Sounds yummy...
How about this..
2 T Heinz Chili sauce
1 T brown sugar
1 big clove of garlic crushed
1/2 tsp sweet papriks
1/4 cup rice vinegar ( no substitites unless it's champagne vinegar)
1/2 cup EVOO
Mix all with a whisk.
Linda C

Sounds good...here's my dressing

"55" SALAD DRESSING

My favorite dressing on a salad of baby greens, red onion, toasted walnuts, sliced pears (fresh when available), dried cherries and crumbled blue cheese. Also good as a main dish salad dressing with chicken strips and mandarin oranges, sliced celery and rice noodles on a bed of lettuce.

1½ tsp minced garlic
1 tsp dry mustard
¼ C vinegar
¼ C water
2 tsp salt
½ C sugar
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
¼ tsp cracked black pepper
½ tsp celery seed (optional)
1 C veg. oil

Combine garlic, dry mustard, vinegar and water in a food processor or blender. Pulse to combine.
Add salt, sugar, peppers, and celery seed (if using)
With processor or blender running, SLOWLY add vegetable oil in a thin stream. After oil is added, continue to process another 3 minutes.

Nancy

I make a salad like that all the time. We had it on vacation and reproduced it at home, yum! The only other thing in it are candied pecans (or walnuts). You can make or buy and they add a really nice sweetness to the salad. We use field greens instead of baby spinach. The dressing is, believe it or not, Good Seasons Italian that you make with the dry packet in a cruet. We use it all the time now, it's great. good luck!

almost perfect..I'd have to sub Feta for Blue..LOL or nice shavings of Parm...

For dressing I'd toss with balsamic, EVOO that's got a bit of honey or maple syrup in it...and very simple sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper.

Thanks! You folks are amazing. All of these sound great! Now I just have to pick one! :-)
- mando

Ya cant have too much blue cheese IMHO!

Blue Cheese Dressing

Approximately 1 1/3 cups

2/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 minced garlic clove
1 tsp Worcestershire

In a bowl combine all ingredients. This is better when it sits for a little while for the flavors to blend - an hour or so is perfect.

I make a salad almost very similar but chopped walnuts go in also. You add this dressing to it and it is very good. In fact I just served the salad at Thanksgiving time and there was none left. People all went back for seconds for this.

1/4 cup maple syrup, warmed
1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

Warm maple syrup in a small saucepan. Pour vinegar into a small bowl. Whisk oil into vinegar in a slow stream. Whisk maple syrup into dressing in a slow stream. Add Salt and Pepper to taste.

I put this together for a similar salad (spinach, arugula, citrus pieces, red onion and olives) a couple of weeks ago:

1 Tbs lemon juice
1 Tbs balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs finely chopped fennel leaf (just grab a sprig from the fennel (anise) bulbs at the grocery store; or sub 1 tsp finely crushed fennel seed)
1/2-1 tsp fresh ground pepper
pinch salt
pinch sugar or a small drizzle of honey
1/4 cup light olive oil

Mix together everything well and then drizzle in the olive oil while whisking to emulsify.

Joe

I also would add some walnuts or pecans, candied or just toasted. We like our spinach salad with a sweet balsamic dressing - 1/2 cup oil, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon of poppy seeds. It's better if it's made a day or two ahead, but it's still good if you make it right before you serve it.

Becky

Hi there. Wanted to let you all know the salad was great! For dressing I did a mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, a little dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.

I did not put nuts in (though I love walnuts in salad) as my DS is allergic to peanuts and we've been advised to stay away from other nuts as well. But the crunch from the red onion was enough, I thought. It was yummy!

Thanks again!
- mando

I know this is too late for your party, but here is a delicious salad dressing recipe from The Gumbo Shop, New Orleans. Especially good with spinach salads..

Gumbo Shop's Pecan Vinaigrette Dressing

Description I dug this one out of the restaurant's files in answer to a question on the message board. bit it's good enough to be a keeper. It's on the sweet side. so it's best with salads that have a certain bitterness (spinach salad. for example).

Ingredients

1/3 cup minced onion
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar
4 tsp. dry mustard
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup roasted pecan halves. coarsely chopped

Methods/steps
1) Combine everything except the olive oil and the pecans in a non-metallic bowl and whisk to blend.
2) While continuing to whisk. pour in the olive oil in a thin stream. increasing the flow as you go. After half the olive oil is in there. add 2 Tbs. water. and continue to add the oil.
3) Stir in the pecans. and serve tossed with greens of your choice.

Makes about 2 cups.