BYIf you guys haven’t noticed, Sara and I both have things that we just seem to love whipping up in the kitchen. Chances are if it is crafty or involves beans, cumin, and lime juice, it’s going to come from Sara. Me? I love making up soups and salad dressings (although not together because that would be super weird).
Apparently, however, I have some commitment phobia when it comes to salad dressing. I’ll frequently say something is my new favorite salad dressing. And I’m not lying–I really do love all those others at the time. But then I’ll whip up something new and exciting and I’m filled with shame and guilt as I sit in my corner eating my Greek salad, thinking about him and him.
This dressing is actually a Greekified version of our Italian dressing. I marinated some chicken in it for Friday’s recipe and it was awesome, but you could kick it up another notch and do the chicken and veggie skewers with this dressing instead, or even substitute lamb on the skewers for a more traditional Greek twist.
You’ll need a lot of the same ingredients–white vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, seasoning salt, red pepper flakes, and sugar. You’ll also need some oregano in addition to the Italian (or Greek) seasoning, and then feta cheese instead of Parmesan.
Even though so many of the ingredients are similar, it’s a totally different dressing and it will change your life. By the way, have I ever told you I may be prone to exaggeration? This is not one of those times.
Combine the lemon juice and vinegar vinegar in the jar of a blender. Add the salt, seasoning salt, sugar, pepper, red pepper, and garlic.
Blend it all up until it’s smooth and then, while the blender is running, add the oil in a steady stream. Whisk in the Italian or Greek seasoning and oregano
and feta (you can actually blend some of the feta in for a slightly creamier dressing).
If possible, chill the dressing for at least an hour before serving, but it will still be awesome if you serve it immediately. I have a fabulous dinner recipe scheduled for Friday that uses this dressing, but in the meantime, here are a few ways you could use this dressing:
*Make a big salad with crisp Romaine, pepperoncinis, kalamata or black olives, tomatoes, homemade croutons, peeled and sliced cucumbers, and crumbled feta.
*Use it as a marinade for chicken, flank steak, lamb, and/or vegetables before grilling.
*Toss it in with some cooked pasta and your favorite veggies for a Greek pasta salad.
No matter what you do, have a happy and safe Memorial Day! Sara and I will be heading out of town this week on a fun little adventure with some of our blogging buddies, so if we’re a little slow getting to emails, just know that we still love y’all!
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A delicious and flavorful homemade dressing that’s perfect for salads, pasta salads, or as a marinade for chicken, beef, or lamb.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (this will not make the dressing spicy, just flavorful)
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
- 1 cup oil (I recommend a neutral oil, but if you’re using this as a marinade, I wouldn’t use really nice olive oil; save that for use on salads)
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 3/4 teaspoon Greek or Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon dry oregano
Instructions
- In the jar of a blender, combine all the ingredients through the garlic. Blend until smooth. While the blender is running, add the oil in a steady stream. Turn off the blender and add the feta and pulse the blender a few times (more if you want a creamier consistency). Whisk in the herbs. If possible, refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. Use as a marinade for chicken, lamb, or flank steak or drizzle over a Greek salad.
Mmmm, this sounds really good! I think I’ll give it a whirl and try marinating in chicken as well.
I love feta, so I definitely have to try this one!
Of course you just posted a greek version because on Friday I was searching & searching your site for a greek-style marinade for chicken to use along with the greek couscous salad in the cookbook. And here it is, right on schedule! The italian version of this dressing just might be my favorite marinade so I’m sure this will be just as perfect!! Looking forward to trying this on the salad too … OH MY! Amazing Timing, can’t wait. Thanks so much!
Yum, that looks so good. The recipe I use is similar but I never thought of blending it all together with my immersion blender! Thanks for the awesome idea, I can’t wait to try that next time 🙂
This looks amazing!
Also…you said y’all…that makes me giggle!
I love how you describe this as a Greekified Italian dressing. That sounds GOOD!
I have been jonesing for some Greek food….. I’ll take this. 🙂 Hope your Memorial Day weekend was good!
I’ve been in the mood for Greek-style pasta salad and have been meaning to look around for a fabulous dressing to go with it, but hadn’t gotten around to it just yet. What do you know…once in a while, procrastination does pay off! Sounds delicious. 🙂
I am so excited to try this for dinner tonight! Unfortunately I couldn’t find feta at our local supermarket. Argh. So…I’m going to substitute with greek yogurt. Probably won’t be near as yummy as the feta, but hopefully it’s edible.
This looks like a terrific go-to recipe! So versatile. Thanks for sharing!
You all made me look good yesterday. Had some ladies over for lunch and made greek salad with grilled chicken that I had marinated in this dressing. One lady asked if it would be rude to lick her plate! It was a HUGE hit. Thanks!
I a newbie to bestbites and the dressings are my favorite. This was the best one yet– it was AMAZING!!
Kate – I love this dressing! It’s so easy, light and has great flavor. My 8 yr old and 3yr old both loved it – this will be a new standard dressing at our house. I’m excited to try it as a marinade. Thanks for the great recipe!
Can you use olive oil instead of Canola oil in this, or might that over power it? I am hearing how bad vegetable oils are for you and am tring to do dressings without them. Thanks!
