Put down that bottled dressing, full of thickeners and stabilizers and preservatives, and make your own raspberry balsamic vinaigrette. My recipe is bursting with fresh raspberries and great flavor! Doesn’t that sound better?
Even though it snowed twice (twice!!) in the past week, and that’s more than we got in February, it is finally feeling like spring around here. The crocuses are blooming, shoots are coming up all over, and the sun is so nice and warm. All this spring-ness has me thinking about eating lighter, having more salads, enjoying all sorts of spring colors.
Which brings me to the subject of this post. (See how I snuck that in there? 😉 ) The fresh flavors and spring colors of my raspberry vinaigrette are perfect for the warmer days and dinners on the deck which are coming up so soon.
In fact, I would say this salad dressing would be amazing for Mother’s Day (the color would be so pretty for a Mother’s Day brunch or lunch!), for Memorial Day, or for a patriotic salad for Fourth of July. Oooh, or since you can make the dressing with frozen berries, you could be enjoying raspberry vinaigrette in the middle of winter too while you are dreaming of warmer days.
How to make raspberry balsamic vinaigrette
This recipe really couldn’t be simpler!
You will need a blender and a fine mesh strainer and about 5 minutes of your time. There is not even anything to chop.
Okay, here we go. Take your raspberries, balsamic, honey, mustard, orange juice, and salt and blend them up. Then, with the blender running, add the olive oil until the dressing is thick and smooth. Then pass it through the strainer and you are done! You can probably make this faster than it took me to type it up.
Just don’t forget to strain it! Unless you like raspberry seeds in your teeth. Then don’t strain it. 🙂
Ideas for using raspberry vinaigrette
- Have it over crispy pan-seared salmon
- Toss the dressing with a chicken salad or over grilled chicken
- Drizzle it on a mixed green salad or a spinach salad
Raspberry vinaigrette would also be great tossed with grilled fruit (like peaches) or over goat cheese as an appetizer or with a warm brie. There are so many ideas! Basically anywhere you want a sweet and spicy dressing.
Other blended fruit salad dressings:
- Blender Citrus Vinaigrette (included in my recipe for Winter Citrus Salad with Mixed Greens)
- Blueberry Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
If you try my recipe for raspberry balsamic vinaigrette, I would love to hear from you in the comments with your experience and rating! You can connect with me by subscribing to my emails (see the form in the sidebar or below the recipe card), liking my FACEBOOK page, or by following me on PINTEREST.
– Happy Eating, Annemarie
Fresh Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup fresh raspberries, or thawed frozen raspberries
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 1 tsp honey, or agave
- 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Add the raspberries, vinegar, orange juice, honey, mustard, and salt to a blend. Pulse the blender until the dressing is mostly pureed. Then turn the blender to on and pour in the olive oil with it running.
- Set a fine mesh strainer over a bowl. Pour the dressing into the strainer and work it through. Discard the seeds. Taste the dressing and add more salt if needed.
- The dressing can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for 3-4 days.
erna king says
Is the raspberry dressing thick?
justalittlebitofbacon says
Yes, it is quite thick.