Make Your Own...Salad Dressing

Okay, here we go! Another first! I made my own salad dressing, from scratch! This is so easy. Seriously, it is easy, easy, easy and...wait a minute. It is easy. So easy in fact that most people probably already do this. Oh well, for those like me who don't didn't, I'll go ahead and share. This is for a vinaigrette style dressing. I was making Italian, but this could be used for any flavorings.

It is a 3 to 1 oil-vinegar ratio with other flavorings and spices added to taste. That's it. I'm serious. 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar with desired seasonings. I used canola oil because that is what I had on hand. Any other oil would work just as well. So, because I am the only person in my family that uses Italian dressing, I was concerned when several of the recipes I looked at called for cups, plural, of oil and vinegar. I didn't want to make too much and have some of it go bad before I could use it. Then, I "happened" to notice that all of the recipes shared the same ratio of oil to vinegar, no matter how much the seasonings and spices varied. Oh happy, happy day! As long as I maintained the correct ratio, I could make as little or as much as I needed. Yes!

Gathering together oil, vinegar, and seasonings, I began my grand experiment. One cup of canola oil joined 1/3 C. Apple Cider and Red Wine vinegar(I mixed the two) in the food processor. Into the mix went some dry Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and a smidgen of sugar. Mix, mix, and PRESTO! Italian Salad Dressing just as good as store bought. Well, it didn't go quite that fast:) I gave a little shake, shake of the seasonings, mixed, tasted, gave a few more shake, shakes, and several shake, shakes later, I liked the way it tasted enough to pour it in a glass container and let it sit overnight for the flavors to marry.

Several salads and a few sandwiches later, I'm almost out! Time to make some more. Maybe I should try another flavor. Maybe the kids would like that poppy seed dressing. Yep, definitely going to find out and see.

Oh yes! Please beware. Concocting salad dressing is really, really fun too. It could probably become addictive it is so easy and fun. There are so many spice combinations to experiment with, and wouldn't it be fun to see how that Italian dressing would taste with bit of dry mustard and tiny pinch of red pepper flakes? Also, what if instead of going savory we took it more to the sweet side with some fruit juice? Wouldn't a small amount of onion be nice with the sweet notes?

Just wanted to let you know, you might get hooked:) At the very least, you might discover a flavor combination that would work perfectly as a gift. Ooooooh, how delightful some homemade dressing in a pretty glass bottle would look in a gift basket filled with homemade crackers and sweet little pots or bunches of homegrown herbs. Gourmet look and taste + simple idea + very little cost = an abundant gift idea. I just might have to add a little something or other to our nephew's wedding gift:) Speaking of wedding gifts, did you know...we'll talk more on this later.

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