Chef AJ's House Dressing

Photo Courtesy: The Shelton Challenge

I've been slacking off for about a month. Well not really, but I am terribly behind in my posts and the only reason I have, which some of you have already heard about, is that I started a new job this January. I'd been in the same position for the past 8 years and after a lot of moaning and groaning and stressing out over everything and anything, I made the change. I planned my exit strategy and when the opportunity presented itself, I made the change. It was difficult after being in the same place for 8 years but now I wonder why I was ever worried about change ... Change Equals Growth, after all. 

Anyhow, now I'm back and hopefully will stick with it with regularity :)

One of the cool things about my new job is that they have a full cafeteria with a full fresh salad bar. Awesome!!! Now while I've been really good about taking leftovers for lunches, the chance of eating a fresh spinach salad, loaded with beans and other fresh veggies, which I didn't have to put together is an awesome opportunity in my opinion. In the 3 weeks I've been there, I've had salad for lunch at least 4 days each week. I love it!! So that is the reason that this first post is about a home-made salad dressing. Chef AJ's House Dressing. I first came across this recipe when I attended a cooking demonstration by Chef AJ in Dublin, Ohio. I bought her book, Unprocessed, and this recipe was on a bookmark she gives out with each book. It's yummy!!

Prep Time: 5 min

Ingredients (Serves 5):

1. 1/2 cup filtered Water
2. 4 tbsp Tahini (whatever brand you can find, bottled varieties tend to congeal less)
3. 6 tbsp Lemon/Lime Juice (fresh or bottled, both work fine)
4. 4 tbsp Low-Sodium Tamari (or Soy Sauce)
5. 4 tbsp Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard
6. 8 tbsp Kal Nutritional Yeast
7. 1 tbsp Date Syrup (or 3 whole pitted Medjool dates)

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth. If using dates instead of date syrup, you may need to pulse a few extra minutes to make sure that the dates are well incorporated. The longer the dressing sits, the dates will imbibe more of the moisture and add to the overall sweetness of the recipe. Transfer to a serving dish, or a storage bottle. I typically make a batch every Sunday and take it with me to work. I split the batch over 5 days in my salad, or if I have some remaining, I do bring it home as it is also great on a baked russet or redskin potato. Enjoy!! This dressing is very reminiscent of a Honey Mustard dressing. Its really yummy on salads as well as on steamed vegetables, including baked or steamed potatoes.

Chef AJ's House Dressing over Steamed Redskin Potatoes

-- more pictures to follow -- 

Nutrition Facts (Per Serving): Calories 156 (Fat Calories 69)
Total Fat 7.6 g; Carbohydrates 18.1 g; Fiber 4.8 g; Sugars 6.2 g; Protein 8.5 g


If you liked this recipe, be sure to check out my Recipe Index for more Whole-Food, Plant-Based, No-Added-Oil recipes. You can also like Rugrat Chow! on Facebook. Thanks!