Friday, February 17, 2012

A Little Different Ranch Dressing


It was a gorgeous walk to the mailbox this morning.  Fairly warm, blue skies, with the sound of spring peepers down at the pond.  I've tried several new recipes recently.  There were 3 keepers and one not so much.  I was reminded that any recipe including both apples and onions is not going to be to my liking.  But, I'll share one of the keepers.  The original recipe is here.  It's a Buttermilk Ranch dressing, which I tweaked to use kefir and fresh herbs.  I've only recently come to appreciate Ranch dressing, the good homemade sort anyway.

Ranch Dressing

1/2c kefir (substitute buttermilk if you'd like)
1/2c mayonnaise
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
a nice handful of parsley, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 tsp lemon juice

Whisk together the ingredients, and store in a jar for up to one week.  Shake before serving.

It's easy to make a substitute for buttermilk, if you only have milk on hand. Just add 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice or vinegar to the 1/2c milk (1 tbs for 1 c milk, etc), and in about 10 minutes, it will have curdled.  Use just the same in any recipe calling for buttermilk.  I've been making progress pruning trees and bushes this week.  I'm looking forward to getting out there again on this lovely day.  Have a wonderful weekend, friends!

4 comments:

Mrs. Mac said...

That's exactly how I make my ranch dressing. When I let my buttermilk culture go .. I substituted with my kefir. I add a little grating of lemon rind with the juice. So yummy good!

Laurie said...

Thanks for that recipe, Mrs. Mac! I want to try it with your buttermilk recipe too. I'll add the lemon zest when I get organic lemons again.

cookingwithgas said...

Oh, that does sound good.
I have a yogurt base dressing that I love using curry powder...I need to look it up.

Laurie said...

Meredith, I want YOUR recipe!