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| I would like to make a simple salad dressing with ingredients I have at hand. Can I use canola oil? I usually don't have olive oil in the house. When I do buy olive oil, what is the best way to store it? I don't use it often and usually end up throwing it away. Thanks! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by rachelellen (My Page) on Fri, Jan 4, 08 at 23:44
| Gosh kss, good question. So many people never think to ask. If you want to make a vinaigrette type dressing, what you need is some kind of oil, and some kind of tangy liquid. You can use any oil you want. Do you have oil and orange juice? You have dressing. Vinegar? V-8 juice? Mix oil and your liquid in half to half ratio...then you adjust according to taste, more oil, more liquid. I tend to like 1/3 oil and 2/3 liquid, but you have to play a bit. Then, put in any other ingredient you think of. Is it too sour? Add some sugar or honey. Too bland? Add spices. Here's a basic: Be playful. Salad dressing shouldn't be boring, nor intimidating. How about substituting jam for the sugar? Or marmalade? How about fruit juice? Don't worry about following a recipe. You know what you like. Mix it up and taste it, and if you don't like it, ask what would make it better...sweeter? saltier? more sour? spicier? And then check out your cabinets for the solution! |
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| A good medium quality and price olive oil is Bertollis. I use it a lot...I make all my own salad dressings. As Rachaelellen says...oil and something sour. But I do 1/3 vinegar and 2/3 oil. Store your olive oil in a cook dark place...if kept cool and dark it will keep about a year. But you can use canola...but olive oil tastes better. Try this... 1 1/2 T dijon mustard 1 1/2 T honey 1 clove of garlic crushed 1/2 tsp dry oregano 1/3 cup cider vinegar or rice vinegar...never white distilled vinegar...too harsh. And 2/3 cup oil And 1 T grated parmesan cheese.... Whisk well or shake and serve over a tossed salad.. Linda C |
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| You can use canola but olive oil does have a nicer taste. Just buy a small bottle and store it as Linda says. I like a simple dressing of 2 parts oil to 1 part vinegar. Any vinegar will do except a plain white vinegar. Sherry , raspberry, red wine and white wine vinegars all give a great and different taste to your dressings. Always add a tsp or so of dijon mustard to the dressing, this helps the dressing stay together and not separate. Most people add a sweet element like sugar or honey, I don't but that's just me. To this basic mix I add, any herbs or spices that interest me. Or serve as is. Parmesan cheese is another nice addition. If you want a creamy dressing sub mayo for the oil or do 1/2 mayo, 1/2 oil. You can sub lemon juice for the vinegar too. |
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- Posted by ginger_st_thomas (My Page) on Sat, Jan 5, 08 at 17:17
| I prefer fresh lemon juice. In my climate I keep olive oil in the refrigerator if I buy a bigger bottle than I'll use in a reasonable length of time. |
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| Thank you for your suggestions. I keep my house cool in the winter so that is not a problem, but in the summer, I don't have a cool dark place-I don't have central air conditioning or window units (I live in Boston). I didn't know if you could keep olive oil in the refrigerator. I would appreciate any information regarding keeping olive oil in the refrigerator (e.g., before using it, bring it room temperature, etc.) I asked for a recipe because I am not an all around experienced cook. My late husband did most of the cooking. I appreciate your suggestions. |
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- Posted by rachelellen (My Page) on Sun, Jan 6, 08 at 11:57
| Yes, you can keep olive oil in the fridge, but you will have to bring it to room temp as it coagulates in the cold. Leftover vinaigrette stored in the fridge will do the same thing. I generally forget to take it out long enough before a meal and have to warm it slightly in a bowl of warm water like you do when you want your maple syrup warm. No air conditioning in Boston? Egad! My husband and I don't use our air conditioner much, even though summers are quite hot here, as we don't like the way they dry out the air (we use many fans). But, our heat is mostly a dry heat, not humid. As they say, it ain't the heat, it's the hum-didity. |
