Another "Totally Worth It" Recipe - Homemade Ranch Dressing

Despite The Husband's claim that Ranch dressing is the root of all evil, I love Ranch. I love it on everything - my love for ranch doesn't stop with veggies and salads - oh no, that is just the beginning. Ranch lovers around the world know that Ranch is delicious in many more ways - french fries dipped in Ranch? Of course! Ranch on burgers - sure, why not? Bread sticks dipped in Ranch? Yes, please, and go ahead and dip the pizza in Ranch, too. Now, I don't dip everything in Ranch all the time but all of those things mentioned above have certainly happened at some point in time. Are there any other Ranch lovers out there?

Okay, Ranch lovers - listen up! Are you sick of being told that Ranch is the bottom rung of the salad dressing ladder? Do you agree that Ranch is the crème de la crème? Well then, try  this recipe from Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman). It's easy and you can even customize it the way you want it - do you like peppercorn ranch or garlic ranch or bacon ranch? Yum yum and yum. I bought a little carton of buttermilk and it was enough for 2 big batches and the first time, I totally forgot to add dill. I thought, hmm - something is missing. The second time I made this recipe, I saw dill and thought - oh that will be good! I didn't have any fresh dill but dried dill made a huge difference in this recipe. I bought one bunch of parsley and one package of chives and they both lasted for 2 batches, also. I used one clove of garlic and the only other thing I did was add more garlic powder on top of that plus some onion powder just to see what that would do. Yum, yum, and yum. The sour cream and mayo are things you would typically have on hand and anything that gets us to eat more vegetables is a good thing, right?

I hope you try Ree's recipe, as shown below, and enjoy your own homemade ranch!

Homemade Ranch Dressing
As posted by Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, who really lives the life, doesn't she? Love her!!
Check out Ree's post because it has great photos and great commentary.


Basic Dressing Base:
1 cup mayonnaise (not miracle whip - yuck!!)
1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup chopped parsley

2 tablespoons chopped chives

1 tablespoon chopped dill

1 finely chopped garlic clove

buttermilk to make the consistency you'd like

salt and pepper to taste

Feel free to add more parsley, chives, dill, pepper or add more ingredients to suit your taste. I typically add more garlic powder to add to the garlic flavor without being too pungent, some onion powder, but also cracked peppercorns or crumbled bacon or other fresh or dry herbs would be a great addition. Try and use fresh herbs if you have them but I think dry herbs will be great, too. I used dry dill, for instance, and I think it has lots of flavor. Dried parsley for me never really tastes like much, though.

I hope you enjoy this salad dressing of champions! Not every salad dressing has to be a vinaigrette!!