Skip the bottled stuff with all the additives and opt for this fresh and flavorful Homemade Ranch Dressing and Dip. It comes together in minutes and you can drizzle it on your favorite salads and sandwiches or use it as a savory dip.
ME BEFORE THE RECIPE…
How’d you like the Superbowl????!
Wait, who played again? Erg…ummm…hmmm…oh well, at least I remember eating some darn delicious food yesterday. I will say that I did actually end up watching (in full) the last quarter. Does that count?
I mean if every football game was made up of one 15 minute quarter (that actually ends up lasting about a half hour), I might just be into football. But FOUR HOURS of sitting on the couch??? No thank you. I ain’t got the time or patience for that.
Did I ever tell you about the time I watched an ENTIRE football game??? Maybe, but I’ll tell it again.
You see, Ben attended the University of Utah until we got married, in which he transferred over to BYU. Yeah, yeah. Save your “BOO’s” for someone who cares. One of us had to switch schools and seeing as how my scholarship was nontransferable, it seemed Ben would have to be the sell out.
Anyways, he looks forward to this BYU versus U of U football game every year. Actually, I don’t even know if they play each other anymore. Regardless, he loves getting together with his BYU buddies and rubbing it in their faces when the U of U wins every single year. Every. Single. Year.
I enjoy this game, too, because I send Ben off to play, put the girls to bed extra early, and enjoy the house all to myself. Except this one year. This one year Ben excitedly told me that the whole family was invited to watch the football game at his buddy’s house.
OUR buddy’s house to be exact. It was a couple friend of ours from college. They have a few kids our girls’ ages and the wife is awesome, so I thought, “What the heck?! I’ll throw together some festive food, chat it up, and enjoy some girl time while the boys watch football.”
Wishful thinking.
You see, little did I know the wife was a DIE HARD football fan. She was more glued to the sweaty action on that TV than Ben. I tried to kill some time eating the game day food, going back and forth to the kitchen multiple times, but that only killed a few minutes. After about fifteen minutes I realized I was in it for the long haul.
Now I was no dummy. I realized football was made up of two halves. I knew this because of the famed half time shows. So I agonizingly counted down the minutes to that first break, knowing it would be half-time. Phew! Made it halfway through.
I was a little disappointed that nothing interesting happened during half-time, and it did seem like a short break. I just chalked it up to the fact that nothing interesting happens in college football and they must just save entertaining half-time shows for the pros.
Then I painfully watched the never-ending clock count down to the end of the game. We had been there for at least an hour and a half and I FINALLY made it through the entire game. I politely thanked them for letting us come over, gathered up my food trays, rounded up the kids, and we left.
Ben, however, plodded to the car, slouched inside and slammed the door. Then he pulled this attitude and didn’t speak to me, or even look at me, as we started our drive home. Irritated at his behavior, I finally turn to him and asked, “What is wrong with you?! I just sat through an entire football game and you’re mad at me???!”
To which he replied, “ENTIRE FOOTBALL GAME?! We left at HALF-TIME!”
SAY WHAT?!
Oops. That’s when I learned not only does football have a half-time, but it is also made up of quarters…with a little break in between each one. Oh well. And so that is why I am no longer invited to watch football. And I’m okay with that…really.
HERE COMES THE RECIPE…
That being said, there is one friend I can always rely on for an entertaining football game, and that is because we watch none of it. She is on my same wavelength. We go there every year for the Superbowl. The boys watch football and we eat yummy food and chat. That’s how I like it.
This year I was assigned to bring a salad and “anything else I wanted”. You can’t give me that vague of an assignment! Don’t you know my mind goes crazy with all the possible options?!
I finally settled on an appetizer of creamy corn dip and a classic salad with Homemade Ranch Dressing. Buttermilk ranch dressing to be exact, and boy was it good!
Now I know classic ranch has parsley and dill, but I had a container of fresh chives in the fridge that were screaming to be used. So, I used them and they didn’t disappoint. The flavor ended up being all dilly, chivey, garlicky, creamy GOOD! I don’t know that I’ll ever go back to store bought ranch dressing again.
Because this ranch was homemade, I felt a whole lot better about using it in my salad. The last few months I’ve been trying to make more homemade dressings to avoid eating so many preservatives. I mean, if you’re going to eat a healthy salad, you might as well not ruin it with a store bought dressing. Most store bought dressings contain xanthan gum (which I use in my occasional baking), but I don’t like the idea of drinking it (hello almond milk, I’m talking about you) or drizzling it on my veggies. No thank you.
This dressing (besides the mayo) is preservative free. I guess you could go the extra mile and make homemade mayo, but this is good enough for now. I’ll get there one day.
I’ve already eaten this dressing THREE TIMES since yesterday! I obviously ate it on my salad at the Superbowl party, but then I drizzled it on avocado toast this morning and slapped it in a shredded chicken pita for lunch. And I just may have another drizzle for dinner. Get off my back.
So those of you who think making your own dressing is too hard or stressful, think again. Literally this dressing takes about 5 minutes to make, and the blender does all the work. Once it’s made, you can enjoy it for up to two weeks…if it even lasts that long. We’ll see…
YOU MIGHT ALSO ENJOY…
- Roasted Veggie Salad with French Vinaigrette
- Gluten Free Goat Cheese Berry Spinach Salad
- Gluten Free Healthier Broccoli Raisin Salad
- Roasted Beets
- Raspberry and Toasted Coconut Spinach and Arugula Salad
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives, or ¾ teaspoon dried onion powder
- 1-1½ tablespoons fresh dill, or 1½ teaspoons dried
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley, or 1 teaspoon dried
- ¼-1/2 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¾ teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 tablespoon vinegar (I used apple cider)
- Place all ingredients in a blender, starting with the lesser amount of dill and salt. Blend until smooth. Season to taste with additional salt, pepper, and dill if needed.
- Pour mixture into container. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes.*
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in fridge for up to 2 weeks.
