One way to jazz up your salads is with a kick-a$$ salad dressing. I first whipped up this Creamy Basil Jalapeño Dressing on a warm summer day when basil was plentiful. But it’s so delicious, I’m going to be eating it year-round. Plus- it takes only about five minutes to make! Win.
Honestly, I suggest making a double batch of this recipe and adding it into your weekly meal prep rotation. It’s not only great on salads, it works to dress up buddha bowls or as a fun party dip.
Hemp Hearts Create A Creamy Salad Dressing
An ingredient in this dressing that you might not be super familiar with is hemp hearts (also called hemp seeds). Hemp hearts are great for creating a base for any salad dressing that you want to be creamy, without using dairy. And unlike cashews- which I’ve also used for salad dressings- hemp hearts don’t need to be soaked in advance. They’re very soft and with enough liquid and blender power, can be whipped up into a lovely, creamy base. With a fairly neutral flavor, they can take on pretty much any flavors you want to add, too. For instance, I’ve also used hemp hearts to make ranch dressing.
You can find hemp hearts in your grocery store’s supplements or health food section- they’re usually grouped together with things like chia seeds and flaxseed meal. If you’ve got a bulk foods store nearby, they’re likely to carry hemp hearts too. A tip: always store them in the fridge. That goes for all seeds and nuts, actually, in order to prevent them from going rancid.
You Control the Spice in this dreSsing
Another thing that’s cool about this dressing is that you can control how spicy it is. If you use a whole jalapeño, seeds and all, you’re going to have one heck of a spicy salad dressing! But you’ve got options. Remove the seeds from the pepper or use only half the pepper. And if you can’t find any jalapeños, use a different hot pepper. I have a ton of Thai Bird’s Eye chiles in my fridge right now (thanks to my local farmer’s market), and so I’ll be using those up for quite a while.
Creamy Basil Jalapeño Dressing
Makes about 3/4 cup
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup hemp hearts
1/3 cup plant milk (or water)
1 Lime, juiced (about 2 T)
1/2 of a small jalapeño (or similar hot pepper), seeds removed
1/2 t sea salt
1/2 t garlic powder
A generous handful of basil
DIRECTIONS
In a small blender (I used my Magic Bullet), blend the hemp hearts and plant milk or water until you have a smooth, creamy base.
Next, add the lime juice and blend.
Add the jalapeño and blend to combine. If you’re concerned about the dressing being too spicy, only add a bit of jalapeño, blend, and then taste before you add more. Remember that if you include the pepper’s seeds your dressing will be very spicy.
Add the sea salt and garlic powder. Pulse.
Add the basil and blend to puree (or just pulse a few times if you want a chunkier dressing). There’s no specific amount of basil to use - use as much or as little as you want. More basil will give you more of a basil flavor in the dressing.
