Gluten Free Smoky Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

I really can't believe I haven't shared this recipe with you yet. Yes, it's hard to believe that I eat salads on occasion, not just desserts. When I am craving salad, I love fresh salad dressing from scratch. Most salad dressings are easier to whip up than you may realize. The freshness and flavor of homemade dressing is unbeatable by the bottled stuff. I found this recipe last year on one of my favorite blogs; Noble Pig. The key addition to this smooth, creamy, buttermilk ranch is a little smoked paprika. The smoked paprika adds such a unique touch to this amazing salad dressing.

Smoky Buttermilk Ranch:

from Noble Pig
2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup sour cream

2 Tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 Tablespoons fresh chives

2 green onions, thinly sliced

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

pinch of Salt

In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients except for the buttermilk. Whisk in the buttermilk, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.
Prepare your favorite greens and top with your homemade smoky buttermilk ranch. Enjoy!!!

Gluten Free Pasta Salad

Well, we made it back from our trip to Wallowa Lake in Eastern Oregon.

My daughter and her cousin enjoyed feeding all the chipmunks and squirrels from atop Mt. Howard overlooking the lake. There is a gondola that takes you to the top.

We tried our luck at fishing for the first time. We didn't catch anything, which probably wasn't too bad. I'm not sure what would have happened if my animal loving daughter saw a fish attached to the line she just reeled up.

I'm feeling kind of guilty lately. I haven't been posting as often as I would like. I'll blame it on summer. Here in Portland we are in the midst of a brutal heat wave. It was 103 yesterday and 106 today. Tomorrow is supposed to be even hotter. For the average, mild, rain soaked North Westerner, the heat is almost paralyzing. My family and I headed for the beach yesterday to avoid the hot hot weather. It was a rare moment on the Oregon coast where the ocean water actually felt refreshing and not just ice cold. So there it is, I've been a slacker lately. A hot kitchen is not the best place to hang out in the summer.

Summer or not, I still have to eat, so I present you with a gluten free pasta salad. I don't really follow a recipe for this, but I'll approximate amounts.
Pasta Salad
1 box of Ancient Harvest Quinoa Rotelle Pasta (prepare according to box-drain)
1/4 pound Italian dry salami (cubed)
1 medium cucumber (cubed)
3 Tbs sun dried tomatoes (diced)
4 ounces Feta cheese crumbles
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/3 cup Italian salad dressing
Mix all ingredients thoroughly and refrigerate for about an hour prior to serving. Feel free to add any of your favorite ingredients. Olives and red onion would be a great addition.
Enjoy!!!

Hail Caesar!!!

I've really enjoyed my venture into blogging so far. I constantly find my self stumbling across new sites with mouth watering pictures and great ideas. I always think; "oh, that sounds great," or "I haven't made that in a long time." The vast array of food blogs have essentially created the world's largest cookbook via the Internet. With Summer weather heating up the Portland area lately, I've been thinking about cool refreshing meals. I came across Lydia's blog at The Perfect Pantry and her recipe for Caesar salad with shrimp. I knew right away that a Caesar salad was just what I needed for a quick delicious warm weather meal. Authentic Caesar dressing contains anchovies. I personally don't mind anchovies but I know many people turn away in disgust at the thought of these little salty fish. To omit anchovies in a Caesar salad would be a big mistake. They add a complex element to the dressing that gives it the perfect balance of flavors. I don't stock tins of anchovies in my pantry. On the rare occasion that I ever need them, I use a tiny bit and end up throwing the rest out. Lydia gave me the great idea to purchase a tube of anchovy paste. You can use just a little bit and then store the rest in the refrigerator for a long time until it is needed again. I'm not a squeamish person, I won't regale you with stories from years as an emergency medical care provider to prove it. But trust me, I've seen some unpleasant things. I have to admit that squeezing pureed salty fish goo from a toothpaste tube into something I'm about to eat is not very appealing. However, I know this is necessary to achieve a great tasting Caesar dressing. So squeeze away.

The biggest element missing from any gluten free Caesar salad is croutons. I took two slices of gluten free sandwich bread and cubed them. We use Whole Foods white sandwich bread. I lightly coated the cubes with olive oil, salt, pepper, sage, and thyme. I would have used garlic also but I forgot. I toasted them on a baking sheet in a 300 degree F oven for about 10 minutes. I turned them over and baked for about 5-10 minutes more until they were very crunchy.


Caesar Dressing:
From The Perfect Pantry
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 tsp anchovy paste (mmm mmm good)
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (Lea and Perrins is GF)
2 tsp lemon juice (fresh squeezed)
3 Tbs grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Pinch of pepper
Mix together in a small bowl and refrigerate at least 20 minutes before using. I sampled the dressing before mixing into the salad. The dressing had an intense flavor that I wasn't too sure about. Once it mixed in with the lettuce and other salad ingredients it was perfect. Who eats big spoonfuls of dressing anyway?

I used nearly a whole head of Romaine lettuce torn into bite size pieces. Add croutons, shaved Parmesan cheese, and Caesar dressing. Add dressing a little at a time and toss. Taste the salad and stop adding dressing when you are happy with the flavors. I topped my salad with a grilled Herbs de Provence crusted chicken breast. A perfect meal to eat while sitting on the deck enjoying the great weather. Enjoy!!!