Make Your Own...Thousand Island Dressing
Hey There! Ready for a new recipe? This one is a true original. I tried one of the version's I found on a Pinterest search, but it ended up tasting like sweet pickle relish in some kind of tasteless sauce. The sweet pickle relish was so strong all the other flavors were overpowered. Naturally I couldn't throw it out, even if it was close to awful. Sliding into mad scientist in the kitchen mode I grabbed some salad dressing (Miracle Whip), ketchup (Heinz), and honey. Yes, honey; I didn't want to use sugar. The results were fabulous! At least I thought so. Of course I could have been influenced by the fact that the first version was so, please pardon my rudeness, BLEECCCKKKK!
Anywho...here's what we ended up with:
Please note that all amounts are approximate.
Approx. 2 C. mayo/salad dressing
1/4 - 1/2 C. ketchup
2 T. sweet pickle relish (less would be fine)
2 t. finely diced onion (I used onion powder)
1/4 t. garlic powder ( I used garlic powder)
1 t. vinegar
1/8 t. kosher salt - more to taste
2-3 dashes Tabsco sauce (optional - I did not use)
1-2 t. honey
Now, I must confess that while I used the healthiest honey I could afford(it was raw and unfiltered), I totally get the silliness of being concerned with not using sugar in a recipe whose main ingredients, ketchup and mayo, were products full of corn syrup and other possible unhealthy ingredients. No defense for such silliness other than learning through the years that adopting healthier eating is a step-by-step process. It is better to exchange pantry staples one item at a time rather than everything all at once.
Okay, okay, maybe there is also the fact that there are a few items I just cannot seem to switch out; ketchup and miracle whip are among those few items. In our house, ketchup must be Heinz and mayo must be Miracle Whip. That's just the way it is for the majority of people in our house. Not everyone in our home is a total food snob, but some...laughing because it isn't me that is:)
Also, even though it is closer to being a plastic than food, Velveeta is simply the only cheese that works in certain dishes. Mac 'n cheese and beefy nacho dip being two such dishes. Because of it's high price Velveeta makes rare appearances on our pantry shelves, but when the hunger for mac'n cheese gets too strong just know Velveeta is what we use. There is one store brand that we have used in place of Velveeta that comes very close. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, the store chain that carries this item is two hours away. Sometimes comforting home food just needs something that really isn't all that healthy, and that's okay. If one's diet is mostly healthy an occasional unhealthy dish won't cause harm. And I do realize that calling Velveeta cheese is a major stretch; it is not a cheese but a cheese product. We SO do NOT want to talk about the difference between the two. It gets ugly.
Speaking of comforting home foods. Tomorrow we need to talk about that double crust pizza we made earlier this week. Oh my. It was comfort food personified. Can you tell the weather is stormy. I always want to cook when it's rainy. Honestly, I could go for an ooey-gooey slice of that double crust pizza right about now, and we just had one a few days ago. MMMMMmmmmm. Can't wait until tomorrow.
Anywho...here's what we ended up with:
Please note that all amounts are approximate.
Approx. 2 C. mayo/salad dressing
1/4 - 1/2 C. ketchup
2 T. sweet pickle relish (less would be fine)
2 t. finely diced onion (I used onion powder)
1/4 t. garlic powder ( I used garlic powder)
1 t. vinegar
1/8 t. kosher salt - more to taste
2-3 dashes Tabsco sauce (optional - I did not use)
1-2 t. honey
Now, I must confess that while I used the healthiest honey I could afford(it was raw and unfiltered), I totally get the silliness of being concerned with not using sugar in a recipe whose main ingredients, ketchup and mayo, were products full of corn syrup and other possible unhealthy ingredients. No defense for such silliness other than learning through the years that adopting healthier eating is a step-by-step process. It is better to exchange pantry staples one item at a time rather than everything all at once.
Okay, okay, maybe there is also the fact that there are a few items I just cannot seem to switch out; ketchup and miracle whip are among those few items. In our house, ketchup must be Heinz and mayo must be Miracle Whip. That's just the way it is for the majority of people in our house. Not everyone in our home is a total food snob, but some...laughing because it isn't me that is:)
Also, even though it is closer to being a plastic than food, Velveeta is simply the only cheese that works in certain dishes. Mac 'n cheese and beefy nacho dip being two such dishes. Because of it's high price Velveeta makes rare appearances on our pantry shelves, but when the hunger for mac'n cheese gets too strong just know Velveeta is what we use. There is one store brand that we have used in place of Velveeta that comes very close. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, the store chain that carries this item is two hours away. Sometimes comforting home food just needs something that really isn't all that healthy, and that's okay. If one's diet is mostly healthy an occasional unhealthy dish won't cause harm. And I do realize that calling Velveeta cheese is a major stretch; it is not a cheese but a cheese product. We SO do NOT want to talk about the difference between the two. It gets ugly.
Speaking of comforting home foods. Tomorrow we need to talk about that double crust pizza we made earlier this week. Oh my. It was comfort food personified. Can you tell the weather is stormy. I always want to cook when it's rainy. Honestly, I could go for an ooey-gooey slice of that double crust pizza right about now, and we just had one a few days ago. MMMMMmmmmm. Can't wait until tomorrow.