sweet and tangy salad dressing

I've mentioned a few times how I've been on a salad kick since James Michael was born. That first week postpartum, when my mom came over to help me every day, I indulged in some wonderful salads, topped with a homemade balsamic-based dressing she whipped up. Since then, I can't bring myself to dress my salads with store-bought concoctions, even though there are some good (healthy) ones out there. So every couple weeks I simply make another batch of homemade dressing. Each batch is a little different, depending on what I have in my pantry, but all are good. This last time, I decided to measure out all the ingredients so I could share it.

This dressing is tangy and sweet, and tastes wonderful on my favorite salad: spinach, spring mix, avocado, feta, smoked chicken, toasted pecans and strawberries--and lately I've added kale, english cucumber and grape tomatoes.

Sweet and Tangy Balsamic Dressing

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil
• 1/2 cup tangy dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup honey (molasses is good too)
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp raspberry vinegar
• 2 tbsp orange muscat champagne vinegar
• 1 tsp herbs de province
• 3/4 tsp lime juice
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Simply mix all ingredients together. I have a plastic bottle I pour all the ingredients in and then shake until mixed. This recipe makes about 18 oz. I used to store this dressing in the fridge, but the oil separates so now I keep it in the pantry. One batch never lasts longer than two weeks around my house.

About the infused vinegars, you can really use any kind you like--or none at all. I love the Alessi brand vinegars, and the orange muscat champagne vinegar was a recent purchase from Trader Joe's that is great.

All the pictures I have of my favorite salad were taken before the dressing was added, so I was waiting until we made our next salad to snap a picture to include in this post. I assumed I'd get one at lunch today, but the hubby decided on a salad at 7 a.m. for breakfast :) He used kale, spinach, grape tomatoes, strawberries, turkey peppperoni, cheddar cheese, shredded carrots and toasted pecans. And yes, he regularly uses our mixing bowls as a salad bowl since our normal bowls aren't big enough for him.