Italian Dressing 'Mix'


 
S

Steve Petrone

TVWBB Diamond Member
Do you ever get tired of buying the 4 pack good seasonings italian dressing mix? I am.
Who has a good recipe for a dressing mix to add to vinegar and olive oil?
Thanks
 
Try this:

1/4 c marjoram
2 Tbls basil
1 Tbls Greek oregano
1 Tbls onion powder
1 Tbls garlic powder
2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

Mix well. Use about 1 1/2 Tbls mix (or more or less to taste) with 1/4 c balsamic or red wine vinegar and 3/4 c e.v. olive oil. (Or 1/3 c vinegar to 2/3 c oil--your choice.). Add a pinch of sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.
 
Now, I know Kevin will kill me, but I have bought mixes from various sources with excellent results. Penzey's does carry dressing mixes which are excellent. I also have purchased a few from Planter's in KC, MO. They have a raspberry vinaigrette that is awesome.

Kevin, your recipe will help me use up my marjoram I bought in bulk and has been in my freezer for months. I'm gonna whip up a batch now, with an empty cruet and all the ingredients.
 
I like to cook from scratch so I don't buy packaged stuff but there's certainly nothing wrong with it and there are good products out there. Penzey's would be one I'd try were I to go the packaged route. I've never been even slightly disappointed with anything I've bought from them and my purchases go back many years. I probably single-handedly funded the opening of their last store.

On marjoram: I use marjoram second only to thyme as my most used herb. It has a sweetness that I'm quite fond of. If you make your own croutons, toss them with some marjoram just after you've tossed them with your butter or butter/olive oil mix, and before browning. Great on salads and delicious on onion soup. Marjoram doesn't get bitter from cooking too long the way Greek oregano can. It's also a good addition to garlic bread: sprinkle on just before baking (perhaps with a little freshly grated parm), and very nice with tomatoes, along with basil.
 
This is excellent. We had the dressing last nite. Made up a cruet and have the remaining dried mix in my freezer in a jar.
 
I just had one drink-can't believe I missed the oregano! My son mixed up a batch of good seasonings...your recipe will have to wait a day or two.

Can I substute cayenne? How much?
 
I sub cayenne for my clients with diverticulitis or divurticulosis (sp). They can't have any seeds, so the ground pepper of any kind is just fine. Test it, many cayennes are different heat levels.
 
This is an excellent salad dressing. I will lose a very old habit of using 'good' seasonings. Thank you so very much. It is much more rewarding to make than mix from the packet.
 
I love this salad dressing mix, and have made it for clients as well as us. You can really change it around with different vinegars, or a combo of vinegars. One of my faves is sherry wine from Spain. I keep the jar of mix in my freezer.
 
Jane , I have to agree with you. Everytime I used to make the pkg. dressings, I would add a pinch of this of that. This is a very good recipe that you can adapt....
 
I garee with Kevin's commenta about Penzeys - anyone on this board that has not tried them needs to go to their site and order a catalog. Ther have been consistently good for the 7 years I have dealt with them.

And Kevin, thanks for the recipe.

Ray
 
How do you cure "solid" dressing? Using 100% olive oil and storing in the refridge makes the oil solid. I zap it, am I missing something?
 
Nope. That's one way. Just don't go to long. If you nuke it try to do it briefly so it starts thinning some; give it a shake or stir and try to let whatever heat that's now in it migrate and thin the rest. Give it another brief nuke if you need to. You want to avoid cooking it.

If there's time, I often just stick the bottle in the sink with warm water for a bit.
 
I just take it out of the fridge and let it 'rest' for a half hour or so. Shake it and you're good to go. Oh, I probably sound like Rachel Ray!
 
Ran across this yesterday and after checking the spice rack at home found i had:
smoked paprika
toasted granulated onion
and Turkish oregano
Would these throw the taste off?
I have all sorts of dried peppers.
Would Allepo be too smokey?


Paul
 
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