Creamy Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

Welcome to my current hyper-fixation meal! I make a salad using this dressing at least twice a week and I love to make a big batch to keep in the fridge for no-fuss lunches and dinners on busy days.

This recipe came about because I had a random craving for a taco salad one night a few weeks ago. I was playing around with a dressing using greek yogurt to impart a bit more protein into the meal (and to make for a super creamy consistency). After playing with different levels of acid, sweetness, heat, etc, the perfect dressing was born.

I love it because it’s so fresh + bright and comes together so quickly. You can fully customize the ingredients of the salad you serve it with — I love to mix it up with different veggies and proteins (listed below in the recipe!).

I hope you give this a try and let me know what you think!

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup greek yogurt (any milk fat % works)

• 1/2 of a bunch of cilantro

• Juice of 4 limes

• 1/3 of a jalapeño 

• 2 tsp honey

• Pinch of kosher salt (to taste)

• 1/2 cup avocado oil

METHOD

1. Add the greek yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeño, honey and salt to a tall glass container that’s wide enough to fit an immersion blender and tall enough so that the mixture won’t splatter all over you. Quart size deli containers work well for this too.

2. Use an immersion blender to mix the ingredients until they are smooth and a homogenous mixture forms.

3. Stream in the avocado oil with the immersion blender on and blend until the mixture has thickened and all of the oil has been added.

4. Taste and add additional salt, as needed.

5. Serve tossed in a salad — I love it with romaine lettuce, radish, cucumber, red bell pepper, pickled red onions, crushed up tortilla chips and either shredded rotisserie chicken, grilled steak or grilled shrimp.

NOTES

• Immersion Blender — if you don’t have one of these guys at home, you can use a blender or food processor. Just follow the same process of blending everything except for the oil and then very slowly stream in the oil to ensure you end up with a thick, emulsified dressing.