Garden-to-Table Recipe: Quick & Healthy Salad Dressing

Why make your own salad dressing?

Once I got serious about my health I started to notice all chemicals and fake ingredients in the food I was consuming regularly and one of the surprising culprits was salad dressing. Here I was trying to be healthy by eating salads, and it was so disappointing to find all the garbage ingredients, and large amounts of sugar, that were in these "healthy" salad dressings. It was a moment of stark realization that there are hidden ingredients in almost everything you buy prepackaged at the store. It fueled my desire to start from scratch in my own kitchen.

Garden-to-Table Salad Dressing Recipes

And salad dressings are so easy and quick to make at home! Here are my three go-to quick salad dressing recipes that are on a constant rotation in my home.  They do not require a lot of time and they taste amazing!

Basic Vinaigrette

• ¾ cup olive oil

• ¼ cup white wine vinegar (if you like a litte bite add another splash!)

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• Pinch of salt

• Pinch of pepper

• 1 teaspoon of thyme optional

• Squeeze of lemon or orange

Italian Vinaigrette

• ¾ cup olive oil

• 1/3 cup white or red wine vinegar

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• ½ teaspoon onion powder

• 1 teaspoon basil

• ½ teaspoon oregano

• 1 teaspoon parsley

• Pinch of salt

• Pinch of pepper

Balsamic Vinaigrette

• ¼ cup olive oil

• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar

• 1-2 Tablespoons of honey

• 1 Tablespoon minced garlic

• 1 teaspoon thyme

• ½ teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon of pepper

Play with these.  You all know how I love for people to get creative -- make them your own!

Substitutions/Additions

1 Tablespoon  of Dijon Mustard

Substitute dried for fresh herbs

Add minced Garlic or Shallots

Use a flavored balsamic

Use a nut oil in place of Olive oil: Flax, Walnut, Hazelnut, Avocado, Sesame

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