Dressing Up

I will admit it. I always have a bottle of Hidden Valley in my fridge. There are some things that just scream to be dipped in this sinful, creamy concoction. It seems that whenever I give in to a junk food craving, calories, fat, and overall good taste are of no consideration. I must squirt Ranch dressing beside a healthy glob of ketchup (Heinz only, please) on my plate for dipping my steak fries, cheese balls, onion rings, and even chicken strips. Forget the extra marinara, I even dip my pepperoni pizza in Ranch. (Yes. You can slap me.)

However, when I fill my plate with salad greens, I usually want something more refined. I turn my nose up at the idea of the powdered herb flavors from that creamy, white dressing. It's good enough for my fried junk, but for my real food, I want a real dressing. I become a snob. I want to dress up my salad and showcase the fresh veggies. I don't want to disguise my greens under a snowy gush from the bottle in the fridge.

It's easy to dress up even a simple salad of baby greens and boiled eggs with a tangy, mustardy vinaigrette. The dressing wakes up the delicate flavors of the veggies instead of coating and weighing them down. It is all so fresh, the way I want my salads to be. My inner salad dressing snob is happy with Baby Greens and Mustard Vinaigrette On My Plate.

Baby Greens and Mustard Vinaigrette

4 hard cooked eggs
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
10 ounces mixed baby greens

Peel and chop eggs.
Combine next 5 ingredients and process until smooth with a hand held blender (or shake in a jar).
Place lettuce in a bowl, add dressing and eggs, and toss gently. (Serves 6)