Tag Archive | homemade italian salad dressing recipe

Recipe: Homemade Italian Salad Dressing

Jul24

June 26, 2014 041 crop

When I began this journey toward healthier eating, one of the first things I tried to do was minimize the products we used that contained corn syrup.  I began reading ingredient labels on everything I bought.  I was not able to find salad dressing in a store that did not contain corn syrup, so I decided to find a recipe to make my own.  That is when I came across this recipe from PennilessParenting.com.  With just a few minor modifications, I have made this recipe several times.  My family likes it even more than the store-bought dressings!

This recipe takes less than 10 minutes to make, it costs less than store-bought dressing, tastes better in our opinion, and it contains ingredients you most likely already have at home.  If you are missing a few of the spices, it probably won’t make much of a difference.

This recipe can be used on salad greens, pasta, or any recipe that calls for Italian dressing, including Perfect Potato Salad.

July 23, 2014 013 italian dressing

Ingredients

½ cup white vinegar

½ cup olive oil

2 ½ Tablespoons Grapeseed oil

1 Tablespoon water

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon honey

1 ½ teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon thyme

¼ teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon parsley

1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt (if you don’t have any, just use regular salt)

 Instructions

Pour ingredients into a 2 ½ cup glass measuring cup. Transfer to a glass salad dressing bottle. Cover and shake well. Refrigerate to store.

Edited on 8/13/14:   I tried making this using olive oil only and leaving out the grapeseed oil.  After being in the refrigerator for a few days, it solidified.  So it is necessary to add another oil in addition to olive oil to prevent this.

Perfect Summer Potato Salad

Jun12

June 10, 2014 126 summer potato salad blog

Nothing says summer to me like a cool, refreshing mix of potatoes, eggs, cucumbers, and celery mixed with the perfect blend of spices in creamy mayo.

To make it healthier and minimize my use of processed ingredients, I made my own Italian salad dressing.  If you’re running short on time, store-bought dressing will work.  But if you have a few minutes, give the homemade dressing a try and you will see how simple it is to make.  This delicious substitution is healthier and less expensive than the store-bought, and it gives me peace of mind being able to control the oils I use and to eliminate the high fructose corn syrup that is present in virtually all store-bought dressing.

The following recipe is my idea of a perfect potato salad.  Feel free to add or eliminate ingredients to your liking (for example, my family doesn’t like onions, but add them if you like).

 

Ingredients

4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, washed and cubed into bite-sized pieces

¼ cup Italian Dressing (recipe below)

½ teaspoon salt

pepper, to taste (I just use a few shakes)

½ cup mayonnaise (we use Kraft Real Mayo)

1 medium stalk celery, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 cup cucumbers, chopped into bite-sized pieces

2 hard boiled eggs, chopped into bite-sized pieces

Instructions

 

  1. Add potatoes to a pot, adding just enough water to cover. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and cook until tender. Drain and cool.
  2. After potatoes are cool, stir in Italian dressing, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
  3. Just before serving, toss with cucumbers, celery, eggs, and mayonnaise until potatoes are well coated.  Enjoy!

 

Italian Dressing recipe (makes 1 1/3 cups)

½ cup white vinegar

½ cup olive oil

2 ½ Tablespoons Grapeseed oil

1 Tablespoon water

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon honey

1 ½ teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon thyme

¼ teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon parsley

1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt (if you don’t have any, just use regular salt)

Pour ingredients into a 2 ½ cup glass measuring cup. Transfer to a glass salad dressing bottle. Cover and shake well. Refrigerate to store.

Recipe modified from http://www.pennilessparenting.com/2010/07/perfect-homemade-italian-dressing.html.