A few years ago, I decided to boycott salad dressings- for the most part. My fridge was full of months old, partially used, undesirable salad dressings and I was over it. I'd purchase a dressing, like it for a little while and then become turned off by it, it's weird, I know. Since starting on my health journey a number of years ago, I started purchasing salad dressings with fewer ingredients, but I'd rarely finish a bottle. Instead of spending anywhere from $2.00-$8.00 on different types of dressings for different moods, I decided to start making my own.

And I love it! I honestly don't remember the last time I bought a bottle of salad dressing because I don't have to! More often than not, I have all the ingredients necessary for a tasty dressing stocked in my fridge or pantry and I bet you'd be surprised what you can make do with at home right now!

When you make your own salad dressing you have control of the ingredients, there's no unnecessary preservatives, colorings or excess sugar, not to mention less waste, which you know I'm a fan of :) Depending on what you are going for it could be 3 ingredients and take less than 5 minutes, or more if you're looking for something a little edgier.

Now, I'm not saying go throw out all of your salad dressings and never purchase another bottle again. If you love ranch, keep on loving it, but here are a few options if you would like to experiment with making your own dressings. I’m not even going to attempt a homemade ranch because if you wan the real deal, you should have the real deal!

Today's recipes:

Creamy Avocado Dressing
TO Go To Dressing
Raspberry Vinaigrette
Blue Cheese Dressing
Honey Mustard Dressing

All of these dressings contain Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), a mono-unsaturated fat that contains oleic acid. Oleic acid is anti-inflammatory and a heart healthy fat that helps protect from oxidative stress, lower LDL cholesterol, raise HDL cholesterol and lower triglycerides. These benefits also help to protect against atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease and some cancers. EVOO has more anti-inflammatory benefits thanks to polyphenols from the olives (2,4). Healthy Fats are a staple in a balanced diet, (they actually don't make you fat, thanks diet culture), but help to balance blood sugar, create a more satisfying meal, help your body to absorb certain vitamins, and hey, fat is also one of the three macronutrients, so we actually need it for survival.

EVOO also contains Vitamin E & Vitamin K. Vitamin E, as I've mentioned in past posts, is a powerful antioxidant that protects cells from free radicals (created from smoking cigarettes, air pollution, sun damage, etc.). It is also important for immune function and support, not just Vitamin C (3).

Vitamin K helps with protein synthesis during blood clotting and bone metabolism (3).

I also use some sort of acid in each dressing, either Lemon or a Vinegar. Lemon is a great source of Vitamin C and contains a small amount of potassium, iron and Vitamin B6. As we all know, Vitamin C is an important antioxidant, necessary for immune function and support, but it also is required for collagen production, L-carnitine, some neurotransmitters and plays a role in protein metabolism. Also, consuming Vitamin C improves the absorption of nonheme iron, found in plants like spinach (3) (hello perfect for salad dressings!!!). I purchase a few lemons every week, cut them into slices and wedges and store them to use in honestly, nearly every meal but specifically things like salad dressings, water or tea, etc.

I've also included additional nutrition facts for each recipe.

As far as storage goes, most of these dressings will be good for at least a week if not longer. The more fresh ingredients you add, the the shorter the shelf life. The more acidic/vinegar, the longer they'll last, maybe a few weeks, but cream based dressing last approximately a week. Use your senses, if it smells weird, I'd probably throw it out. There is a risk of bacterial growth when you mix chopped garlic with olive oil, so I would not store dressing with garlic for longer than week. If you'd like your dressing to last longer, mix your base ingredients and store, then when you go to use the dressing, add the chopped garlic, if you're heart desires!

Salad Dressing Recipes

Creamy Avocado Dressing

Ingredients:

1 avocado (sub with 1/2 C plain Greek yogurt or Raw Full Fat Yogurt if you don't have or don't like avocados :) )
- if you want a creamier final product you could also do a mixture of yogurt & avocado
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
3/4 c extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic
Few sprigs fresh basil
Pinch of Sea Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Blender

Instructions:

Add ingredients to blender and blend until smooth, adding more or less olive oil depending on desired thickness.
Makes approximately 6-8 servings.

Side Notes & Nutrition:

I think this is a versatile dressing! I used this dressing on eggs, pasta and a veggie-based or pasta salad! Swapping out basil for cilantro could make a great topping addition to Taco Tuesdays!
Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week, depending on the ripeness of avocado.
Some nutrients found in this dressing: Avocados are basically a superfood, they provide protein, fiber, healthy mono-unsaturated fat, folate, Vitamin K, C, E, A, B6, pantothenic acid and magnesium, to name a few.

TO Go To

Ingredients:

1/4 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Lemon- juice squeezed
2 pinches Sea Salt
1 small garlic clove, minced
Pepper to taste (I prefer more pepper)
A few dashes of Turmeric (optional)

Instructions:

Add ingredients to small mixing bowl, stir and it's done! Sometimes I add a little more lemon or salt, depending on my move.
Makes approximately 2-3 servings, depending on how much dressing you like.

