Recipe: Shaken Lemon, Dijon + Garlic Vinaigrette

Evidently, it’s pretty tough to get jazzed about salad dressing. Unless, of course, it’s in a cute little jar with a cute little label, and you can celebrate having made it without a DROP of olive oil landing on your clothes. (Which is quite the feat, given that 80% of my wardrobe is tainted by oil stains. How chic!)

The jar is so vital to this recipe that it may as well be an ingredient. I cannot stress enough how satisfying it is to throw a few ingredients into a jar, seal the lid (tightly, please), give it a couple of vigorous shakes, then marvel at the creamy, thick vinaigrette that has formed. As my girl Ina would say, ‘How easy is that?!’ (Mind you, Ina would probably have a member of her gaytourage shaking the jar, but I digress.)

Not only is the dressing made without dirtying a bowl/whisk/etc, but it’s all set to store in the fridge. I like to whip up a batch in the beginning of the week, then dress salads made up of whatever I have laying around. In this case: baby arugula, sliced radishes, and toasted walnuts. Not too shabby.

Now go give those bingo wings a workout and shake up some vinaigrette!

Notes

-I use empty roasted red pepper jars. Any empty, glass condiment jar will do. 

-The classic ratio for vinaigrettes is 3:1 (oil to acid, or in this case, lemon juice). Adjust as needed to suit your tastes.

-Speaking of tastes, taste as you go! You can always add more of any of these ingredients until you find the perfect balance.

-If dressing solidifies in fridge, remove the lid and microwave for about 10 seconds.

Ingredients

Extra virgin olive oil (~1/2 cup)           

Fresh lemon juice (from ~2 lemons)

Lemon zest (from ~1 lemon)

1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and grated

Dijon mustard (~1 tsp)

Coarse-ground mustard (~2 tsp)

Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

-In a jar, combine olive oil, lemon juice + zest, grated garlic, and mustard.

-Seal jar and shake to until dressing is emulsified. (It will thicken and turn a pale yellow color.)

-Add salt and pepper, shake jar again, taste, and adjust seasoning as needed.

-Use immediately or store jar in fridge for about 1 week. Always shake before using.