50's, convenience was all the rage and many of us developed some interesting taste experiences as a result.
Original Post by: doctorjo_2003I quit buying salad dressing a long time ago. I generally mix oils (I have several different types) various vinegars-depending on the salad, and spices. I don't have a "recipe", I just mix the flavors to compliment what I am putting on my salad. Tastes better and saves a fortune.
Veganaise....first time I heard of this lol (googles) 
Mustard greens are growing super well here right now- I pop a batch- yellow flowers and stems, too, into the blender and grind the mass with a little water and sometimes a little raw sunflowers and use this as a base for salad dressing or a pasta or rice sauce- sometimes I add oil or not, depends on my mood. Soy sauce or and Mrs. Dash seasoning, too.
As a kid growing up I was used to having extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar (&/or balsamic vinegar), fresh ground black pepper & fresh ground sea salt on the table so we could all put whatever we wanted on our salads. I only had regular salad dressings when we went out to eat at restaurants or a friends house.
However as an adult I discovered the endless possibilities of all natural &/or organic dressings. I love Newman's Own All Natural dressings & Annie's Natural Dressings. I can pronounce & understand everything on their ingredient lists lol.
I still enjoy good old oil & vinegar on my salads too :)
Thank you Calorie Count and members! Amazing ideas and "reminders". It's been a long time since last time i made my own dressing. It was a batch that got used a little and the majority got tossed. Making a single or small serving makes sense and for some reason didn't occur to me.
I make a dressing for pasta "salad" that would likely taste amazing on a leaf salad. It's a few ounces lemon juice, 4-5 cloves roasted garlic crushed in a press, a tablespoon of dried basil (or a little minced fresh), drizzle of olive oil (i sometimes skip), and light amount of salt and pepper.
Another of my new favorites is mild or medium salsa - especially delicious if you have a little lean cooked ground beef and a sprinkle of lowfat cheddar cheese on the salad.
I am so inspired to try these ideas and quit the store dressings! Does anyone have a recipe for that amazing refreshing ginger vinaigrette that you can't buy in the store that a lot of good Chinese or Japanese restaurants serve?
Thanks everyone for your ideas and comments!
ckpedersen - About.com has a simple looking recipe for ginger vinaigrette that I have not yet tried. There is an option at the end for salt or soy sauce but I think that it would be important for it to be soy sauce. I like that it uses sesame oil. Let me know if you try it and what you think!
I just made a lovely dressing for our salad tonight, very simple and low in calories. I mixed about 4 tablespoons of yogurt (I make my own using 2% milk but any lowfat plain yogurt would do), 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, a clove of garlic crushed and a couple of grinds of black pepper and a touch of salt. Yum! We had a salad of mixed baby salad leaves, spring onion, grated carrot, tomato, celery and kalamata olives. This dressing was fresh and delicious, it really complimented the salad.
"You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces - just good food from fresh ingredients." – Julia Child
I vouch for this! Nobody needs fancy food to stay healthy
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I make my own dressing once a week. I love a good creamy ranch made out of silken tofu, dried onion, garlic powder, apple cider vinegar, dill, vegetable seasoning and some veganaise. It's got about half the calories but is every bit as rich.
Blending up some veggies and herbs is another easy way to make a tasty dressing. I like to experiment with different tastes for instance cilantro and lime and pear.