Poppy seed dressing

A few days ago, when I posted this recipe, I decided to add a “Recipes” category to this blog.  Despite the fact that I have plenty of “Food” posts, recipes are lacking because I rarely use them.  Most dinners are a little of this, a touch of that, add lots of garlic, and voilà — dinner (and leftovers for lunch)!

However, we follow recipes from time to time.  Using a little magic math, I reconstructed the recipe for our favorite store-bought poppy seed dressing.  I’m sure the make would not give me the recipe, but all I needed was the ingredient list and nutrition information.  Yes, I do feel rather clever!

Poppy Seed Dressing

6 oz. canola or olive oil (I use a combination)
3 oz. water
2 oz. white vinegar
1 oz. apple cider vinegar
7 T. sugar
1 t. salt
1 T. finely chopped onion
1/2 t. mustard powder
1/4 t. xanthan gum
1 T. poppy seeds

Place all ingredients EXCEPT for oil and poppy seeds in a blender.  While the blender is running, slowly add the oil.  When thoroughly mixed, turn off the blender and stir in the poppy seeds by hand.

Notes: Xanthan gum is a thickener — you can find it in health food stores.  If you omit it, the dressing will still taste fine, but it will be thinner.  If you don’t have a blender, you can still make this dressing.  Just place all of the ingredients in a jar and shake thoroughly (will work best if you put the lid on first).

Serving suggestion: Our favorite salad with this dressing consists of arugula (or mixed greens that contain arugula), roasted beets, thinly sliced onions, toasted pecans, and goat cheese.

Rumor has it that eating poppy seeds can produce positive results on drug tests, so I may try to avoid them before my drug test for the new job.