Best Homemade Dressing Recipes for Caesar & Spinach Salads

One of Susan's passions is cooking and creating new recipes for family and friends.

How to Make Dressings for Caesar Salads and Spinach Salads

Homemade salad dressings not only taste better but also cost you less money in the long run. True, it does take some extra time to whip up these dressings, but if you have the time, they are well worth it. In many cases, they will be healthier too.

Here are some of the homemade salad dressings that I make.

Caesar Salad Dressing

Ingredients

• 3–4 cloves of garlic crushed
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• Anchovies, either canned or the paste
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2–3 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
• Fresh ground pepper
• 1/8–1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

This salad dressing can be made ahead and used when needed. I usually can keep it in the refrigerator for about 4–5 days. I sometimes will make a double batch if I know that I am going to be making Caesar salad more than once in the course of 5 days.

1. Peel the garlic cloves and press with a garlic press into a bowl.
2. Add virgin olive oil, mayonnaise, anchovies, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and fresh ground pepper.
3. Whisk it all together really well, cover and refrigerate.
4. The Parmesan cheese can be added right to the dressing or added to the salad before serving, along with bacon bits and/or croutons.

Many times, I will serve this salad without Parmesan, bacon bits, and croutons.

Ingredients for Salad Topping

• 1/8 cup Parmesan cheese
• Bacon cooked crisp and crumbled
• 1 chopped tomato
• Croutons

Another Caesar Salad Dressing

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
• Chopped garlic cloves (as many or as little as you like)
• Fresh ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients for salad dressing together with a whisk.
2. Tear up your washed romaine lettuce into a bowl and add salad dressing.
3. Top with the ingredients for salad topping.

With either one of the above salad dressings, many times I will make it a meal and add cooked sliced chicken breasts or turkey to the salad.

Spinach Salad Dressing

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon thyme
• Fresh ground pepper

Instructions

Whisk all ingredients together and toss with baby spinach.

Many times I will turn this into spinach Greek salad by adding garbanzo beans or chickpeas along with sliced cucumber, chopped tomatoes, feta cheese, and hot peppers.

This salad dressing also goes well with iceberg lettuce for Greek salad. Add all the same ingredients (plus black sliced olives) that you would for the spinach Greek salad except for the spinach.

Salad dressings are so easy to make if you have the basic ingredients. Many times I will just mix together ingredients that sound good together and add them to lettuce.

© 2011 Susan Zutautas