reduce the balsamic

I have been using a lot of balsamic vinegar lately, but it is just too sweet for me. Recently I tried half balsamic and half white wine vinegar (to three parts olive oil) -- just right. You still get the flavor and richness of the balsamic, but not as much -- and just right for me.

It really changes the consistency, too. This variation is not as good for bread dipping as the all balsamic, but a nicer consistency for salad, I think.

whisk or shake

In an early post I said I did not think it made a difference whether you whisked or shook the dressing. WRONG! - at least when one of the ingredients is honey -- it does not shake -- and if you have used a narrow mouthed bottle, believe me, you are in trouble -- it is very difficult (read impossible) to get even a very small whisk (or fork) in there -- use a bowl -- and whisk.

Lemon Dressing

Recently we tried a Lemon Dressing (Recipe #107816) from CDKitchen.com:

2 T. lemon juice
2 T. water
1 T. olive oil
1/2 t. prepared mustard
1/4 t. crushed garlic
dash worchestshire sauce
dash sugar
dash crushed thyme

Combine in bowl or jar and whisk or shake

Makes two servings.

We tried it with bread and thought it was very good. Served on a green salad with crumbled blue cheese, I thought it was a little bland and Emma thought it was too lemony if you didn't also happen to get a little blue cheese on your fork. But my friend Carol, who along with her family, has kindly tried several of my dressings, said it was the best yet.

CD Kitchen is a nice site for a tremendous variety of recipes.

Bread and Dipping Oil

I think that bread is the best way to really taste a vinaigrette.  The bread is neutral: a perfect vehicle for an unobscured sampling of the vinaigrette.  It may taste different, better or worse, on a salad, but trying it with bread first is best.

Awhile back at an office party my friend Renee brought in a delicious Italian bread with olive oil and a dipping bread herb mix from DeLallo, a Pittsburgh area purveyor of Italian food (www.delallo.com).  It was very good -- maybe a little salty for me, but as I told her, I could have sat there all day tearing pieces of bread and dipping them in that oil.

I think that is what led me to the idea of testing all vinaigrette with bread.

But we also tried the garlic flavored oil for dipping enhanced with some oregano.  Delish. I have a number of idea dipping oil ideas that I look forward to trying.

follow-up

A quick follow-up to the last post: kept in the refrigerator, the garlic olive oil will get cloudy and very thick. It is not spoiled! Just let it come to room temperature and it will be clear and pourable.

infused oils

About twenty-five years I made Italian gift baskets at Christmas including pasta, biscotti, candy, and garlic flavored olive oil.  All I did was pour some olive oil in a clean bottle and toss in a couple cloves of garlic.  Clearly those were simpler times -- now the internet is full of all kinds of cautions about contamination and botulism -- some commentators recommending against flavoring your own oils -- too much risk -- you need to be so careful.  Very off-putting.

But no one died of botulism 25 years ago, so I decided to follow the other commentators who just emphasize using sterile bottles, keeping the oil refrigerated and using it within a reasonable time.

Commentators were also divided on what kind of olive oil to use, with some continuing to recommend a very good cold pressed extra virgin oil and others saying if you are going to flavor it, why use a good oil -- any pure olive oil will do.  That makes sense, but I thought I would stick with a better oil and chose Colavita for this project.

I took a quart of olive oil in a clean (and sterilized) mason jar with 12 cloves of garlic.  I left the jar undisturbed for a week.  Wow, was that oil infused -- the garlic smell was so strong (and appealing).

I made some Barb's Vinaigrette using the garlic oil, and then since this is such a scientific blog, some Barb's Vinaigrette using unflavored olive oil.  You could really taste (and smell) the garlic difference.

Do keep the oil refrigerated, and use it promptly: within a month or so.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

My friend, Barb told me about this dressing -- so, let's call it Barb's Vinaigrette:

7 oz olive oil
2 oz balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper


Whisk or shake

The balsamic taste is very strong.  Balsamic tastes "sweet" to me, and I don't always like that, but this is an excellent, everyday dressing.  Add garlic and/or blue cheese and it is absolutely outstanding.

Also great as a dipping oil.

Among the possibilities

I have been studying and trying vinaigrette recipes and combinations over the last several weeks.  Dried or fresh herbs can be used, but I suggest you make sure they are very finely chopped to really spread the flavor.  To me it is at least as much about the aroma of the herbs as the taste.  And I love the smell of fresh basil.

I recently tried a basil vinaigrette that also included a large quantity of parsley (1/2 c. each fresh basil and parsley, 1 c. olive oil, 1/2 c. red wine vinegar, garlic and mustard).  Note that the oil/vinegar ratio is different from a more standard vinaigrette.  I thought that might be a problem, that it would taste too vinegar-y, but that was fine.  But the volume of basil and parsley was so much that it was very dense.  Despite my own advice, I think I should have chopped the basil more finely.  It was heavy and overwhelming to the lettuce, but it was delicious with bread.  Much more robust than a normal dipping oil, of course, but it tasted great.

I am going to explore some dipping oil combinations over the next few weeks, so if you are interested, look for something in future posts.

Apple Season

There is no time of year better for apples than the fall.  So many varieties, whether you want tart or sweet, red or green or yellow, crisp or soft -- they are all readily available and at their peak.

Sliced or chopped apples in a salad is also a delicious seasonal treat.  That's the salad my friend Carol used with an apple vinaigrette I made  from Mollie Katzen's 1982 classic,  The Enchanted Broccoli Forest.  Mix 3/4 c. apple juice, 2/3 c. cider vinegar, 1/2 c. oil  (I used olive oil), 1/2 t. salt, 1 t. prepared mustard, 1/4 t. celery seed, and fresh ground black pepper.  Whisk until well combined.

When I made this dressing, I just added some feta cheese to the greens.  Carol and I discussed that it would also work well with a salad with dried cranberries or raisins.

By the way, The Enchanted Broccoli Forest and its predecessor, The Moosewood Cookbook (1977) were my first and are still my favorite cookbooks. Vegetarian, but not vegan, they were quite exotic to me 30+ years ago -- and are still a pleasure now.

Starting with Vinaigrette

It seems that every cookbook with more than one or two salad dressing recipes includes a recipe for vinaigrette.  Generally the formula is three to four parts oil (usually olive oil) to one part vinegar, with salt and pepper.  Garlic and/or a teaspoon or so of Dijon mustard are almost standard. Herbs and other extras, if you wish. Whisk or shake -- I don't think it makes a difference.

So, there is the basic recipe.  Plain vinegar, cider or white or red wine vinegar: sure it changes the taste a bit, but the same basic recipe works.  Balsamic vinegar makes the biggest difference in the taste.  My friend, Barbara recently mentioned that she has been getting all kinds of compliments on her "new" salad dressing:  balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.  Can't get much easier than that.  I will have to try it.

First Post!

This is not only my first blog -- this is the first time I have posted to any blog.  I am beginning this project with the idea of focusing on salad dressings, but I do not really know how this blog may evolve, or what detours it may take.

I hope to include salad dressing recipes and recipe ideas -- and not just those including olive oil -- look for recipes with yogurt and mayonnaise, too.  I also intend to include health information and random interesting trivia I come across. 

I am not quite sure why I am starting this project -- perhaps just trying to do something different for me -- out of my comfort zone, as they say.  I dedicate it to my daughters, Emma and Rebecca McAfee who are my dearest friends and my best cheerleaders.  They will often initially laugh at my ideas, as they did with this one, but they are always encouraging and kind in their criticism.  And we all like a good salad dressing.

If anyone reads this, I hope you will give me your comments and ideas.  That would be very encouraging.