Spinach or watercress dressing (p. 573), Creamy caraway dressing (p. 577), and Green goddess dressing (p. 576)

I have gotten to the point where I have already made most of the salad dressings that actually look good to me, some of them many, many times. The dressings that are left over tend to be...odd. But I thought I would knock some of them out.

Josh had eyed the Spinach or watercress dressing (p. 573) recipe for quite a while. I have no idea why, I thought it looked exceptionally strange. Why is there chopped spinach in a salad dressing? It was certainly easy.

I whisked lemon juice, tarragon vinegar (the tarragon vinegar is a bit of a theme, I found a bottle of it on clearance at the grocery store), salt, and pepper together:



I added olive oil in a steady stream while whisking:



I stirred in my two cups spinach leaves, finely (or finally) chopped:




It was a very strange salad dressing. Very strange. It tasted like it already had the salad included, rather than just being dressing. And I think that TJOC can be too heavy handed with the olive oil--but I feel that way about all of their vinaigrettes too. I liked the bright green color.

I have been interested in the Creamy caraway dressing (p. 577) for quite a while. Caraway is such a strong flavor that I couldn't imagine it in a salad dressing. I whisked together sour cream, lemon juice, caraway seeds, coarse-grain mustard, shallot, and thyme in a bowl, and then added a bit of olive oil, while whisking:



The caraway was certainly bold in the dressing. It reminded me of eating pumpernickel bread in salad dressing form (I'm guessing that doesn't make you hungry!). That being said, it was pretty good. TJOC recommends using it on potato salad and I think that could be really interesting and different. In fact, I might have to experiment with that in the future. I also think it could be a delicious spread on tiny rye bread slices for a cocktail party--especially with a little cucumber on top.

I have very little experience with Green goddess dressing (p. 576) outside of dipping meat/seafood in it at The Melting Pot.

I minced anchovies. Or, more accurately, attempted to mince. They really sort of dissolved.



Appetizing, right? I mixed them with garlic, mayonnaise, sour cream, minced chives, parsley, lemon juice, tarragon vinegar, salt, and pepper:



The dressing was good but you better like the fishy, salty taste of anchovies, because it comes through loud and clear in this dish. I didn't really like it but Josh thought it was extremely good. I think green goddess works better as a dip than as a dressing.

So, readers, what are your favorite salad dressings? Are any of these three on your list?



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