Side Notes & Nutrition:

This is a quick, simple salad dressing that you can make any day of the week, perfect for a side salad.
This dressing should last approximately 1 week in the refrigerator. The only thing you want to worry about is the garlic becoming rancid when mixed with the oil and creating a nice environment for bacteria :) If you want to be more cautious and have a dressing that lasts longer, add the ingredients, leaving out the garlic and add it in right before you want to use. Keep in mind olive oil dressings while congeal when in the refrigerator. When you're getting ready to make dinner and pulling out all the ingredients, grab out the dressing as well so it has time to get to room temperature, or run it under warm water and give it a few shakes or stirs to mix everything back together.
Turmeric isn't necessary, but I think it adds not only a unique, but anti-inflammatory element to the dressing because it contains curcuminoids. Turmeric can help aid with achey joints, boost the immune system, contains Vitamin A and can help fight off disease and more (2). Turmeric is actually better absorbed when consumed with pepper because of a compound called piperine, making it a perfect combo for this dressing.
Garlic is another powerful antioxidant that protects against cancer, cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases and can lower blood pressure (2). Garlic is also considered a prebiotic (fiber that feeds good gut bacteria) because it contains fructooligosaccharides (FOS) that are metabolized by the bacteria living in our intestinal microbiome.

Raspberry Vinaigrette

Ingredients

1 C Fresh raspberries
3 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tbsp. White Wine or Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Tbsp. Local Organic Honey
Pinch of Sea Salt
1/2 Lemon, fresh squeezed juice

Instructions:

Add ingredients into blend and mix until smooth. If you do not have a blender, muddle up raspberries first, and mix all ingredients in a bowl or jar.

Side Notes & Nutrition:

I am not the biggest fan of sweet dressings, but this was delightful! It wasn't too sweet, but the fresh tartness of the raspberries aded a great element to the salad, perfect for summer lunches or dinners!
Use on salads, marinate chicken and I was also thinking it could taste really good on vanilla ice cream :) I'll try that out soon!
Should stay fresh in the refrigerator for one week.
Raspberries contain anthocyanins that can help reduce the risk of cancer and are cardio and neuro-protective (2).

Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing

Ingredients:

1/2 C Organic Blue Cheese (depending on the type of blue cheese (saltier, stronger, etc) you have, you may want to give or take the amount
1/2 Tbs. fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 C Greek yogurt
1/2 Extra-virgin olive oil
Pinch of Sea Salt

Instructions:

Add ingredients to blender, setting aside a little of the blue cheese to add after.
Blend until smooth, pour into container and add in remaining blue cheese crumbles if you prefer a chunkier dressing.

Side Notes & Nutrition:

Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Makes approximately 4 servings.
This dressing is perfect if you love blue cheese or creamier dressing. Perfect for a simple salad or as a dip!
Fermented yogurts (without added sugars and flavorings) are a good source of probiotics (important for gut and immune system health), protein and calcium.

Honey Mustard Dressing

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp. Organic Stone Ground Mustard
2 Tbsp. Organic Local Honey
1/2 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
2 pinches of Sea Salt

Instructions:

A blender isn't necessary for this recipe, but handy! Add ingredients to bowl or blender and mix until smooth.

Side Notes & Nutrition:

I used a mustard with the seeds because I love the extra bite of texture, but your preferred mustard will work too!
Makes approximately 4 servings.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Not only is this a great dressing for salads- I'm thinking fresh greens, slivered almonds, a few blueberries, chicken or quinoa- yum! Would also be tasty to use as a marinade for chicken.
Raw, unfiltered and unprocessed honey is anti-microbial, can provide relief for season allergies & boost the immune system (5) (lots of those in this post!). When purchasing honey, I recommend buying local honey, if you can. Unfortunately, commercial honey is often filled with additives and isn't made of pure honey, but other processed syrups are used that can be potentially inflammatory.

Shallot Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

1/3 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 shallot, minced
2 Tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme (or preferred/available herb), chopped
pinch of sea salt and pepper
Option to add a pinch of red pepper flakes for some flare!

Instructions:

Mince the shallots and let sit in the olive oil for 5-10 minutes to let the flavors absorb into the oil, mashing them shallots while they’re in the oil will help too! If you make the salad dressing first, before whatever else you’re cooking, this will help give the oil most time to absorb the flavors. You can also sauté the shallots and add them to the dressing if you’d like!
Mix in the rest of the ingredients and make adjustments if desired, I usually like to add more ACV if it tastes too oily for my preference.

Looking for a clever way to store your dressings? I reuse most of the food jars that I buy like olives, pickles, nut butters, etc., but if you're looking for something ASAP here are a few of my favorites:

Click on the link or picture to purchase from Amazon. There you can choose the amount and color desired.

Ball Wide Mouth Pint 16-Ounce Glass Mason Jar

I'm obsessed with Mason Jars! I use them to store leftovers, dressings, cut veggies, for drinks, etc. Even better, there's an awesome company called Recap that makes a variety of lids specifically for mason jars. I have one for iced coffees and another that's a regular flip lid.

Although not pictured in this post, I also have a salad dressing mixer, which is super handy when you don't want to use a blender or for serving dressing while entertaining. It also includes a few recipes on the bottle!

References:

(1) https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/public-health-nutrition/article/mediterranean-diet-science-and-practice/C383082DF00DDFE6475D0B8614EB0BE9

(2) Institute for Functional Medicine. (2015). Phytonutrient Spectrum, Comprehensive Guide. (2015). Institute for Functional Medicine. Retrieved from www.ifm.mycrowdwisdom.com

(3) Mahan, L.K. & Raymond, J.L. (2017). Krause's Food & The Nutrition Care Process (14th ed.). Elsevier: St. Louis, MO.

(4) https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa1800389?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dwww.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

(5) https://draxe.com/the-many-health-benefits-of-raw-honey/