Recipe(tried): A few homemade salad dressings

Hey everyone!

Found some time in my busy schedule yesterday do some menu planning, and planning for the week ahead. I have always had this fantasy of making a regular schedule of homemade pre-week items to have ready at any given moment. You know, the kind of things on hand, so that when friends show up unexpectedly, you can focus on what is really important, instead of wondering what you can put together so that they feel completely welcomed.

In addition. These pre-week items always serve as a time cutter, when you find yourself coming home late from the stores, work, classes etc... and you want that instant gratification thing, without a lot of work, and not wanting to order in.

Believe it or not. Homemade salad dressings are one of those things. They are so easy to make and yet so few people take the time to do. In my mind, homemade salad dressing to a salad is like giving a gift that you have taken the time to carefully wrap in a fancy way. To most people, the wrapping is just something to make the gift a surprise, but when the gift wrapping paper has been folded into an oragami swan and then tastefully placed on the box, people are REALLY thrilled! Most people dont place as much thought and time into the wrapping as they do into the gift...but when you notice that someone has carefully considered every last detail. It really has an enoromous impact.

Yesterday... I took some extra time and made some homemade salad dressings to have on hand. Salads are always so easy to assemble, and if you have a small selection of homemade dressings... even a salad becomes a wonderful meal!!

Here are the 4 dressings I made yesterday to have on hand. They are all VERY good. I found the Thousand Island Dressing and the Green Goddess dressing in the August 2002 issue of Cuisine at home. I have altered them just a little since Im allergic to horseradish. The Yogurt-Mint dressing I found in the May 2004 issue of Fine Cooking. Finally the Asian-Style Dressing was in essence from a recipe I found in a cookbook by Michelel Urvater, Monday to Friday cooking.
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Thousand Island Dressing

Combine:

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons ketchup
2 Tablespoons red pepper, finely diced
1 Tablespoon sweet pickle relish
1 Tablespoon red onion finely diced
1 Tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
couple of squirts of Tabasco sauce
1 hard-cooked egg, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Chill at least and hour before serving for flavors to develop. Keeps for one week.

Great as a dressing for crisp greens, with seafood, or as a special sauce for burgers, also very good on Sliced tomatoes and cucumbers sprinkled with parsley.

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Green Goddess Salad Dressing:

Process in a blender:

1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped scallions
2 Tablespoons sour cream
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1 Tablespoon anchovy paste
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
White pepper to taste

1.Process all ingredients in a blender until creamy. Chill at least and hour before serving for flavors to develop. If too thick to pour, thin with a little milk. Keeps for one week.

*** the anchovy paste REALLY makes the flavor!!! Even if you are not a fan of anchovy paste. You need to add it to the recipe. It adds a depth of saltiness that is needed to balance the dressing. And unless someone tells you that it is in the dressing, you wouldn't be able to quite put your finger on it.

This is a very "herby" dressing and should be drizzled over bitter greens, or with seafood or fish. Great over Poached fish or leaves of Belgian endive or both!!

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Yogurt-Mint Dressing

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey

3 Tablespoons whole milk yogurt
5 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons roughly chopped fresh mint
Salt and pepper to taste.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk the lemon juice and honey, until the honey is completely dissolved in the juice.

2. In another bowl, whisk the yogurt and olive oil.

3. In a thin stream, slowly add the yogurt mixture to the lemon-honey mixture, whisking constantly until incorporated.

4. Add the mint, and salt and pepper to taste.


*** This dressing is great served as follows

In a large bowl place about 8 cups of baby spinach greens, that have been washed and dried. Then add cucumber and red onion prepared as following. Gently toss with above dressing and serve.

Take 2 medium cucumbers, peel, slice in half and using a spoon, scrape out the seeds. Then thinly slice crescents of cucumber about 1/8 inch thick.

Take one small red onion and halve. Carefully and VERY THINLY slice. Put in as much as desired.

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Asian-Style Salad Dressing

1/4 cup of vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 cup rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried pepper flakes
2 Tablespoons Asian fish sauce (sometimes called Nuoc Mam)

1. Place into a jar with a tightly fitting lid and shake well.

My version of an "Asian salad" is composed of:

Hearts of Romaine torn into mouth size pieces
Radishes thinly sliced and then halved.
Carrots cut julienne style or into matchsticks.
Crispy bean sprouts
Dry roasted peanuts or cashews chopped

Toss well with the above dressing and look out!!! Better make sure you have made enough salad!

Hope you all enjoy the dressings as much as I do. They are just a small grouping of an enormously growing list of my dressings. And they are what I will have in my fridge this week, so if any of you are planning on stopping by.... smile... there will always be an extra plate at the table.

Take care.