Dressing.

Let’s get real, ok?

Dressing a funny thing.

We buy it. To save time. And to make eating salads taste better. I get it, I really do.

But, hello chemicals and crap. And creepy sounding oil. With looooong expiration dates.

In other news, did you know it takes maybe 30 seconds to make your own at home? And that’s if you’re taking your sweet little time. 

And. Not only can you use it for dressing on salads, but also on veggies, make-ahead dishes, meat, chicken, quinoa, etc. So, almost anything.

30 seconds could save your life, my friends. So worth it.

And it’s so easy.

Like this, apple cider vinegar dressing. Or, use whatever vinegar you have- balsamic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar. It will all work beautifully!

 

 

 Watch me make dressing here

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons raw apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

1 tablespoon organic grade b maple syrup (or raw honey) (totally optional)

sea salt and pepper, to taste

Whisk all ingredients together, or shake to combine in glass jar.

Great additions for your mixed greens or lettuce: fresh parsley + cilantro leaves, sliced apples, walnuts + goat cheese, or roasted pears+ fennel.

Sarah’s Other Tips for Healthier Salad Making:

1. Try Fresh Lettuces when you have time. Pre-washed lettuces are very convenient and practical, but when in season (spring and summer time), full heads of lettuce have so much more flavor and crunch. Yes,  you have to wash and dry the leaves with a salad spinner, but the payoff is worth it on the nights when you have an extra minute or two. Try butter lettuce, red leaf lettuce, romaine, arugula, fresh spinach, and even iceburg lettuce and mix it up every time you buy one.

2. Don’t Be Afraid…of a little creaminess, crunch or texture in your healthy food life. Often times you just need a little sprinkle or thin slices of a very flavorful cheese, slivered nuts or spiced seeds, raisins or small fruit, creamy avocado or element of heat (warm baked beans, roasted apples, grilled steak or BBQ chicken over greens, etc) to turn basic greens from a side dish to a beautiful and very satisfying main event.

In the same sense, also try the flip side. If you usually load your salads up, try a fresh picked head of lettuce from a farmer’s market, simply dressed with the apple-cider dressing from above. It doesn’t get much easier than that. Don’t be afraid. You really can’t go wrong when  all of your ingredients are pure and fresh.

3. MYOD [Make Your Own Dressing]. And Stop Making Excuses About It. If you have 30 seconds (come on, you can spare it), you can make a great homemade dressing that tastes so much better than that greasy bottled stuff. Plus, it’s much cheaper to do so, and you can avoid all of those common inflammatory + bad oils {canola oil, vegetable oil and soybean oil}, and toxic chemicals in one swoop. AND, you can keep adding to your little creation throughout the week so you’ll always have a fresh supply in stock, adding new flavor elements each time if you want to (leftover herbs- fresh or dried, garlic, chopped shallots, infused vinegars, etc). Any glass jar or container is perfect for this.

Other Tips: Unfiltered or raw apple cider vinegar can be found in almost any grocery store. Bragg’s is the most common brand, and it will usually be on the bottom shelf of the oil and vinegar aisle. When you make a batch, keep it in the fridge for up to a week. Just make sure you take it out of the fridge a few minutes before using so it liquifies.

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