Why Did the Tomato Turn Red?

Because it saw the salad dressing.

Funny or not funny?

Ok, kindergarten humor aside, I want to show you today how truly simple it is to make your own salad dressings.  And you only need the culinary ability of a child to make it happen.

Many years ago when I was in culinary school, one of our teachers, French of course, said that no self-respecting French woman would EVER buy bottled salad dressing.   I know that this sounds terribly snobbish, but seriously - salad dressings are so simple to make, and the bottled stuff usually contains ingredients that are not in favor of your health.

The most basic of all dressings includes two things:

Oil
Acid

That's it!  From there, the sky is the limit!

First, the oil.  For salad dressing, my go-to is Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  Another great THM option is MCT oil, which is a coconut oil-based liquid fat with concentrated amounts of medium chain triglycerides - thus the MCT.  It is neutral in taste; it does not taste like coconuts.  And the plan allows you 2 teaspoons of MCT in an E context, instead of one.

There are other liquid oils that you can use, but make sure they are cold-pressed so that you know they are not heat-damaged.  Those pristine vegetables oils that you see in the grocery store are probably terribly rancid, but you'd never know it because of the refining and bleaching process they go through.

Next up - the acid.  Here's where your dressing gets its zing!

Here is my long list of personal favorites:

• Fresh lemon juice (bottled is ok, but fresh is so much better)
• Fresh ime juice
• Red wine vinegar
• Apple cider vinegar
• Rice wine vinegar
• Balsamic vinegar - which has its own list of subcategories.  Currently in my cupboard, I have:
• 18-year aged balsamic
• Fig balsamic
• Cranberry pear white balsamic
• Espresso balsamic
• Plain old balsamic

So already you can see the many possible combinations, and this is just for a simple 2-ingredient vinaigrette made with oil and acid!

The classic formula is 3 parts oil to 1 part acid.  But on THM, it is easy to change that up depending on what meal mode you are in. In S mode, I tend to go 50-50.  I will wrap up this post with an E mode trick below.

(Notice the absence of white distilled vinegar from my list.  That same snobby French culinary teacher impressed upon us that the best use of distilled white vinegar was for washing windows.)

So moving on, things get really exciting when we add a third ingredient category:  flavorings!  This is where you can get as creative as you want!  Here is a list of ideas to get you going:

• Dijon mustard
• Fresh garlic
• Fresh or dried herbs
• Spices
• Crushed red pepper
• Poppy seeds
• Stevia (for sweeter dressings)
• Extracts
• Essential oils (go easy)
• Lemon, lime, or orange zest
• Anchovy paste
• Horseradish
• Wasabi
• Soy sauce

In the mood for an asian-inspired salad?  Try this combo

(Measurements are approximate since I don't usually measure much when I cook):

1 T. olive oil

1 tsp sesame oil (optional)

1 T. lime juice

1/2 tsp garlic powder or small amount of chopped fresh garlic

1/2 tsp ground ginger

2 tsp soy sauce

1 doonk pure stevia (or your favorite stevia blend equal to about a teaspoon of sugar)

Whisk together.  Toss together with a bowl of leafy greens, chilled chicken meat with skin, chopped non-starchy veggies such as cabbage, peppers, cucumbers; carrots in moderation, etc; and garnish with chopped almonds.  You have a delicious S lunch that might look something like this:

This past weekend, I made an E salad for an event.  I've named it Spring Quinoa Salad.  The body of the salad was cooked-then-chilled quinoa, asparagus (blanched for a minute and then chilled quickly in ice water), frozen peas (thawed), chopped green onions, and chopped fresh mint.  The dressing ended up with no oil in it at all!

Here are the approximate amounts for a single serving:

Juice of one lemon

Zest of that same lemon

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

I small clove fresh garlic,chopped 

1 doonk stevia 

1/2 tsp dried thyme

Salt and pepper to taste

I was going to add oil to the dressing, but it tasted so good when the salad was all tossed together that I left it out.  And because there was no fat in this recipe, I garnished the top with a sprinkle of feta cheese, just enough to keep the salad in E mode.

Spring Quinoa Salad

So let's talk about creamy dressings now.  You can do all sorts of emulsifying gymnastics with eggs and your food processor, but I know that is not realistic for most of us (including me).   

When I make creamy salad dressings, I start with a good quality mayonnaise.  But then I add the same amount of zero fat Greek yogurt.  This cuts down on the fat load while adding protein to the dressing.  Then you can continue with the list of flavorings.  

This is a great base for green goddess dressing.  Combine your favorite fresh herbs with the mayo/yogurt combo in your blender, adding a splash of your favorite vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.

My personal creamy dressing favorite is Caesar:

1 T each mayo and Greek yogurt

Juice of half a lemon

1 generous squeeze anchovy paste (or 1 chopped anchovy)

1 small garlic clove, chopped

Fresh cracked pepper

Whisk everything together and toss with chopped romaine and parmesan cheese.  You can easily add chicken or salmon to this S salad for your protein. 

Keep in mind that these creamy dressings with the mayo/Greek yogurt blend are S mode dressings.  You can use all Greek yogurt plus your teaspoon of fat if you want to keep them in E mode.

Let me wrap up with my favorite helpful hint for tasty E salads. 

Put all your greens and chopped veggies into a big bowl.  Add a teaspoon of olive oil (or 2 teaspoons of MCT oil, which is allowed in E mode).  Get in there with your (clean) hands and mix until everything is lightly coated with the oil.  Combine your acid and flavorings in a dish, and then toss into your salad. 

Fear not!  Get in there and spread the joy (I mean the oil) around.

Don't forget to actually add your E ingredient to your salad, such as mango, pineapple, oranges, apples, black beans, quinoa, and so on, as well as your lean protein. 

How does this sound?  (I'm making it up as I type)

Mixed leafy greens
Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Peppers (as hot as you want them)
Chopped cilantro (unless you hate it, but it's great for pulling out heavy metals from your system)
Toss and coat the above in your teaspoon of olive oil.

Then add:
1/2 cup black Beans
1/2 cup chopped mango
Lean chicken breast

Dressing:
Lime juice
Lime zest
Garlic as desired
Sprinkle of cumin
Splash of Franks or other hot sauce
Doonk of stevia

Toss together.  Enjoy.  Dang, this sounds good.  I think I will make it tomorrow.