Lago Avandaro at Valle de Bravo, Mexico.
Where are Kevin and Ruth now? Valle de Bravo, Mexico.

Where are Kevin and Ruth going next? Playa del Carmen on December 17th!

Monday, May 16, 2016

Does anybody make their own salad dressing??

Perfect weather we're having here at the park. High of 20C (68F) yesterday and no wind. This makes leaf blowing, raking, and cleanup a lot easier. In fact, we were enjoying being outside so much that we worked until just after 6:30pm!

And, we had our first two seasonal trailers show up. A little early, but they had both called in advance and asked. One of them was a huge fifth wheel, so they wanted to get in ahead of everyone else so that they had some maneuvering room, and it was a good thing they did.

Besides, we've got a couple of sections now ready for occupancy anyhow, so as they're ready they can bring them in if they wish.

Kevin, doing some raking.

And, I did some research last night on how to fix Sherman's minor exhaust leak. He's got a broken bolt at the rear of the right exhaust manifold, and it's been like that for at least a couple of years. But I noticed this past winter that the noise from it has gotten worse, and I want it fixed before we give it to our motorhome exchange couple who arrive here June 8th.

So the choice is, I could pay someone to do it. Or, I could buy the necessary tools and do it myself.

I like the satisfaction of doing these kinds of jobs myself. Plus, when I do it myself I know that it's done right!

So I'll likely attempt that after the long weekend.

Oh...does anybody make their own salad dressing? We eat a lot of salad, usually with every evening meal. But most of the bought dressings are made with canola oil or soy oil, and we don't want any of that. Oh, and sugar. Why would they put sugar in a salad dressing? We don't get it.

Dinner last night!

Anyhow, we like creamier styles of dressing...and we have found a couple that we like that we buy. But they're not cheap. So we want to try making our own. Anybody have a recipe that they could share?

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Summer is almost here...this backyard swimming pool is on sale...the kids will love it! Or, just a nice spot to cool yourself down. Great price for an easy to set up pool...


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28 comments:

  1. Most of the time I make my own dressing, my favourite is equal part olive oil & white wine vinegar, a couple of shakes of Kerr's dry mustard powder & a dash of Mrs Dash Garlic & Herb. If you do want a little sweetness, add a tsp of sugar. Shake well before serving. Make at least 10 minutes before using. If any leftovers, store in a glass jar & it keeps for a couple of days. Enjoy!

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    1. Thank you Nanapink. We have made one similar to this in the past but I have never tried it with white wine vinegar so I will give this a try soon.

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  2. I usually make my own dressing, but it's a vinaigrette, not a creamy dressing. Mine is similar to the recipe above, but without the Mrs Dash (I use basil, oregano, garlic instead). I'm sure someone will have some good creamy dressing ideas for you.

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    1. Yours sounds similar to the one that I have made before and we do like it but wanted one that was creamy as well. Thank you!

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  3. I have not bought any salad dressings in years. My usual one is a bit of balsamic vinegar and olive oil with a small bit of dijon mustard, salt and pepper. You can also add a bit of agave or honey. Google them, let us know if you come up with a winner.

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    1. Thank you Shelagh, I will give that a try. We have ha balsamic vinegar dressings before but I have never made one with it in so maybe that would make the difference.

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  4. I use avacado oil and balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. I put it right on top and mix it in - it is a total favourite and have made it for years and not gotten sick of it. You could pre mix it with any spices you prefer.
    I don't doubt that you could make your own creamy dressing using plain, full fat (mine is 11%) greek yogurt. The brand I buy is Krema, so so delicious! I eat it at almost every meal - great with salsa, or in a smoothy. So versatile. I've also made dips with it using dill and chives so you could use it as a base and go from there.

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    1. Thank you Janis! We bought some full fat Greek yogurt today so I think I will be giving that a try.

      I also like your idea of oil and vinegar mixed together with a little salt an pepper, sometimes it is nice just keeping it simple.

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  5. Funny you should ask about salad dressing, only yesterday when I was making up some coleslaw using shop bought Mayo, I was thinking I should of paid attention to my/Ruth's grandmother as she made her own Mayo.

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    1. I never knew that she made her own mayonnaise! I don't recall my Mum ever mentioning that and normally she would tell me that Grandma made this or that and then she would usually make things similar but I don't remember my Mum making mayonnaise either.

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    2. She Definetly made her own as I was a heathen then and preferred Hienz Salad Cream ��

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    3. I don't doubt it for a moment that she made her own, I was just surprised that I didn't know it. Wow, shows how times have changed, you heathen! ;-) I remember being the same way, always taking homemade cookies to school and all the other kids had bought cookies and I felt so hard done by.

