Faux Caesar Salad Dressing

This is a blog post about a salad dressing that is oil-free, vegan and gluten-free. I call it 'faux Caesar' but honestly I haven't had Caesar salad dressing in years so I'll need someone who has to give me feedback on the title. One thing that sort of annoys me about some 'healthy living' food products on the market is that it seems like we're all expected to need fake versions of products containing meat, dairy, etc. Like we all woke up one day and said, "You know what? Instead of eating real turkey, we should eat a fake version made out of soy and fillers. Because health and animals." That said, while running around finding substitutes for all the things I used to eat has never ranked too high on my list, every now and again it's really nice to have an alternative option made out of ingredients you recognize.

While this is used primarily in my home as a salad dressing, it's an all around condiment, so get creative. It's good on just about everything savory. One thing I don't recommend? Keeping it in a jar next to your jar of almond milk and accidentally pouring it on an unsuspecting person's oatmeal that they were taking to work with them. Finding out two hours later that you're eating oatmeal with berries, walnuts, and Caesar Salad dressing is probably a terrible surprise. Ever have a similar kitchen mix-up? Tell me about it in the comments, it'll probably make me feel better.

What You Need:

1/3 cup cashews (raw or salted, I've used both)

1/4 cup vinegar (Any! I used white this time)

1/4 cup lemon juice

Two tablespoons Tamari or Amino Acids

One tbsp ground mustard

One tablespoon honey

One teaspoon of Miso concentrate (I use Miso & Easy!)

2-4 cloves of garlic (depends on your tolerance!)

2-4 tablespoons of water (Optional/depends)

Directions:

You may want to soak your cashews first. I usually don't since I just throw it all in the Vitamix, but if your blender isn't as high powered soaking will help all of this get ground up evenly.

• Put everything in the blender without the water

• Blend on high until everything is mixed together

• Check out the consistency and add 1-2 tablespoons of water. Keep in mind this thickens up as it sits in the fridge, so there is no harm in adding too much water!

This makes a lot of dressing, but it will keep in the fridge for about a week. I think you'll find yourself always having it in stock if you like it, as it is very versatile! As I said above, it does thicken, and it also separates, so you will need to stir or shake it before every use, and don't get turned off by what it looks like when it's separated--just mix and use!

**Quick note: I was trying to figure out how to take a photo of this stuff that was sort of appetizing because honestly it's not the prettiest. Nobody eats salad with rolled up julienned zucchini as a salad dressing holder in real life. And if you do, we probably won't get along.