Lower Fat Vinaigrette Recipe

Lower Fat Vinaigrette Recipe Sproxno PT10M PT10M Dressing vinaigrette, dressing, salad dressing, salad, healthy, lower fat, vinegar, olive oil

This is a lower fat version of a classic red wine vinaigrette recipe I like to use.

This time of the year I get to enjoy fresh greens straight out of the garden. Salads are great. They provide you with vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

Choosing a salad over other side dishes can also help reduce caloric intake but it doesn't take much to turn a good salad bad.  Adding high fat items like cheese or adding too much dressing increases the calorie density of your average salad tremendously.

Did you know that 2 tablespoons of olive oil have almost as many calories as 3 heads of romaine lettuce?

Olive oil is considered a good fat and some of the vitamins provided in salads are fat soluble but I wanted to try to cut down the calories so I came up with a vinaigrette recipe that is lower in fat.

Oil To Vinegar Ratio

The normal ratio of oil to vinegar in a traditional vinaigrette is 3 or 4 parts olive oil to 1 part vinegar. Anything less than 2 parts oil to 1 part vinegar and the mixture will have a hard time forming an emulsion.

The emulsion is an important feature of the vinaigrette. Oil is viscous and will cling to your salad ingredients. Vinegar is thinner and will roll right off onto the bottom of your bowl. Creating a thick emulsion of oil and vinegar helps both ingredients coat the salad. The end result is more dressing on your greens, less down your drain.

An emulsifier is an ingredient that makes it easier for the emulsification to occur. Many vinaigrette recipes use an egg as an emulsifier but I don't like the thought of eating raw eggs. Instead I use honey as an emulsifier. It has the added benefit of cutting down on some of the tangy flavor that results from the higher ratio of vinegar.

Information

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Yield: 9 servings

Calories and Macros per serving:

Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein
75	1g	8g	0g

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine or balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Makes about 6 oz or 9 servings.

Directions

Add salt, pepper, oil, honey and vinegar to a container and shake vigorously for a couple of minutes until thoroughly mixed together.
Immediately place in refrigerator.  For the next day, as you go to the fridge for other items, take a minute to shake the vinaigrette to recombine.

After a day or so the emulsion should be stable.

Storage

I've been using personal sized wine bottles for my vinaigrette. They're just over 6 oz in volume. I've been contemplating getting one of these salad dressing shaker bottles instead. Some of them have markings on the side which eliminates the need to use measuring cups. One of these dressing shakers even has built-in portion control.