Dandelion Vinaigrette

I'm growing an over-abundance of lettuce right now and have been eating salads (made entirely of my garden produce) every night. We typically eat our salads with a simple vinaigrette of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and lemon juice, but Mark told me recently that he was tired of that dressing and asked if I could make a new one. With my freshly seeped Dandelion-Infused Vinegar on hand, I created a light and savory vinaigrette that tastes similar to Italian dressing.

Dandelion Vinaigrette

1/2 cup dandelion-infused vinegar
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1/2 tsp dried fennel greens
1/2 tsp dried dill leaves
1/2 tsp black pepper 
1/4 tsp cayenne powder (optional)
1 tsp dried granulated garlic 
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp mustard
1 1/2 tbsp jelly, jam, or sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp camelina oil
1/3 cup olive oil


To prepare: combine all ingredients, except for the oils, in a bowl and stir briskly with a whisk. While continuing to whisk, add the oils. Continue to whisk for another minute to create an emulsion (rather than have the oil and vinegar separate). If you don't have dandelion vinegar, you can use a combination of dried dandelion leaves and apple cider vinegar (I tried this and the dressing is not quite as good, but still good) or just use plain old apple cider vinegar. I used fennel and dill leaves that I collected from my garden last Summer and dried. If you cannot find dried fennel leaves, perhaps fresh fennel or fennel seeds would work. Camelina oil is a locally produced oil that is typically used as an omega-3 supplement. Instead of taking it daily by spoon, adding it to salad dressing is much more palatable. Also, I use a homemade whole-grain mustard (bulk mustard seeds purchased from Mountain Rose Herbs), but any type of mustard would do.

Go pick some dandelions and enjoy!