Healthy (American) French Salad Dressing
Don’t look now, but that bottle of French dressing from the store comes with a complimentary serving of propylene glycol alginate, yellow # 6, and high-fructose corn syrup. Even Annie’s is loaded with refined oils.
But no worries. Healthy homemade French Dressing is easy to make. Just place a few healthy ingredients in the blender, blend, and viola! You have a very healthy dressing for over your salad … or on top of other veggies or potatoes or even in a sandwich … whatever else you like French Dressing on.
Real French Salad Dressing vs American French Salad Dressing
Classic French Salad Dressing is actually a vinaigrette. The American version of French dressing – like you’d get from Kraft or Wishbone – is creamier and thicker and it’s orange-red in color.
Why are there two types of dressing called “French” – an American French and a Classic French (like from France)? I don’t know, but it certainly isn’t because they are anything alike.
(And then there’s Catalina dressing. It’s sort of like the American French salad dressing, nothing like real French dressing, and somehow people get it confused with Russian dressing. But it isn’t like Russian dressing at all.)
Anyway …
So what is this dressing recipe that I’m sharing with you?
Well, I’m calling it (American) French dressing, because it isn’t true French dressing (vinegar, oil, etc.). But it isn’t really even American French dressing either – I mean it’s missing the propylene glycol alginate and all.
Perhaps this dressing would be more accurately named Tangy Tomato Salad Dressing. Whatever you call it, it’s a healthy topping for you salads and I hope you enjoy!
Healthy (American) French Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons raw cashews
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoon raw sugar - or evaporated cane juice sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon molasses
- 1 teaspoon apple juice concentrate
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons finely diced onion - optional
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in blender and blend until very smooth. (A heavy-duty blender works best for this recipe; other blenders may not get the mixture smooth enough.)
- Stir in finely diced onion.
Notes
>> One quick request: if you like this recipe, please leave a rating and a comment. Ratings help more people find these healthy recipes!
Oil-Free Dressing?
I really wanted to make this homemade French dressing oil-free, but after a few experiments, I realized it was too much of a stretch. It really needed the oil for the right flavor and consistency. So I reduced the amount as much as possible. Feel free to adjust to your liking.
The Dressing Room
Looking for some more healthy, whole-food, vegan salad dressings? Check these out:
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Fantastic.
what could you use instead of cashews, please? Can’t eat them. Thank you very much
You could try raw macadamia nuts or raw sunflower seeds.