Wednesday, March 4, 2015

House Salad with Zesty Red Wine Vinaigrette

Posted by Tina / 1 comment » / *Recipes, Dressings, Healthy, Quick & Easy, Salads, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Hey ya’ll I just got back from Food Blog Forum Orlando (Check out my Instagram for photos!) and am super excited and READY to get back into my blogging groove!!!! Thanks for bearing with me and being patient over the past year as my main focus shifted to my family - particularly my little love bug! You guys are the best! MWUAH!

Okay, let me go ahead and shoot you straight… This post is really allllllllll about the DRESSING.

I. AM. OBSESSED.

As in… I’ve made this dressing more times than I can count & can’t seem to keep it in my fridge for very long!

Background: My sister in-law (shout out Heather!) found this “House Dressing” on AllRecipes.com months and months ago and told me about it. I fell in love. Since then, I’ve probably made it 6-7 times adapting it along the way to my personal liking.

It’s tangy and flavorful and goes so daggum well with just about any salad fixins’!!! My usual go-to is a “Greek Style” salad where I add feta, kalamata olives, tomato, cucumber, green peppers and even some croutons! And of course… THE DRESSING. Duh!

SO. GOOD.

While hubs and I were in Orlando for Food Blog Forum… Disney hooked us up with some Hopper Passes and we mostly hung out at Magic Kingdom to appease our almost 15 month old! However, one night we ventured over to Epcot to have dinner in “Italy” at Via Napoli. The Wood Fire Pizza was divine… but what I really loved was the House salad that we ordered with our pizza!

It had a tangy Red Wine vinaigrette that tasted just like my beloved dressing but the toppings were some that I typically don’t think to use: Pickled sweet peppers, Marinated Mushrooms, and Mixed olives (plus the not so unique cucumbers, tomatoes & Peperoncini peppers).

It just tasted so light and refreshing and was the perfect accompaniment to our Spicy Sausage Pizza.

As was the wine. MMMM the wine.

I knew I wanted to recreate that salad when I got home so I took a quick trip over to my local Fresh Market and raided the Olive Bar! It turns out they had everything I needed! (Side Note: Whole Foods has an extensive olive bar as well that carries these pre-made items)

So I whipped up a fresh batch of my favorite salad dressing and threw this salad together in minutes and called it lunch!

… and then I served it again alongside of some grilled chicken for dinner later that night (I TOLD you I’m obsessed)!

If you are stuck in a salad rut and need to pizazz up your sad lettuce? MAKE THIS.

Pretty please?

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House Salad with Zesty Red Wine Vinaigrette

Yield: 2 1/4 cups salad dressing

Prep Time: 10 min

Total Time: 10 min

The zesty red wine vinaigrette used in this salad is my favorite go-to salad dressing these days. It's light and tangy and goes well on pretty much any salad you can create! Mix it up and get creative with your salad toppings!

Ingredients:

For the Vinaigrette:
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
1 1/4 teaspoons fresh cracked black pepper
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt*
1 teaspoon onion powder
*if sensitive to salt, start with only 3/4-1 teaspoon

For the Salad:
Mixed greens
Diced English cucumbers
Diced tomatoes
Mixed pitted olives (I used Kalamata, green, and Manzanilla)*
Italian marinated mushrooms*
Sweet Pickled peppers*

*All of these ingredients were picked up at the olive bar at my local Fresh Market (I've also seen them at Wholefoods and some Publix stores).

Directions:

For the Vinaigrette:
Add all ingredients to a large mason jar and shake until well combined. Original recipe says it is shelf stable and doesn't need to be refrigerated. I still refrigerate mine... just make sure to pull the dressing out about an hour prior to using and allow it to come to room temperature (It seems to thicken up and congeal in the fridge).

For the Salad:
Add mixed greens to a large bowl and toss with salad dressing, adding a little bit at a time to lightly coat the greens (taste it as you go as a little bit of dressing goes a long way!). Add toppings of choice and serve!

Adapted from All Recipes

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