Shaved Salad with Red Bell Pepper and Carrots with a Roasted Green Chile Ranch Dressing
By Heidi Allison
If you've ever tasted scratch-made Ranch dressing, you’ll never go back to that “store-bought bottle” again. This quick rendition is made in a re-purposed pasta sauce jar and shaken until combined—how easy is that!
The craveable flavor of this iconic, mid-century-modern American salad dressing comes from its mixture of fresh herbs and tangy buttermilk. Originally a quick dressing made for roving cowboys on the range, it was made from what was readily available – buttermilk, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. In the 70’s, it morphed into a more herbaceous dressing with the addition of “exotic” herbs – dill, tarragon and chives. This updated version adds Dijon mustard for complexity, and roasted green chile pepper, which lends a bit of heat – a nice twist. While this dressing will be thin right after it’s made, it thickens up after several hours in the fridge; best overnight. Dressing keeps for 4 days.
For a healthy, one-bowl meal, great protein add-ons are grilled chicken or salmon.
Dressing:
Makes: about 1 cup
1 cup well-shaken low-fat buttermilk
6 Tbs. good-quality Mayo
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 large (or 2 small) cloves garlic, peeled and micro-planed
1 Tbs. powdered goat milk
Zest of 1/2 lemon
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. kosher flake salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup minced herbs; flat-leaf parsley, dill, chives and tarragon
2 Tbs. mild roasted green chile
Preparation:
Place all ingredients in a glass jar and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds until blended. Place in fridge for 4 hours to “set up” and thicken, and allow flavors to “marry”.
Salad:
1 head of iceberg lettuce, washed and cored; cut into 1/3-inch strips
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch matchsticks
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch matchsticks
Preparation:
Place all ingredients in a bowl, and toss to combine. Place salad on chilled plates and drizzle 3-4 tablespoons of dressing over each serving.
If you've ever tasted scratch-made Ranch dressing, you’ll never go back to that “store-bought bottle” again. This quick rendition is made in a re-purposed pasta sauce jar and shaken until combined—how easy is that!
The craveable flavor of this iconic, mid-century-modern American salad dressing comes from its mixture of fresh herbs and tangy buttermilk. Originally a quick dressing made for roving cowboys on the range, it was made from what was readily available – buttermilk, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. In the 70’s, it morphed into a more herbaceous dressing with the addition of “exotic” herbs – dill, tarragon and chives. This updated version adds Dijon mustard for complexity, and roasted green chile pepper, which lends a bit of heat – a nice twist. While this dressing will be thin right after it’s made, it thickens up after several hours in the fridge; best overnight. Dressing keeps for 4 days.
For a healthy, one-bowl meal, great protein add-ons are grilled chicken or salmon.
Dressing:
Makes: about 1 cup
1 cup well-shaken low-fat buttermilk
6 Tbs. good-quality Mayo
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 large (or 2 small) cloves garlic, peeled and micro-planed
1 Tbs. powdered goat milk
Zest of 1/2 lemon
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. kosher flake salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup minced herbs; flat-leaf parsley, dill, chives and tarragon
2 Tbs. mild roasted green chile
Preparation:
Place all ingredients in a glass jar and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds until blended. Place in fridge for 4 hours to “set up” and thicken, and allow flavors to “marry”.
Salad:
1 head of iceberg lettuce, washed and cored; cut into 1/3-inch strips
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch matchsticks
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch matchsticks
Preparation:
Place all ingredients in a bowl, and toss to combine. Place salad on chilled plates and drizzle 3-4 tablespoons of dressing over each serving.
