Fresh, Homemade Salad Dressings

By Mother Earth News Bloggers
Published on April 13, 2017
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Try several of these salad dressings for different flavors each night of the week.
Try several of these salad dressings for different flavors each night of the week.
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When life gives you fermented blackberry juice, make it into a fruity salad dressing.
When life gives you fermented blackberry juice, make it into a fruity salad dressing.
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A salad with this maple poppy dressing and chicken, crumbled bacon, avocado, and feta becomes a satisfying meal.
A salad with this maple poppy dressing and chicken, crumbled bacon, avocado, and feta becomes a satisfying meal.
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Nutritional yeast imparts a cheesy umami and makes a thicker dressing.
Nutritional yeast imparts a cheesy umami and makes a thicker dressing.
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Use any flavor from your homemade-jam supply for a sweet, seasonal dressing.
Use any flavor from your homemade-jam supply for a sweet, seasonal dressing.
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Fresh-squeezed orange juice and garden herbs give this dressing refreshing flavor.
Fresh-squeezed orange juice and garden herbs give this dressing refreshing flavor.
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Prepare and shake up this garden herb vinaigrette right in the jar. You can even mark the levels of each liquid with a permanent pen for easy measuring in the future.
Prepare and shake up this garden herb vinaigrette right in the jar. You can even mark the levels of each liquid with a permanent pen for easy measuring in the future.
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This tahini dressing gets its green from fresh herbs, and you can adjust the liquid to make dressing or dip.
This tahini dressing gets its green from fresh herbs, and you can adjust the liquid to make dressing or dip.
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Balsamic honey dressing will brighten asparagus.
Balsamic honey dressing will brighten asparagus.
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Try homemade ranch dressing on fresh, grilled vegetables.
Try homemade ranch dressing on fresh, grilled vegetables.

As the weather warms, fresh-picked ingredients with a fruity, flavorful dressing can make a satisfying meal when you can’t imagine turning on the stove. Homemade salad dressing is far superior to store-bought — you can use ingredients you already have on hand and herbs from your garden, adjust the texture and flavors as you prefer, and whisk up a dressing in minutes.

With this in mind, we asked our Mother Earth News bloggers for their favorite homemade salad dressing recipes. The creative concoctions here feature mostly on-hand or homegrown ingredients and bring a wide variety of flavors to the table. Experiment with a tart dressing one night and a spicy one the next to transform the same garden greens and vegetables into different-tasting meals. Between the bloggers’ various techniques for preparing and emulsifying the ingredients — whisking, blending, shaking in a jar, or mixing dressing in the same bowl from which you’ll serve the salad — you’re sure to find a salad dressing recipe that works for you.

Find more delicious recipes and food-related topics from our bloggers on our Real Food blog, or click on their names below to learn more about each blogger.

Kristi Quillen

Blackberry Vinaigrette Dressing

By Marion Wick

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