Salad Dressing Recipes; Two Basic Types of Salad Dressing if Learning how to Make Salad Dressings
The salad dressing recipes is one group in the food category which I relate to different time periods and events in my life. As a very young child I remember always having a jar of Miracle Whip Salad dressing in our refrigerator. This was for salad topping in the summer, Mom mixed it in with her delicious wilted lettuce salad and we spread it on sandwiches. If you got hungry between meals Miracle Whip was spread on a slice of bread and eaten as a snack.
My memories of salad dressing recipes expanded when I was about 8 or 10 years of age. This is when I fist remember going to Sister Gloria’s house for dinners. My favorite part of her dinners was the toss salad with all the vegetables and that delicious Italian salad dressing recipe. She tossed the dressing in with the vegetables and I still can remember the flavor. The next event on my food calendar came when I was sixteen years of age. I was working at the local supermarket. For those of you around Ohio will remember with fondness Woody’s Supermarket. What a neighborhood grocery store and a great place for social gathering. Upstairs there was a restaurant where we all could have lunch when we worked. It was here that I was introduced to the very best Chefs salad in the world. After all these years I can still say it was the best. It started with fresh crispy greens with carrots, cucumbers and fresh tomatoes. The ham and cheese slices were layered and then cut into strips which added to the presentation. A scoop of cottage cheese was in the center with a split boiled egg on the sides. It was suggested that I enjoy this salad with thousand island salad dressing. It was so delicious that I never tried another dressing with that salad. This is when I really began learning how to make salad dressing; in our home you did not buy it you made it!
When I graduated from high school, I went to work at the National Cash Register Company in Dayton Ohio. This was a huge place back then and Sister Donna worked in the building next to where I worked. On Fridays (payday) everyone packed into the restaurant across the street for lunch. This was a time when everyone was watching their weight. Donna got me into having the vinegar and oil dressing on my salad. It was delicious, much more than vinegar and oil. Today it would be called a vinaigrette dressing, which I never heard in anyone’s vocabulary back then.
Many different oils and vinegars can be combined to make a variety of vinaigrettes. Vinegars and oils vary in strength of flavor so it is important to taste to regulate the desired amounts. Variations can be made on the basic vinaigrette by adding different mustards, various chopped herbs or minced garlic. Some don’t remain emulsified for very long but they can be remixed to ensure distribution of flavors right before serving. Add a little mustard or mayonnaise helps to stabilize the emulsion and also gives added flavor and texture.
BASIC VINAIGRETTE DRESSING
Whisk together in a small bowl.
VINEGAR AND OIL DRESSING Combine the oil, vinegar, sugar, dry mustard and garlic powder; whisk to blend. Whisk in the blue cheese right before tossing the dressing with the salad greens.
When I was in my early twenties, most of our family was gathered at Mom’s and Dad’s. My dear sister-in-law was busy in the kitchen preparing food as usual. Janet (who we lost recently) had been my playmate, friend and then more of a sister than sister-in-law. She was also a very good cook. At this time she was making what turned out to be the best taco salad. She tossed all kinds of fresh greens and vegetables. She had browned some ground beef and added a jar of taco sauce in it. Janet added this hot mixture and tossed with the salad mixture. Then she added grated cheddar cheese, crumbled Doritos and a French salad dressing recipe. What a combination and so delicious.
I once had my own small restaurants; lots of soups, salads, sandwiches and of course desserts. Some of the lady customers asked me to make a good sweet and sour dressing to go along with an Oriental salad that I offered. I made a celery seed dressing which I didn’t even think I would like the celery seeds. Amazing it worked well with the salad and was delicious. By now I really knew how to make salads and how to make salad dressing.
By now I was getting heavy into cooking and experimenting in making many different salad dressing recipes. I made the vinegar and oil dressing with different types of vinegar and different flavored vinegars. I came up with a delicious spinach salad recipe topped with a great hot bacon dressing recipe. My horizons were widening! I started making a good ranch dressing which was very good; I found a similar ranch dressing to be popular at every food establishment that I work at.
At one of the country clubs, the members raved about the Caesar salad dressing recipe. I could not understand this because I had no taste buds for anchovies. The urging went on for me to just taste it, telling me that this was the best Caesar salad dressing recipe. I refused over and over again. Finally I broke down and had a small sample of this salad. It was very delicious and is now one of my favorite salad recipes.
I am so experienced with making and tasting different salad dressing recipes that I am now always on the lookout for something new and unique.
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