Salad dressing

I was introduced to the green goddess dressing when I worked with chef Vince Battista back at Union pizzeria in Evanston. Vince told me it was an old American classic that he loved and wanted to revive it.

'Sure' I said and then happily grabbed the recipe and began knocking it up for the nights service.
To say I was impressed would be an understatement! That glorious, creamy, herb dressing was sensational and I think I ate a whole bib lettuce on my own that night, drenched in the silky green sauce.

Since leaving the States I have only made it once more. When I made it at work a few months back I think there was a rough and tumble to see who could lick the bowl, it's that good!. The reason I haven't made it on a regular basis is the fact that it is chock-a-blocka full of fat! Don't let the oodles of herbs make you believe it is 'good' for you. We all know mayo mixed with fully loaded sour cream loves to sit on our thighs and stay there!

After craving something smooth and delicious this evening, I decided to see if I could make a yummy low fat version of the goddess, just so I could make it on a regular basis. When I pulled out the container of low fat sour cream (I can't taste the difference to the fully loaded stuff?), Alex was right by my side begging to help with dinner- the kid LOVES sour cream, he'd eat it straight out of the container if he knew I wasn't looking.
Lacking in the herb department this evening I decided to make it completely with basil as I have it in large amounts and there is only so much pesto one family can eat!

 I plonked all the ingredients into a bowl, Alex grabbed the stick blender and giggled with glee as the dressing swirled around- it was yummy! SO yummy in fact that Alex pretty much made a meal of it and ate more lettuce than I have ever seen him devour in one sitting.

If you are looking for a quick, yummy and reasonably healthy alternative to ranch dressing or the goddess itself then do as I did and experiment or just try the one below. If I knew I was going to make it, I would of bought more herbs to mix through (like dill, chives and parsley), but that will have to wait for next time.


Basil and sour cream dressing
3-4 tablespoons light sour cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon warm water
4 basil leaves, roughly chopped
good pinch of salt and pepper

Place all ingredients into blender and mix until smooth and well combined.
Dressing should be quite runny.