This quickly rose to my absolutely favorite salad dressing! I’ve made loads of homemade recipes, but hubby still wanted store-bought Italian. Annoyed, I refused to give-up! There had to be a dressing that made salad-haters excited to eat their leafy greens. And, voila! I have found it! It is fantastic on steamed broccoli, too!
Honey-Dijon Poppy Seed Vinaigrette (dresses 4 cups mixed greens)
using good quality ingredients makes all the difference
- 2 teaspoons good-quality cider vinegar (unfiltered)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons good quality Dijon mustard
- 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
- 3/4 teaspoon poppy seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic (or one tiny pinch of dehydrated, ground garlic)
- pinch freshly-ground black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil*
*vegetable oil: Rice Bran Oil, Good quality EVOO, Canola oil
DIRECTIONS:
1. Simply toss into an empty jar with a screw-tight lid and shake with all your might. Dress greens. Serve immediately.
Enjoy. Sharing Optional!™
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It’s frustrating when you don’t have the exact pan that a recipe calls for. Or, what if you want to halve the recipe, or quarter it? What size pan do you use? Well, I’ve spent so much time calculating this (repeatedly), I finally got smart and made a chart! I decided to share.
Isn’t it lovely? (clickety on the image for a larger, printable view).
Yes, you can substitute an 8 x 8 square pan for a 9″ round one; the only consequence will be the shape. If you want to do half of a recipe that calls for an 8 x 8 recipe, simply look at the row for the 8 x 8 pan, then under the header “one-half,” which says 32. In the left column, we don’t have a pan that is exactly 32, so you have a few options: 6″ round or 6 x 6 square would be your best options.
Looking for some good pan suggestions?
Calphlon Nonstick 9 x 13 pan
Calphalon Nonstick 8 x8 pan
Chicago Metallic 9 x 9 Nonstick pan
Chicago Metallic Nonstick Mini Loaf 5.75″ x 3.25″
Chicago Metallic 8″ Round Nonstick Cake Pan
Chicago Metallic 9″ Round Nonstick Cake Pan
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A few years ago, I would watch Giada de Laurentiis faithfully. When I became scathed that her show’s time changed, I bought a Tivo. In general, her recipes are hit or miss (which, I attribute to using the same ingredients that she uses), but the best one ever: her Simple Tomato Sauce. It is absolutely to die for, and I turn up my nose at all others. It is simple, unbelievably tasty, and gets better with time. For me and my family, and I always make a “now and later” batch.
There are three basic steps:
1. Prep ingredients
2. Brown veggies
3. Simmer
Really. It is that simple, but tastes complex. My photos show my OCD side, as I purchased a 13-quart dutch oven so I could make obsessively-large batches, then pressure can them to put away for later. Unfortunately, once I know that the sauce is made, it only lasts a week…after all the work of canning it, I mean. The sauce does freeze beautfully, though, and only requires a quick overnight thaw in the refrigerator.
Giada’s Simple Tomato Sauce (as taken from FoodNetwork.com, with my changes)
3-4 Tablespoons EVOO
1 small onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup red wine (optional); I use de-alcholized wine (clickety here for information about cooking with wine, and substitutions)
2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
2 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried basil
In a large casserole pot or Dutch over, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Sauté until all the vegetables are browned, about 10 minutes. Add wine or substitute (if using) Add tomatoes, bay leaves, garlic powder, and dried basil and simmer uncovered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and taste for additional seasoning.
Add 1/2 the tomato sauce into a blender. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags or Mason jars. This will freeze up to 6 months.
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Prep veggies and other ingredients
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Add onions, EVOO and salt to dutch oven
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Cook until onions are softened
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Add carrots and celery
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Cook until well-browned
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Add wine to deglaze pan (of course, I use de-alchoholized wine)
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Add crushed tomatoes, stir well
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Add spices (bay leaves, pepper, garlic powder, dried basil)
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Cover to bring to simmer
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After comes to simmer, remove lid and reduce heat (maintain simmer)
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Don't forget to remove the bay leaves, before eating!
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See how much darker it became?
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Ready to process…
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Stupid electric stove! :(
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The beginnings of the canning process
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As a fun addition to my previous post about the liars–er, marketers–trying to convince you that corn syrup is good for you (clickety here), my brother sent me this website from the Consumist: clickety here
Watch the commercials, then read some comments. There are lots of funny ones (and several that could use an edit button).
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