My Favorite Salad Dressings

My friend Deb asked for salad dressings that weren't loaded with high-fructose corn syrup, a concern of a lot of people. Manufacturers use corn syrup as an inexpensive preservative and base for many foods. Most of my dressing recipes have a little sugar to balance out the acidity of other ingredients such as vinegar. You can easily use sugar substitutes instead.

I found this recipe and didn't like it until I made some changes...I would fearlessly put it in a taste test against Ranch dressing. It is not only lower in sugar, but also sodium. You can also use low or fat-free mayonnaise.

Thom's Buttermilk Ranch-style Dressing

• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 cups mayonnaise
• 2 heaping Tblsp. each garlic powder and onion powder [not salt]
• season to taste with 1/2 tsp. each pepper and salt, add lemon juice and white vinegar a  little at a time to suit your tastes, plus a pinch of sugar.

1. Mix above ingredients in blender or by hand
2. Add 2 tsp. parsley flakes or 1 1/2 Tblsp. chopped fresh parsley.MIX PARSLEY IN BY HAND ONLY!
3. Substitute sour cream for buttermilk if making dip.

It is important to not add parsley till the end, otherwise you get green dressing!

Variations: add 1/4 cup parmesean or freshly cracked or coarse ground pepper 

Next is a favorite based on the house dressing at the first restaurant I cooked in when I was just a kid.

Babe's Red French Dressing

• 1/4 cup olive or canola oil [or your choice]
• 1/4 cup vinegar [any kind]
• 1/4 cup sugar  [or sugar substitute]
• 1 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 Tblsp. prepared mustard
• salt and pepper to taste

Mix thoroughly in blender, mixer, or by hand

This also makes a great marinade for London Broil or other steak.

Bleu Cheese Dressing

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup bleu cheese, crumbled
• 1 tsp. Worschestire sause
• milk if too thick
• salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients, I like chunks of cheese so I mix by hand.

Thousand Island Dressing

• 1 cup mayonaisse
• 1 cup chile sauce or ketchup
• 1/4 cup each minced onion, pickle relish[sweet or dill]
• 1/2 tsp. Worcshestire sauce
• optional: 1-2 chopped boiled egg [shortens shelf-life]

Vinaigrette

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup vinegar [redwine, balsamic, rapsberry, etc.]
• 1tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp.coarse ground pepper
• 1 clove minced garlic
• salt to taste
• options: cayenne pepper, dry  red pepper flakes, mustard powder, celery seed, pureed raspberries