Salad dressings are also the only way some parents ever succeed in getting kids to eat vegetables. They certainly have their place, but the store-bought ones are loaded with omega-6 oils and preservatives. Healthy salad dressings, on the other hand, can be a great way to get a good serving of healthy fats in.
Favorite Homemade Salad Dressing Recipes
Salad dressings were my former vice. I would eat ranch on anything. In fact, I will be forever grateful to it for getting me to love broccoli. Now that we eat real foods, I keep a recipe tab specifically for homemade dressings, and have come to love these. I can even whip one up at a restaurant by having them bring me all the ingredients “on the side.”
My current favorite homemade dressings recipes are:
Creamy Homemade Caesar Dressing
Ingredients:
- One room temperature egg yolk (it’s very important that it is not cold!)
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- ½ tsp mustard or ground mustard
- 1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp Worcestershire
- 2 TBSP Parmesan cheese
- salt, pepper, and spices to taste
- 1/3 cup olive oil
Instructions:
- Whisk egg yolk with whisk or blender on low speed.
- Once creamy, add the vinegar and all other ingredients except the oil and blend until creamy.
- Slowly add the oil, stirring constantly until incorporated.
- If it doesn’t incorporate well, your egg might still have been too cold!
Great with: Dark lettuces, chicken dishes, or on asparagus.
Zesty Italian Dressing
Ingredients:
- 3 TBSP white wine vinegar
- 1½ tsp Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tsp each of thyme, basil, and oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
- Put all ingredients in a small jar and shake vigorously.
Great with: Any salad or as a marinade.
View or print the recipe here.
Tangy Greek Dressing
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 TBSP red wine vinegar
- 1½ tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp each of oregano and marjoram
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions:
- Put all ingredients in small jar with lid and shake until well mixed.
Great with: Greens, feta cheese, olives, and cucumbers. Also a good marinade for a cucumber and onion salad.
Print this tangy Greek Salad Dressing recipe here.
Sweet Asian Dressing
Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp coconut aminos
- 2 tsp honey
- ½ tsp fresh ginger, grated
- spices to taste
Instructions:
- Put all ingredients in small jar with lid and shake vigorously. You can also mix in blender or small food processor.
Great with: Sesame chicken (as a marinade and dipping sauce), on a spinach salad with cashews, on cauliflower fried rice.
Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup white wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
- 2 tsp honey
Instructions:
- Put all ingredients in blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
Great with: Salad with feta and cashews, grilled chicken salad, marinade on pork.
Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Ingredients:
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1½ tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 TBSP honey
- salt, pepper, and basil to taste
Instructions:
- Mix all ingredients in small jar or blender.
Great with: Any type of salad or as a marinade on beef, chicken, or pork.
Print or save the recipe here.
Roasted Garlic Dressing
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup roasted garlic
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tsp honey
- ¼ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
Instructions:
- Combine all the ingredients in a blender or food processor.
- Pureé until completely smooth.
- Refrigerate leftovers.
French Dressing
Ingredients:
- 1 TBSP mustard
- 1 TBSP tomato paste
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar
- 1 TBSP honey
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
Instructions:
- Put all ingredients in a small blender and blend until smooth.
Great with: Any type of salad (I like it on chef salads), kids like to dip things in this dressing.
Other great things to throw on a salad:
- nuts: especially pecans, walnuts, and macadamia
- olives
- chopped veggies
- chopped apples
- sliced strawberries
- blueberries
- grilled or baked chicken
- sliced steak
- shrimp
- all of the above!
Green Goddess Dressing
I love throwing just about every herb I have in the garden in this one!
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups fresh herbs (packed, such as basil, cilantro, parsley, tarragon, fennel fronds, dill, green onion)
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth or use a medium-sized bowl and an immersion blender.
- Serve and enjoy!
What is your favorite salad dressing? Do you have a healthy variation? Please share below!
I tried your Raspberry Vinaigrette and loved it! Great recipe.
Would you recommend not eating the Ceasar when you’re pregnant because of the raw egg?
That’s a call I think each person has to make. I personally eat raw eggs during pregnancy, but we either get them from our own chickens or from a farmer I trust… i wouldn’t eat store bought eggs raw.
Our Favorite dressing
Boil 2/3 c. Cider vinegar and 1 c. Sugar
Add: 1 tsp dry mustard, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp celery seed, 1 whole onion minced, and 2 cups of your favorite salad oil. Blend in a blender until emulsified. Makes at least two bottles, so don’t let the amount of sugar scare you. You can always use less!
I saw all your recipes in the meal planner so forget I asked about ranch but do you have one for the thousand island dressing? Next to ranch that’s my favorite.
Maryalice
I do… I’ll try to get that up ASAP
How about ranch and thousand island?
Thousand island is just ketchup, sweet Relish, mayo, and garlic 🙂
yum! i’ll have to try these recipes this week!
I just tried something new for the first time yesterday… And it was delicious! Instead of “dressing” I put some pesto on my salad- I ended up adding a splash of balsamic vinegar for the bite, but very yummy. My greens were some spring mix & spinach with strawberries, red onion, mushroom, and boiled egg
I always love getting good salad dressings. Thanks.
Here are two ways I often dress my salad.
Coat the salad with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Add about an equal amount of lemon juice, sprinkle salt and pepper and toss. I usually add tomatoes after the dressing.
Greek Dressing:
1/4 c vinegar
1/4 c olive oil
1Tbsp oregano
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
Shake together in a covered jar.
I just made the Greek dressing with some alterations– it is absolutely delicious. Doubled the oregano and marjoram, used whole-grain mustard rather than Dijon, added 1 1/2 teaspoon raw honey and 2 tablespoons yogurt.
That sounds great! I’ll have to try it that way too!
Whats the ingredients you ask for at a restaurant to whip up your own dressing?
Just tried your Zesty Italian dressing & LOVED it!!! Can’t wait to try your other recipes 🙂 Thank you dearly…