The recipe for a dried spice mixture that creates an instant ranch dressing mix is circulating around the internet, and I am glad!  Store bought packets often contain unnecessary ingredients like MSG, food coloring  or preservatives.  Making your own dressing mix is so easy and it is a great way to save money!

Living Food is Better

I’ve included a dry variation for those who don’t have access to plants, but fresh herbs, including a common “weed”, wild onion, are so health giving and delicious that you’re sure to want to use them again once you’ve tried this living recipe.   You get the benefits of eating cultured foods like sour cream and whey while substituting the dangerous oils found in commercial salad dressing.

Ranch Dressing Alive!

1 ½ cups Sour Cream (Homemade is best, recipe here.  Store-bought Daisy Sour Cream is cultured, not processed and makes a great alternative to homemade)

1 garlic clove (substitute 1 tsp garlic powder or more to taste)

¼ c loosely packed fresh parsley or dill (or 1 Tablespoon or more of dried dill, oregano, thyme, rosemary, parsley, etc.)

¼ c loosely packed chopped wild onions* or chives (or 1 ½ tsp dried chives)

1 tsp sea salt or to taste

1 tsp black pepper (fresh ground is best)

¼ c Buttermilk (or substitute 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice or vinegar )

Enough liquid to make it the desired consistency – using whey, whole milk, or cream (preferably raw)

Combine all ingredients.  Blend.

Do you have an area in your lawn filled dark green patches of wild onions? If you don’t spray your lawn with chemicals and you’re not too close to polluting traffic, send the kids out to pick some wild onions for your ranch dressing! It’s so fascinating; you’re eating weeds!