Summer is the season of salads and every good salad needs a good dressing! Italian dressing is a classic that can be found in pretty much every grocery store but it’s so easy to make your own, and it’s even better that store bought! The base of any salad dressing is oil and vinegar and this recipe uses olive oil and red wine vinegar. The ‘Italian’ part of this recipe is the Italian style herb blend, in this case the parsley, oregano, and basil, which can either be dried or fresh. The dressing is filled out with powdered garlic and onion, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and parmesan cheese. This recipe is really flexible where you can make it as you like. Don’t appreciate heat? Omit the red pepper flakes. Prefer some marjoram in you Italian herb blend? Add some! The recipe written below is the way I like it, and if I have some fresh parsley on hand I add it! No matter how you make this Italian salad dressing, it is sure to kick up your salad to another level!
Italian Salad Dressing
An easy and tasty homemade Italian style salad dressing.
ingredients
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard (optional)
- 1 teaspoon honey (or sugar) (optional)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon powdered garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon powdered onion
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 2 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated (optional)
directions
- Mix everything well!
Note: Mustard is not necessarily traditional but I like to add it to help emulsify the dressing.
Option: Replace some or all of the red wine vinegar with white wine vinegar or lemon juice.
Option: Replace all of the dried herbs with 2 teaspoons of your favourite Italian seasoning blend.
Option: Replace some or all of the grated parmesan with grated pecorino romano cheese.
Option: Store bought Italian dressing often includes red bell pepper and you can add 1 tablespoon finely chopped red bell pepper.
Option: Add 1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seeds.
Option: Add 2 tablespoons mayonnaise for a creamy version!
Option: Use 2 cloves of garlic, minced or grated instead of the powdered garlic.
Option: Add 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley.
Note: Store in the fridge and use within a few days.
Leave a Reply