2013 – Gluten Free Living

Blueberry Vinaigrette is a delightful dressing consisting of sunflower seed oil and blueberry balsamic vinegar with chia seeds, fresh blueberries, lemon zest, green onion and honey that makes this dressing sing! The blueberries and honey sweeten and thicken this dressing. When it’s processed in your blender or Vitamix it has a lot of body, rather than being thin and watery. Besides all that, it’s a very healthy salad dressing that’s gluten free, vegan, and fairly easy to make, too. Blueberry Vinaigrette is also super quick to make. It takes about 5 minutes to make. I call that quick.

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I’m always looking for healthy salad dressings without sugar, high fructose corn syrup, MSG, soy products (which are 95% GMO in this country), and other fillers that are toxic for the body. Because it’s really hard to find any salad dressing product that doesn’t have some kind of preservative, I’ve switched to making my own salad dressings most of the time. Or, I use plain oil and vinegar.

I’ve started adding chia seeds to Greek yogurt every morning for breakfast and thought it would be helpful to throw some in this dressing too. Chia seeds have Omega 3 fatty acids and are supposed to be helpful in lowering high blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides. Chia seeds look like poppy seeds. I find them in the same section of health food stores with gluten free flours and grains.

Bob’s Red Mill, which carries so much of that kind of product, also carries chia seeds. I buy them by the bag and then store them in old wheat germ jars in the refrigerator. Then, I sprinkle them on oatmeal or add to yogurt. If you don’t keep chia seeds on hand and don’t want to invest in them, then substitute poppy seeds for the chia seeds in the dressing.

If you are looking for healthy, fresh, low calorie salad dressings with good oils than Blueberry Vinaigrette fits the bill. I found the blueberry balsamic vinaigrette on close out at a local H-E-B grocery store. But any wine or fruit vinegar would probably work. This thick dressing goes especially well with salads where you would normally use a sweeter poppy seed dressing. It’s especially good in tossed salads with fruit.

When I first posted this recipe in May of 2013, I thought later that I might be able to improve on my original dressing. I used olive oil the first go around and a lot of seasonings that are better suited to a Greek dressing. The blueberry balsamic vinegar was very strong and can easily overpower a sensitive palate, so I decided to have another go at this dressing.

This time (February 2015), I substituted a gentler Sunflower Seed oil for the olive oil. (Avocado oil will also work). I backed off on the vinegar and increased the honey substantially to off-set any overwhelming sense of balsamic vinegar. I removed all the seasonings from the original salad dressing and this time I used fresh lemon zest for flavoring and fresh blueberries to sweeten and thicken the dressing. I kept the chia seeds and green onion and decided to give it a go.

I loved the dressing this time. It’s very thick because of all the blueberries. The flavors are more subtle and the oil and vinegar don’t overpower the rest of the ingredients. Blueberry Vinaigrette has a delightful fruity taste that makes this dressing wonderful over tossed salads that have fruit, nuts and cheese in the ingredients.

I served Blueberry Vinaigrette with my Spinach and Fruit Salad and Poppy Seed Dressing but minus the poppy seed dressing! We also had Quick Sourdough Bread and Roasted Lemon Chicken with Potatoes and Tomatoes when we had company over a couple of weeks ago. I also reshot the pictures since the consistency of this salad dressing has changed completely. Enjoy.

Blueberry Vinaigrette goes well with any kind of salad. I served it the first time with Spring Mix with Berries, Glazed Pecans, and Feta Cheese. I also served it with one of my favorite breadmaker recipes, Oatmeal Nut Bread. The second time I made this dressing I served it with Spinach and Fruit Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing and Quick Sourdough Bread.

Blueberry Vinaigrette is marvelous in fruity salads. 

Blueberry Vinaigrette is very thick due to using fresh blueberries.

This is a fantastic salad dressing for company or holiday dinners too.

Here’s what I did.

I used these ingredients.

Measure out all of your ingredients and place in blender.

I didn’t want my Vitamix to pulverize the ingredients (especially the blueberries), so I pulsed the mix off and on for about 15-20 seconds. I tasted it, added a little more honey and pulsed it again for about 5-10 seconds.

