“I actually want to eat my business lady salad!”
In an effort to get back down to my birth weight I am forcing myself to eat a salad everyday. You know the salad I'm talking about. It comes in a big plastic container, it's the size of of a shoe box, it has the most random selection of ingredients (mostly meat and cheeses), drenched in dressing, and cost like $17. I call it the "business lady salad" because all of the hard-working ladies at work like to eat them (and of course I do too). I have started packing my own lunches to save money and to try and make better choices about what I am eating. This dressing has changed my life. I actually look forward to eating my salad everyday. It's a spin on Gwyneth Paltrow's Miso Dressing from her cookbook, A Father's Daughter, (but I added ginger and carrot to it). Here is how I make it.
INGREDIENTS:
2 Tablespoons of grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup of grated carrot
2 Tablespoons of chopped red onion (or shallot)
1/4 cup of white miso paste
1 clove of garlic roughly chopped
2 Tablespoons of soy sauce
2 Tablespoons of rice wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon of sesame oil
1/4 cup of vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons of water
Pinch of salt
Pinch of ground pepper
DIRECTIONS
Step 1: Chop & Grate
Remove the skin from the ginger and grate on a microplane or box grater. Grate the carrot as well. Dice the red onion and garlic. Put everything into the bowl of a food processor.
Step 2: Scoop the Miso
Add the miso paste into the processor. You can find miso paste in most specialty food stores and places like Whole Foods. It’s usually in the refrigerated section.
Step 3: Add the Liquids
Add the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, vegetable oil, and water. Add the pinches of salt and pepper. Pulse until everything is chopped and combined nicely. If it’s too chunky add a bit more water to thin it out.
Step 4: Bottle It Up
Put the dressing into a sealable jar or plastic container. I save the glass containers my cream comes in but you can use whatever you have. It lasts for a couple weeks in the fridge so it's great to make ahead and use all week.
For a salad I toss together some baby greens, sliced scallion, avocado, and peel in some strips of carrot. Dress the salad with this fab dressing and sprinkle on some toasted sesame seeds to finish it off. This dressing is so addicting and this salad is a killer.