Raspberry Salad Dressing
I don’t care one bit if Valentine’s is dubbed a “Hallmark Holiday”. It’s a great chance to share a delicious meal with someone you care about. Forget the cards the last-minute trinkets, the overpriced (for the occasion) flowers and just cook a nice dinner. Is there really a better gift? Plan ahead – you have less than 2 weeks to ask your significant other, your neighbor, or best friend.
There is nothing wrong with a theme for an occasion and this year I’m going to think pink. It’s kind of fun to have a plan that lets you use your imagination. The entrée can be anything from a pasta with a Sundried Tomato and Cream Sauce, to a beautiful Sweet Chili Shrimp Stir-fry, or how about Lobster Bisque? Are you getting hungry yet? You could add Ice Cream Muffins to any of these menus – use strawberry ice cream. Or take that strawberry idea right down to the Strawberry Cake I bake every year like my mother did before me. This all sounds great, but you have to start somewhere, and I’ve got that covered for you. I’m making a spinach and strawberry salad with a luscious creamy raspberry dressing and toasted walnuts, avocado, and blue cheese on the side.
This dressing makes the salad a special one and it’s so easy to do. You can even make the dressing a week ahead of time. In a true confession mode, I have a recipe for raspberry dressing that I have been making for years, but on a recent trip I tasted one I liked better. That meant it was time for experimentation.
I made the original dressing in the blender – easy – delicious – but it could be even more special. It needed to be a little sweeter so I did what any beekeeper would do – added honey. Still, something was missing. This will sound weird, but it did the trick – I added just a tiny hint of garlic. I could have dropped a clove in the dressing and removed it before serving, but instead I took the smallest garlic clove – cut it in half and added it to the blender. It was perfect – even better than the one I tasted. If anyone ever says to you, “Don’t play with your food” they are wrong.
Do play and get it just the way you want it. We love this dressing so much I keep it in the fridge all the time. An extra benefit is that this recipe makes two beautiful 8 oz jars full so you have one to keep and one to give as a lovely present – maybe to offer to your guest after dining on the fabulous feast you create. Don’t save this dressing recipe for a special event make it a household staple. You’ll be glad you did. Enjoy!
Ingredients
10 package of frozen raspberries, thawed and drained
½ cup crème fraiche
4 Tbsp lemon balsamic vinegar (Or 3 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar and a Tbsp lemon juice)
1/3 cup olive oil
3 Tbsp honey
½ clove garlic (tiny one)
1/8 tsp nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste (start with about ½ tsp each)
Put all ingredients in the blender and blend until thoroughly mix.
Optional – I like the texture of raspberry seeds- but if you don’t you could blend the raspberries first and pass the juice through a fine sieve.
