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Do You Make Your Own Salad Dressing?

partysugar — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:30:40 -0700

Reader Recipe: Maple-Balsamic Dressing

YumSugar — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 06:27:19 -0700

I was checking out all the great recipes everyone's been posting, when I came across this dressing from TeamSugar member FinnLover. She's based in Québec, and finally caved in to the local maple syrup frenzy. Lucky for us, it's resulted in a yummy looking maple-balsamic dressing. To get her recipe and try it for yourself, read more.

Submitted by TeamSugar member FinnLover

Yummy Maple - Balsamic Dressing
Tyler Florence's Fall Salad, Tyler's Ultimate

The Province of Québec is the world's largest producer of maple syrup and every year, during the months of March and April when the production takes place, happens some kind of maple frenzy. Wherever you go, restaurants have maple dishes on their menus (pie, cake, pork, salmon...). So last week, I decided to make this sweet and simple dressing. It was fast, easy and tasted great. Tyler's recipe called for candied pecans and pears, but since I had none of that on hand I made a simple green salad.

Ingredients

- 1 small shallot, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons Balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup
- salt and pepper to taste

Directions
1. Mix together the shallot, Dijon mustard and Balsamic vinegar.

2. Slowly add the olive oil while you whisk to emulsify.

3. Add the maple syrup, mix well, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Serve with the greens of your choice. I used Romaine because that's all I had, but endives, radicchio or baby spinach would have been great too.

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Do You Order Your Dressing Tossed or On The Side?

YumSugar — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 07:01:46 -0700

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How To Make The Perfect Salad

YumSugar — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 03:21:31 -0700

During the summer, I often find it difficult to make a warm meal - it's often too hot to cook, or I arrive home too late to grill. When that happens, I find myself inventing lovely salads full of a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. The best part is that since you don't actually cook anything, it almost feels like cheating. To celebrate the summer salad, we thought we'd present an entire week based on salad and salad accoutrements. To start off, here are some basic salad tips - check them out, just read more

When selecting ingredients for your salad, be sure to use the freshest options available. You want your greens to be fresh and your fruit to be ripe.
Don't be afraid to experiment with flavors and textures. Add crunch with edible snap peas, celery, toasted nuts, ramen noodles, potato chips or seeds.
Salad recipes are easily modifiable. Don't be afraid to substitute your favorite fixings for other ingredients.
Simple seasonings can really jazz up your basic green salad. Consider adding chives, fresh herbs, paprika, fresh black pepper.
For a heartier salad add cooked chicken, beef, tuna, tofu or hard-boiled eggs.
Salads don't have to include leafy greens. You can try a simple combo of shredded carrots and celery, or peas and nuts.
Although you can put whatever ingredients you like, consider letting one ingredient do the talking.
Try not to drown your salad in dressing. You only need a little coat. If you find you're using dressing to mask the flavor of the salad, try mixing up your ingredients until you find something you prefer.

Do you have a great salad tip? Let us know below!

Readers' Recipes: Molten Mini Cupcakes, Creamy Dressing and Fajitas

YumSugar — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 02:58:17 -0700

There's been a lot of great recipes on TeamSugar lately, and just in case you haven't been paying attention, I thought I'd take a minute to talk about a few of them. First of all, the one that made me drool quite a bit was the recipe for Mini Molten Chocolate Cakes by haze1nut. So tasty and beautiful too!

The next recipe I want to point out is the Creamy Tomatillo Cilantro Dressing. TeamSugar member calibabi puts this on a pork barbacoa salad with rice, beans and more. Mmmmm!

Finally, the last recipe I want to make sure you guys check out is ArmoAngel's Apple Marinade Steak Fajitas. Apples in fajitas? Sounds awesome!

Thanks to everyone for sharing their recipes, keep 'em coming! And be sure to check out the recipes often, there are definitely some fantastic recipes out there.

Let Them Eat... Broccoli?!?

YumSugar — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:26:03 -0700

Let them eat cake... er broccolli... er broccoli that looks like cake?

Hidden Valley is launching a new ad campaign aimed at getting your kids to eat vegetables. The main ad features, "Three perfect broccoli cupcakes sitting atop a cake stand with Hidden Valley(R) Original Ranch(R) dressing replacing typical buttercream
frosting," and apparently there's another one of carrot "french fries" topped with ranch dressing. The slogan on the bottom says "Makes Vegetables Delectable," but - I kid you not - the press release says the ads showcase vegetables going from "plain to insane!" Plain to insane indeed...

"Our aim was to capture life in Hidden Valley -- a place where
vegetables are as delectable as treats," said Chad Ackley, creative
director at DDB. "We know moms struggle to get their kids to eat well, and
we believe our message provides a reminder that the taste of Hidden Valley
Ranch has the power to encourage kids to eat their vegetables."

I don't know if this is going to fool any kids - after all broccoli is still broccoli - but I will admit, it does make it look tastier. And totally off topic, I really want that cake stand.