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  6. We used to use creamy dressings but now we use olive oil and balsamic vinegar with a KURAIDORI spray oil/vinegar bottle, really makes the oil and vinegar go a very long way.
    I also make a wonderful caesar salad dressing very creamy and will keep in the fridge for a week or 2, raw eggs, vinegar, lemon juice, parmesan cheese, pepper in a food processor. The recipe for that is on my recipe blog.

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    1. Thank you George, I will have a look at the recipe in your blog for the Caesar dressing, it sounds delicious. I have never tried those spray oils, we'll check them out next time we are in town.

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  7. Broken exhaust manifold bolts are not unusual on the 454, evidently. Hopefully we'll get a post on how the repair goes.

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    1. Yep, it seems they are fairly common and that's why there is lots of info online on how to fix them. I am sure there will be a blog post about it sometime in the near future. ;-)

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  8. Salad dressing: I make my own for using on green salads. I have yet to make my own mayonaise. This is a link to two of the dressings I make: http://ritasrecipesblog.blogspot.com/search/label/salad%20dressing
    I do love fresh salads, and this is the recipe for one of my favorite salads, and I use the dressing from this salad on most of my salads. http://ritasrecipesblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/roquefort-pear-salad.html

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    1. Thank you very much for your links Rita, looks like there are a few ideas here to try. :-)

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  9. Here is a big list of Oil free salad dressings from HealthyGirlsKitchen.com. She has over 100 recipes (many of them creamy):
    https://sites.google.com/site/hgkprintablerecipes/big-list-of-no-oil-salad-dressings

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    1. Wow, that is a huge list, I can see myself trying a few of those. Thank you very much! :-)

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  10. Creamy Dressing
    Start with a basic "base" dressing:
    Whisk together 3/4 Cup mayo, 1/2 Cup buttermilk, 1 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon table salt) use less if you are going to add salty ingredients like cheese. I usually don't put much salt in mine. Ground black pepper to taste & then make whatever dressing you like!

    RANCH: 1 tablespoon white vinegar, 1 teaspoon each of garlic powder & onion powder, 1 teaspoon dried or 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill, and 1 teaspoon dried or 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives.

    BLUE CHEESE: Omit salt. Add 1 cup crumbled blue cheese, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, & 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce. Blend.

    HORSERADISH: Add 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar & 3 tablespoons drained bottled horseradish.

    CILANTRO-LIME: Add the juice and finely grated zest of 1 lime, 3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro, & 2 teaspoons of sugar.

    POPPY SEED: Add 1/4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons cider vinegar, & 2 teaspoons poppy seeds. OMIT buttermilk.

    CAESAR: OMIT buttermilk. Use only half of the salt in base recipe. Add 2 finely minced garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 minced anchovies or 1 teaspoon anchovy paste, and 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce.

    You can play around with these to suit your taste :)

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    1. Yum, these all sound delicious as well. I wonder what it would like if I substituted Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise or if that would mess up the recipe? I may try a little sample first just to see. Thank you Lori! :-)

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  11. Cream yogurt salad dressing: Yogurt, plain or Greek - 1/4 cup; Olive oil - 1/3 cup; Lemon juice - 1/3 cup; Garlic - 1 clove, peeled; Cilantro - 1/4 bunch

    Creamy Balsamic Vinaigrette: Balsamic vinegar - 3 tbsp; Sour cream 1 1/2 tbsp; Maple syrup - 1 tbsp; Cooking oil - 1/4 cup; Salt and pepper - to taste

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    1. I can see that I will be busy this summer mixing up all kinds of salad dressings. Thank you so much for your recipe too, I am very eager to try them out. :-)

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  12. I use fruit preserves and add olive oil and balsamic vinegar....tart but fruity. I let others add their own seasoning i.e. salt, pepper, cheese, etc.

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    1. Thank you Rita, that is another idea to try. :-)

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  13. My no oil, no sugar salad dressing with protein. 1/2 cup raw cashews soaked overnight and drained. Put in a blender add 2-3 cloves garlic, 1-2 pitted dates, 1-2 tsp mustard, 1/2 cup water, 2-3 T balsamic vinegar. Blend until smooth. You might enjoy with more water, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. You can make other flavors by removing the dates, subbing the balsamic with cider vinegar, adding fresh or dried herbs, etc. Carrots add a nice flavor and color.

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    1. Thank you so much for your recipe. I have already copied it over to my recipe file and we will give it a try. It sounds really good. :-)

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