Jen, there’s actually a reason we use Canola Oil in many of our recipes- it’s one of the best oils in terms of your health! Of all the normal cooking oils, canola has the lowest amount of saturated fat (even lower than olive oil) and it’s high in the *healthy* unsaturated fats. It’s actually great for your heart. For more info you can read here:
http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/canola-oil
Unfortunately there is much evidence to the contrary. Although it is low in saturated fat, and high in omega 3 & 6, it is also made from a genetically modified plant, which, contrary to your article, is a decedent of the rape seed, which was not fit for human consumption. And, about 82 percent of canola oil is genetically modified. I have read good, but also a lot of questionable information, and think I just prefer to stick with oil from sources I am familiar with. I think this dressing sounds wonderful, though, so I will try it with a cold pressed, extra-virgin olive oil. Thanks!
I was wondering the same thing about olive oil. Have you tried it that way yet? How did it turn out?
i tried it with olive oil, it’s great. Olive oil is always a good salad dressing base. I’ll try canola oil as soon as I have a chance to get some.
I LOVE your blog! Thanks soo much for all your yummy recipes! But I have to agree with Jen on this one! Stay away from Canola oil!!!?
Oh.My.Yum! I made this the other night. If it wasn’t considered bad to eat dressing with a spoon, I might have done that…I may have used my fingers to wipe the edges of the blender, and then lick them off…I may have licked my plate. Did I mention this was delicious???!!! I marinated chicken in this and then made a salad with the chicken, mixed greens, cucumber, tomatoes, Greek olives, and croutons. I couldn’t get enough of it! Thank you!
This greek dressing was PHENOMENAL! Probably the best I’ve ever had. I marinated some chicken with it and then had a greek salad the next day. It was so good that I bought a Costco load of lemons and feta cheese to make tons more!
Excellent! We really enjoyed this on salad with chicken I had marinated in it and grilled. A wonderful dinner! Thanks! Kate, keep these dressings coming. I will never purchase poppy seed dressing again. I only make yours now.
A couple friends and I do a Freezer-Cooking day together once a month, and we loved your Italian Turkey Meatballs so much, that we’re doing that one again this month and we keep adding more of your recipes to our plan 🙂 Your Asian BBQ Chicken and this Greek Salad recipe are also on the agenda for this month! We plan to marinate chicken breasts in this recipe to freeze and we’re making extra to use as salad dressing. 🙂 Mouth is watering already!
can you PLEASSSSSSSE tell me where you got your hand blender?!?! i have two cuisinart hand blenders given as gifts and both times they told me they tried to find me a blue one!
Oh, my gosh, it’s so gorgeous! I got it at Amazon!
http://astore.amazon.com/oubebi-20/detail/B003WIZ99E
Tried this on cucumber and sprout salad last week when I made Greek Penne and chicken…..it was GREAT! and super easy ~
This is delicious! I made it to mix with a couscous salad (couscous, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, and feta). Yum!
this looks amazingly tasty! Is there any way I can lighten it up just a bit? Like for instance, could I do half water, half oil? I LOVE greek salads and this just looks perfect!
Hmmmm…I’ve never tried it. I probably wouldn’t do just straight water–maybe vegetable broth? Give it a shot and let us know how it goes! 🙂
Um. This is so good I almost wanted to drink it.
Simply a party for my taste buds! This is incredible, creamy and tasty. Every ingredient is spot on right. Yum! So simple to make & I like that!
Love this dressing/ marinade/ dip/ nectar-of-the-salad&condiment Gods!! ; ) I’ve been trying to keep track of calories lately (still made this dressing as is- full fat feta and all!) and entered the ingredients into a recipe calorie counter… Just FYI if anyone else is interested… **NB: I did use veg. oil instead as I had no canola oil on hand** (…but good luck trying to stick to just ONE Tbsp…This stuff is delicious!)
For 1 Tbsp serv: 70 cal; 7.5g total fat; 1.9mg cholesterol; 56.4mg sodium; 6.5mg potassium; 1g carbs; 0.4g sugars; 0.8g protein; Vit. A 0.5%; Vit C 2.1%; Calcium 1.4%
Ok, ever since you posted this recipe it has been my dressing of choice! I just love it! Sometimes I make it with the feta and sometimes I make it with Greek yogurt and it is divine both ways (just really depends on my mood, creamy or lumpy). For those who asked before, I usually do it with olive oil for 3 reasons: 1 – olive oil is just more Greek-like, 2 – I love olives and I find the taste added to this dressing to be amazing, 3 – I just really don’t like the taste of canola (this is just me personally though). So if you are wondering if it is nice with olive oil, it is divine! I have also tried it using white wine vinegar and balsamic white and the only difference is that it is slightly more tangy with the balsamic. What I love most about this recipe is the very slight kick from the red pepper with the lemon twist. Plus it is so versatile that I have pretty much kept this on hand in the fridge (when you make it with the Greek yogurt and let it chill over night it is thick and creamy and perfect for dipping veggies in). Anyway, hands down a fab recipe that deserves praises and rewards! xo
Kate! I have a favourite dressing – it is called Goddess and it is only at Trader Joe’s. Have you tried it? Can you suggest how to make it or something similar? It is a really unique flavour and as I am living abroad now I really miss it!
Thanks!
We’ve never tried it, sorry!
Yum! Yum! Yum! Seriously Yum! Tangy, creamy and just a little hint of sweet. This is definitely a keeper. Thank you for sharing.
do you know how to make garlic paste?
this is sooo soo good ! i also used olive oil and i made the amount you have here ; after nearly eating salad for bfast , lunch, i went back to double it so that i can use it as a mairnade. i love this dressing !
No joke. This recipe is off the hook!
Have you ladies made a version of Mezzetta Pepperoncini and Feta sandwich spread….I can’t seem to find it any more and it’s FREEKIN’ delicious!