Source: PR Newswire
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What Kind Of Salad Dressing Do You Prefer?

partysugar — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 08:57:13 -0700

Find It: Papaya Seed Dressing Mix

YumSugar — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 14:43:11 -0800

Today my dear friend FabSugar brought over a sad empty packet of Papaya Seed Dressing Mix. Apparently both she and her mom picked up a few packets when they were in Hawaii this Thanksgiving and have just run out. She wanted to know if I could help her track it down and lucky for her (and the rest of you), I have!

The Papaya Seed Dressing Mix is available in a 2 oz. bag. To prepare, you just add the mix to white wine vinegar (Fab used champagne vinegar for a better kick!) and then dilute with water. According to FabSugar, this dressing is similar to a light vinaigrette, only with a subtle papaya flavor that is not too sweet - like many other fruit flavored dressings.

There was a tiny bit of mix left in the packet that FabSugar gave me, however it wasn't enough to make any dressing. The mix is white with black flecks and is a granular blend of salt, sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, dehydrated papaya seeds, spices and a gum stabilizer. Out of curiosity I decided to taste it. It was salty, with a kick of sweet and you could definitely taste the garlic and onion powders. I think I may try to make my own flavoring mix someday, but until then we can always order Papaya Seed Dressing Mix for $2.50 a bag. It's also available in a low-calorie version: six 1.2 oz bags for $14.50.

Update: The link for the regular version of the Papaya Seed Dressing now says "Under Construction." Seems a bit weird... you can also buy it at the 2nd link, but you have to buy several bags.

How about you, do you have any weird food items that you need help finding? Drop me a line and I'll see what I can do!

Fast & Easy Dinner: Cobb Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

partysugar — Tue, 06 May 2008 06:30:55 -0700

One of our favorite places to search for wonderful recipes is MyRecipes.com - the site that houses all of the recipes from several great food magazines like Cooking Light, Sunset, and Southern Living. We love the website so much that we've become fabulous friends and they're graciously providing this month’s Fast & Easy dinner recipes!

To get things started, I've found this delicious and filling salad recipe. Here, the classic Cobb is jazzed up with a green goddess dressing packed with fresh herbs. It's a wonderfully scrumptious dinner -especially after yesterday's Mexican food overload - so get the recipe now and read more.

Cobb Salad with Green Goddess Dressing
From Cooking Light

Ingredients

Dressing:
1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt
1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons chopped green onions
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons anchovy paste
1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 garlic clove, minced
Salad:
8 cups torn romaine lettuce
1 cup trimmed watercress
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
2 tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges (about 1 pound)
2 hard-cooked large eggs, each cut into 4 wedges
1/2 cup diced peeled avocado
1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) crumbled blue cheese

Get more recipes at MyRecipes.com

Directions

To prepare dressing, place first 11 ingredients in a blender or food processor; process until smooth. Chill.
To prepare salad, combine lettuce and watercress in a large bowl.
Place 2 cups lettuce mixture on each of 4 plates.
Arrange 6 tablespoons chicken, 4 tomato wedges, 2 egg wedges, 2 tablespoons avocado, and 1 tablespoon cheese over each serving. Serve each salad with 1/4 cup dressing.

Serves 4.

Nutritional Information: CALORIES 273(39% from fat); FAT 11.8g (sat 3.6g,mono 4.3g,poly 2.5g); PROTEIN 25.7g; CHOLESTEROL 158mg; CALCIUM 196mg; SODIUM 637mg; FIBER 3.8g; IRON 3.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 16.3g

Like the recipe above? Try out some of these other ones:

- 7 Cool Salads Under 300 Calories
- Dinner Tonight Recipes in 45-Minutes or Less
- Eat Smart at CookingLight.com
- Get More Salad Recipes

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Spicy Pork Salad and Buttermilk Dressing

partysugar — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 10:30:29 -0700

Normally when one thinks of a Southwestern-style salad, chicken or beef comes to mind. However, this creative recipe features the juicy deliciousness of pork tenderloin.

It's rubbed with chipotle chile powder before being broiled in the oven. The chopped salad includes chunks of pepper Jack cheese, tomatoes, and corn. A quick, creamy dressing is a simple combination of low-fat buttermilk and mayonnaise.

To enjoy this crunchy, filling dinner salad, read more.

Spicy Pork Salad and Buttermilk Dressing
From Everyday Food

Ingredients

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound)
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
3 tablespoons light mayonnaise
2 scallions, whites minced and greens thinly sliced, separated
1 garlic clove, crushed through a press
1 head romaine lettuce (1 1/4 pounds), trimmed and chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn kernels, thawed and patted dry
2 ounces pepper Jack cheese, cubed

Directions

Heat broiler, with rack set 4 inches from heat. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
In a small bowl, combine chile powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place pork on prepared baking sheet; rub with spice mixture.
Broil pork until an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part registers 145 degrees, 14 to 16 minutes, turning twice during cooking. Let pork rest 10 minutes, then cut into bite-size chunks.
Meanwhile, make dressing: In a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, mayonnaise, scallion whites, and garlic; season with salt and pepper.
Add romaine, tomatoes, corn, cheese, scallion greens, and pork to the bowl. Toss to combine, and serve immediately.

Serves 4.

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