Save Your Salads!

            So I am all about finding ways to save money, so I can spend money on fun stuff and traveling. I am also a fan of finding healthier alternatives, as well as sharing my new healthy and money sharing ideas. One thing that I learned in a restaurant is that salad dressings are really easy to make and save tons of money making them yourself. Also, making them yourself also saves a lot of calories, as well as adding carbohydrates and sugars. I feel if you are going through the effort of making eating a healthy salad, you should match it with a healthy dressing as well. If you are willing to make the time, it is overall worth it to your health as well as your wallet.

            Sometimes when I bring up making your own salad dressings to people, they often say they do not have the time. Today I will provide a recipe for Italian dressing that will take under five minutes to make, and seriously, it takes longer to go shopping at the store then to make. You can also make a large abundance of dressing, and can or freeze dressing, so you can only make it once in awhile.

            I decided to price out Italian dressing so you can see how much can be saved. I found that making the salad dressing recipe below cost about $2.00 to make, and that is with being able to make more than one bottle with the dry mixture of ingredients, plus no additives.  If you so buy store brand salad dressing, you can often find things on sale for $2.00. For natural dressings, sub as Annie’s natural dressing, average price is around $3.99. Here are four dressings below you can give a try.

Italian Dressing

Ingredients

            1 T garlic powder

            1 t onion powder

            ½ t white sugar

            2 t oregano

            1 t black pepper

            1 t thyme

            1 t parsley

            1 T salt

            2/3 c canola oil

            ¼ c white vinegar

            2 T water

Directions:

So, this first step is what saves you so much time.

            Mix together the garlic powder, onion powder, white sugar, oregano, black pepper, salt, thyme, and parsley. Place mixture into a Tupperware that seals well.

            For dressing, ad the canola oil, vinegar, and water with 2 T of the above mixture. This will not only save you money, but a ton of time in the future. Enjoy!

Honey Mustard Dressing

Ingredients:

            1/4 cup mayonnaise (or plain yogurt)

            1 tablespoon prepared mustard

            1 tablespoon honey

            1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

            In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, honey, and lemon juice. Store covered in the refrigerator.

Poppy seed Dressing

Ingredients:

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup cider vinegar

4 1/2 teaspoons grated onion

3 teaspoons ground mustard

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine the first six ingredients. Slowly add oil, while whisking briskly. Cover and refrigerate until serving.

Blue Cheese Dressing

Ingredients:

2 1/2 ounces blue cheese

3 tablespoons buttermilk

3 tablespoons sour cream

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

            In a small bowl, mash blue cheese and buttermilk together with a fork until mixture resembles large-curd cottage cheese. Stir in sour cream, mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, and garlic powder until well blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper.