fresh herbs Archives | Embracing Motherhood

Ingredients/Materials

1-2 c. Fresh Herbs (Cilantro, dill, and curly leaf parsley are my favorites. You could also add sage, thyme, basil, or whatever other fresh herbs you can find.)

3 Green Onions

½ t. Real Salt (I buy my Real Salt in bulk here. You can buy a shaker here, or a refill pouch here.)

¼ t. Pepper

½ t. Onion Powder

2 Pods of Garlic (If kids will be eating this, I’d leave out the garlic. It makes it “too spicy”!)

*¼ t. Cayenne Pepper (This gives it a nice kick, but once again, leave it out for the kids.)

¼ c. Helman’s Mayonnaise

1 c. Buttermilk

1 c. Sour Cream

Container to Hold Dressing (I like reusing glass jars from store bought dressing, but something like this would be really luxurious.)

Small Food Chopper (Get one here.)

Directions

Chop Up Herbs and Garlic: Chop up herbs and garlic into big chunks (on a wooden cutting board) before adding them to the mini food processor.

green onions, garlic, parsley on a wooden cutting board

Green Onions, Parsley, and Garlic

Food Chopper: Add the chopped up herbs and garlic to the mini food chopper. Pulse a few times on low until everything if fairly mixed, then mix on high until everything is finely chopped.

Green Onions, Garlic, and Parsley Chopped Up in a Food Processor

Add the Mayonnaise, Sour Cream, and Buttermilk: Add more or less buttermilk depending on how thin or thick you like your dressing. If you’re going to be using this as a dip, start with about a ½ c. of buttermilk and add more if needed. Add more sour cream to thicken things up. If you don’t have sour cream, or if you’re looking for a different flavor, add some plain yogurt instead.

Add Seasonings and Herbs: Mix together.

Ranch Dressing Ingredients About to be Mixed

Ranch Dressing All Mixed Up

Serve: I like using this dressing as both salad dressing and a dip.

Salad with Ranch Dressing

Ranch Dressing Dip

Storing: I like to pour this dressing into old glass dressing jars, but you could also use mason jars.

Ranch Dressing Stored in an Old Blue Cheese Container

This homemade Italian dressing is my absolute favorite thing about salad! I love making it with whatever fresh herbs are growing in the garden or with whatever herbs I can find at the grocery store. It is a much better alternative to the MSG laden commercial dressings made with canola oil that you’ll find at the store.

Ingredients/Materials

½ c. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Get it here.)
1 c. Apple Cider Vinegar (Get it here.)
2 T. Filtered Water
Fresh Herbs (Cilantro, dill, and curly leaf parsley are my favorites. You could also add sage, thyme, basil, or whatever other fresh herbs you have around.)
2-3 Green Onions
2-3 Pods of Garlic (This is optional. If you don’t mind the garlic breath, go ahead!)
1 t. Real Salt (I buy my Real Salt in bulk here. You can buy a shaker here, or a refill pouch here.)
¼ t. Pepper
1 t. Onion Powder
*¼ t. Cayenne Pepper (This gives it a nice kick, but you might want to leave it out.)
Container to Hold Dressing (Get one here.)
Small Food Chopper (Get one here.)

Directions

Add the Water and Vinegar: If you’re using the container that I linked to above, it will have a line for how much water, vinegar, and oil add. You basically want to have twice as much vinegar as oil and add a splash of water. I like to add my water and vinegar before the oil so that I have enough room for the herbs.
Dressing Container with Lines for the Water, Oil, and Vinegar
Water and Vinegar Added to the Dressing Container
Chop Up the Herbs, Green Onion, and Garlic: I don’t really measure my herbs, I just grab a handful and sprinkle any leftovers right into my salad. I like to coarsely chop everything up (on a wooden cutting board) before adding them to the mini food processor.
Green Onions, Parsley, and Garlic
Food Chopper: Add the chopped up herbs and garlic to the mini food chopper. Pulse a few times on low until everything if fairly mixed, then mix on high until everything is finely chopped.
Green Onions, Garlic, and Parsley Chopped Up in a Food Processor
Add the Herbs: You can see how there’s a lot of room for the herbs. You can go crazy and add a ton or just keep it minimal.
Fresh Herbs Added
Add the Olive Oil: Fill up the rest of the container with extra virgin olive oil.
Oil Added to the Dressing
Add the Seasonings: You can measure out the seasonings or do like me and just sprinkle them in. Once you make this a few times, you’ll get to know what tastes you like more or less of.
Shake and Serve: You’ll want to make sure the cap is securely closed, shake vigorously, and then serve right away before everything separates and settles again.
Homemade Italian Dressing
Storing: You’ll want to keep this in the fridge for optimum freshness. The oil should stay in liquid form if you use it often enough, but if the oil hardens, either run it under some hot water or leave it at room temperature until it liquefies again.
Salad with Homemade Italian Dressing