Condiments are serious business in the Midwest. Growing up in Upstate New York we basically just ate everything with ketchup. I should have considered myself warned, having lived with an Ohioan for 3 years before moving west. And in hindsight, there were signs. We always had mustard in the fridge, for one.
But nothing could prepare me for the crazy obsession that the Midwest has with ranch dressing.
My first job upon moving here for grad school was at a grilled cheese restaurant. About 90% of tables I served there requested at least one side of ranch dressing. And most happily paid an extra 50 cents for it. For a while I avoided ranch dressing, refusing to give in to its cosmic pull. Being vegan didn’t help as all of the recipes I had at the time were fussy or made gallons at once. I was still clinging to my Northeastern roots and couldn’t commit to consuming it in such quantities.
Nine years later and I *might* finally understand. I’ve made three batches of this green ranch dressing - a recipe I made by accident the first time. The allure is that it goes with everything. Nachos? Yup. Pasta salad? Sure. Garden salad? Of course. Tofu wings? Duh.
Here’s what I love about this recipe:
tastes like the garden (herby)
fast & fuss-free (no prep or plan ahead)
keeps well in the fridge
goes with everything
nutty flavor
Give it a try:
In case you missed it: Homegrown Issue 9 is available now for a promotional price. The digital issue includes a special digital bundle. It includes coupons to a ton of homestead shops. I contributed a guide on summer succession planting and a worksheet available with digital purchases.
The three c’s:
Current Read: The Elements of Cadence series by Rebecca Ross. Gosh, I have loved this. I’m almost done with book two. The writing is so beautiful. I love that the magic is tied to the elements of the earth. One of the main themes is that we all must work together - humans and nature - to create and maintain balance and health in our world. If the earth is not healthy, we will not be healthy.
Cautionary Tale: Don’t climb UP slides. I have a feeling it will be many years until my cautionary tales don’t feature a child of mine. Rory suffered a minor fracture in her arm, just above her elbow, last week during a slide accident that occurred while climbing UP a slide. She told me tonight that she doesn’t want to take her cast off, so seems like she’s doing just fine!
Craveable Eats: Other than this green ranch…I found a dewberry (European invasive blackberry cousin) patch behind our house. They’re juicy and sweet and super sour. They’re so delicious. We’re also using our mulberries to make a shrub - keep your eye on instagram for that.