a recipe that will change your life

Have you ever been out at a restaurant or at a friend's for dinner and you've had something that you can tell is homemade that you usually buy off a shelf and you think to yourself, 'I can make this.  I should make this.'?  Yeah, I have, too.  One of those somethings' for me is ranch dressing.  Creamy, herby, buttermilky, ranch dressing.  Yum.  I'm surprised I've never attempted made-from-scratch ranch dressing until now.  Discovering this recipe has changed my world.  I'm not kidding.  You see, I try to avoid bottled dressings, although some of them can be really good with limited preservatives.  I try to avoid foods that have a lot of ingredients i can't pronounce, and don't recognize.  Having a thing with prepared dressings, you would think I would have quite the repertoire of homemade salad dressings up my sleeve.  Oh contra ire.  I tend to make the same (good) basic red wine vinaigrette all the time.  It's my go-to dressing.  It's simple and quick to make, I always have the few necessary ingredients on hand, etc.  However, my husband gets tired of it, so lately I've been trying to mix it up a bit.  And then I found this recipe.  I had my doubts that it would really be THAT good, but it really IS that good.  And in fact it tasted better the next day, and the next day, and the next day.  In fact, I made BBQ chicken pizza last night for dinner and the ranch dressing made a delicious compliment to the pizza!  It will last for awhile in your fridge.  So, mix it up a bit if you tend to get in a rut with whatever dressing you favor and try this one!  you won't be disappointed!


Homemade Ranch Dressing
Pioneer Woman

1 clove garlic
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 c. real mayonnaise (I used light mayo)
1/2 c. sour cream (I used light sour cream)
1/4 c. Italian flat-leaf parsley, minced
2 T. fresh dill, minced
1 T. fresh chives, minced
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. white vinegar
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
Dash hot sauce
1/4-1/2 c. buttermilk (to achieve desired consistency)


Mince the garlic with a knife and then sprinkle on the salt and mash it into a paste with a fork.

In a bowl, combine the garlic paste, mayonnaise, sour cream, parsley, dill, chives, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, vinegar, paprika, cayenne and hot sauce. Add the buttermilk to desired consistency and mix to combine, tasting frequently and adjusting seasonings as needed. Chill for a couple of hours before serving, thinning with more buttermilk if needed.