Pour Blueberry Vinaigrette over top of your favorite salad. I love eating salad with homebaked bread.

Blueberry Vinaigrette is truly healthy, low calorie gluten free, and vegan.

You can substitute wine vinegars or fruit vinegars if you are unable to find the blueberry balsamic vinegar.

Fresh blueberries make this vinaigrette sing!

Here’s the recipe.

BLUEBERRY VINAIGRETTE

(my own concoction)

Blueberry Vinaigrette

Teresa Ambra

Blueberry Vinaigrette is absolutely fantastic. This thick, luscious blueberry salad dressing uses only wholesome ingredients. The recipe is healthy, low calorie, gluten free and vegan. It's terrific over top of tossed salads with fruit. Wonderful to serve for company or holiday dinners especially if you enjoy blueberries.

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Course Salads and Salad Dressings, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 24

Calories 113 kcal

Equipment

• 1 blender
• 1 sharp knife to cut vegetables
• 1 lemon zester or grater
• measuring cups
• measuring spoons

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup avocado oil
• 1/4 cup blueberry balsamic vinegar
• 2 tsp. chia seeds or substitute poppy seeds
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt or kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1/2 cup honey or granulated sugar
• 6 oz. fresh blueberries
• 1/2 tsp. fresh lemon zest
• 1 green onion sliced

Instructions

 

• Put all the ingredients in a blender.
• Blend or pulse about 15 seconds to emulsify.
• Drizzle over salad. Makes about 3 cups salad dressing.

Notes

NOTE: If you want a really sweet dressing, increase the honey to 2/3 to ¾ cup.

 

NOTE: This particular brand of vinegar is very tart and strong, that’s why more honey is used in this recipe than in most for these proportions of oil and vinegar.

 

NOTE: Olive oil really does not work well for this dressing. It overpowers everything else. My preferred oil to use in this recipe is avocado oil.

 

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

 

Nutrition

Calories: 113kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 0.2gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.04gSodium: 41mgPotassium: 16mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 9IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 5mgIron: 0.1mg

Keyword blueberries, gluten free, salad dressing

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

If you’re looking for a tasty, healthy, wholesome vinaigrette, than consider making up a batch of my Blueberry Vinaigrette.

If you want a sweeter dressing, add more honey or substitute sugar. However, I found that the addition of fresh blueberries in this dressing made it plenty sweet enough.

If you enjoy blueberries, you’ll love Blueberry Vinaigrette.

One last look……

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Healthy Orange Balsamic Salad Dressing

Healthy Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing

Blueberry Vinaigrette

Teresa Ambra

Blueberry Vinaigrette is absolutely fantastic. This thick, luscious blueberry salad dressing uses only wholesome ingredients. The recipe is healthy, low calorie, gluten free and vegan. It’s terrific over top of tossed salads with fruit. Wonderful to serve for company or holiday dinners especially if you enjoy blueberries.

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Course Salads and Salad Dressings, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 24

Calories 113 kcal

Equipment

• 1 blender
• 1 sharp knife to cut vegetables
• 1 lemon zester or grater
• measuring cups
• measuring spoons

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup avocado oil
• 1/4 cup blueberry balsamic vinegar
• 2 tsp. chia seeds or substitute poppy seeds
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt or kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1/2 cup honey or granulated sugar
• 6 oz. fresh blueberries
• 1/2 tsp. fresh lemon zest
• 1 green onion sliced

Instructions

 

• Put all the ingredients in a blender.
• Blend or pulse about 15 seconds to emulsify.
• Drizzle over salad. Makes about 3 cups salad dressing.

Notes

NOTE: If you want a really sweet dressing, increase the honey to 2/3 to ¾ cup.

 

NOTE: This particular brand of vinegar is very tart and strong, that’s why more honey is used in this recipe than in most for these proportions of oil and vinegar.

 

NOTE: Olive oil really does not work well for this dressing. It overpowers everything else. My preferred oil to use in this recipe is avocado oil.

 

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

 

Nutrition

Calories: 113kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 0.2gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.04gSodium: 41mgPotassium: 16mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 9IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 5mgIron: 0.1mg

Keyword blueberries, gluten free, salad dressing

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!