Recipes--Scarrots--Etc.

Jill, this post is for you :)
and others out there who want an alternative to the msg/chemical/preservative laden Ranch you buy at the store.

Ranch Dressing:
1 cup of Mayonnaise or 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1/2 cup mayo (I use the buttermilk and mayo combo)
1/2 c. Sour Cream (I use Daisy Light)
1/2 teaspoon dried chives. (I use the ones my neighbor gave me growing in a pot by my back door)
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried dill weed
1/4 tsp garlic powder (Another thing you can do is leave out the garlic powder and salt and just add garlic salt.
1/4 tsp onion powder (I usually leave this out---dear daughter loathes onions.)
1/8 tsp salt. ( I also leave this out)
1/8 tsp ground pepper. ( I always add more)
DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl whisk together the mayo, sour cream, chives, parsley, dill, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving---HA, Who are they kidding? I slap it together and throw it on the table :) Me, plan ahead?
*The great thing about this recipe is you can play around with the spices and jazz it up a bit or down. It tastes great. I do not like the ranch you buy in the store but I'll eat this!
You can also make BLUE CHEESE DRESSING using this recipe.
Add 1 tsp of Worcestershire Sauce and Gorgonzola Cheese. And Voila, there ya go.

I also have a great recipe for Italian Dressing Mix:
Since I have it out I'll pass it along. Oh, we don't use it for salads. I use it to marinade my chicken breasts. It's Yummy!
RECIPE
1 tsp of Garlic Salt
1 Tablespoon of onion powder
1 tablespoon of white sugar (I never put this in and it doesn't seem to make a difference)
2 Tablespoons of dried oregano
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp dried Thyme (I never seem to have this so I don't use this either)
1 teaspoon dried Basil (I always put more Basil)
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon celery salt (never use this either)
2 tablespoons of salt (I skip the two tablespoons and use maybe a half teaspoon of sea salt that I grind)
Directions: Mix all ingredients in small air tight bowl and seal
To Prepare dressings, Whisk together 1/4 cup white vinegar, 2/3 canola oil (I always use Olive Oil), 2 tablespoons water and 2 tablespoons of the dry mix.
To make the marinade I use ALL the dry ingredients and I think I triple the amount of water--oil etc. It is a great marinade!

Hope that helps.
Have a great weekend and I'll let you know how the "Scarrots" go over. I remember one Halloween as a child I got a beautiful apple. I wasn't allowed to eat it----"might be a razor blade in it" I was always excited about fresh fruits and veggies. Yup, I am one of the weird ones.
Blessings
Ami
ps in case you didn't see my facebook post: I bought "Scarrots" to hand out tomorrow night. They are really coolly packaged mini carrots for the holiday. They even came with temporary tattoos. You can see their website here BabyCarrots.com
It says on the back of the bag "There is nothing scarier than veggies on Halloween. Yet this holiday teaches us that kids will stuff their faces with pretty much anything sweet..."
I think it's Great!
Our state got first place in most people with obesity last year. I think of it as doing my small part to help combat it. :)
BTW I loved all the facebook comments. Ya'll are hilarious! Still smiling. I'll let you know if I'll be making scrambled eggs sometime this weekend---omelet party! Ha ha! (That is when/if my house gets egged for handing out carrots :)