Creamy Feta Vinaigrette

How was everyone’s New Years? Ours was wonderful. We had a delicious prime rib dinner at home, let the boys stay up until midnight with us, and celebrated the ball dropping in Times Square with “party makers” as Andrew calls them. No wild parties and Jell-O shooters anymore, but that’s just not the folks that we are these days!

One of my resolutions is continue to make things from scratch, and to do-it-myself as much as possible. I’ve long been making my salad dressings at home, but one I hadn’t mastered yet was a creamy Greek-style dressing. I always served my Greek salads with a balsamic vinaigrette, but since becoming mildly addicted to Panera’s turkey sandwich and Greek salad this pregnancy – I knew I had to come up with a recipe for that style of dressing on my own.

I played around with it a bit, and this variation is what I settled on. It couldn’t be easier – a base of buttermilk, feta, and Greek yogurt. Threw in some red wine vinegar and fresh lemon juice for a little acidity, some fresh garlic and dried herbs to punch up the flavor, then added some olive oil and a bit of water to thin it out a bit and round out the flavors. It turned out wonderful, right on the money as to what I was aiming for.

I make a batch up, stick it in the fridge, and use it for our salads all week long. With a little additional olive oil, I think it would also make a wonderful marinade for chicken as well, to top the salad with if you wanted a more substantial meal. This one is definitely a keeper, and one that I’ll be making over and over again. Definitely a great recipe to start off the new year on the right foot!