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| You can use either extra virgin olive oil or the light olive oils (like Bertolli's) in salad dressings. Here are a few vinaigrette recipes and a couple of different dressings. Ann Greek Salad dressing 3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar Whisk together the vinegar and sugar; add marjoram (or oregano) and blend. While whisking, slowly add the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. This is great over a bowl of tomato chunks, red onion slices, cucumber chunks (seeded & peeled), green bell and red bell pepper chunks, some pitted Kalamata olives, some feta cheese and (optional) a sprinkling of chopped flat leaf parsley. Before adding the dressing, sprinkle some fresh lemon juice over the salad. Vinaigrette 3 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar Whisk the mustard into the vinegar and blend. Pour oil into mixture while whisking. Season with salt and pepper. a Light Citrus Vinaigrette 1/4 cup orange juice (I like to use fresh o.j.) Blend both vinegars with orange juice. Add olive oil while whisking. Low Fat Thousand Island Dressing 1/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise In a blender or food processor blend all ingredients and salt to taste until smooth, adding up to 2 tablespoons additional water if necessary to thin to desired consistency. Dressing keeps, covered and chilled, 1 week. Serve dressing with crisp lettuce, sliced tomatoes, or seafood salad. Makes about 1 cup. My note: I also use regular mayo & have made it w/o the red bell pepper. I cut back on the relish a little as I don't want it too sweet. It's my favorite. Creamy Orange Dressing 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt In a small bowl combine yogurt and juice concentrate. Mix well. Chill Several hours. each serving: 30 calories; trace fat (2% of calories); 6 g carb; 22 mg sodium; 1 mg cholesterol from Lean & Luscious Favorites |
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- Posted by lpinkmountain (My Page) on Mon, Jan 14, 08 at 15:06
| Olive oil comes in small bottles. Buy a small one and use it up frequently. I live in the NE with no air conditioning most of the time, and my olive oil does OK. I love it for its taste and healthy properties though, so I run through mine fairly quickly. I saute veggies in it too. Just don't put it somewhere where it will bake in the sun or over the stove or something like that. Heat and air and light are the enemies of oil. |
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| Here are a couple you might like. I am including the salad recipe on the first one because it's so darn good! But you can use the dressing on other salads as well. Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppyseed Dressing Dressing: 1 c sugar Combine sugar and vinegar and whisk until sugar is dissolved. Add remaining This one is from someone on the cooking forum, I am not sure who, I've had it for a few years, it's delish! Maybe someone here will claim it. Balsamic Vinaigrette 1/2 c balsamic vinegar Whisk together first seven ingredients until blended. Gradually whisk in olive oil. Yield 1-2/3 cups Parmesan Peppercorn Dressing 2 Tablespoons finely chopped shallots Mix and refrigerate. Camille's French Dressing 1/3 c sugar Mix all together, serve on crisp greens. |
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| What a good thread! I get in a rut with my dressings and it's nice to see some new ones (for me) and be reminded of some that I haven't made for awhile (Linda - the Balsamic Vinaigrette was posted by Glenda_al). Here's one that we like: Lemon Herb Dressing 1/4 - 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice Combine dressing ingredients, whisk until well blended Cindy |
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| You can't get any more simple than 4 ingredients in a salad dressing. I have a recipe for Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce that easily converts in salad dressing with one ingredient. I always have the 3 ingredients on hand, so I make it all the time! You can reduce the recipe easily. I just make enough for myself to dip chicken tenders in or pour over a salad. http://www.squidoo.com/honey-mustard-sauce |
Here is a link that might be useful: Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce and Salad Dressing Recipe
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- Posted by sayhellonow (My Page) on Fri, May 6, 11 at 21:03
| I'm not in this forum very often, although I really like it (I lurk a lot). But one of my favorite doctors, Dr. Andrew Weil (Eight Weeks to Optimum Health) says that all oils should be refrigerated, and then brought to room temp before using. I don't do it because I'm just not that well organized, but I thought I'd mention it here. |
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