Poppy Seed Dressing

Break out the blender and call your momma! This is ONE. GOOD. DRESSING.

We were having some good friends over for a Saturday night dinner – just enough folk to gather comfortably around the dining room table for a meal and conversation. I settled on Lasagna a la Française for the main course – though this time I added crushed red pepper to the tomato sauce and used sautéed fresh spinach with sliced garlic for the veggie layer. YUM!

I served the tomato sauce on the side, deferring to Rich’s current diet restrictions; and the search for a low(ish) acidic  side dish led me to a REALLY GOOD salad and a TERRIFIC dressing from Nora La Croix via allrecipes.com.

INGREDIENTS
•1/2 cup white sugar
•1/2 cup lemon juice
(about 2 lemons – or, I used 1 lemon and diluted with 1/4 cup water, which cut the acidity)
•2 tsp diced onion
•1 tsp Dijon mustard
•1/2 tsp salt
•2/3 cup canola oil
•1 tbsp poppy seeds

Combine sugar, lemon juice, onion, mustard, and salt in a blender and  process until well combined.

With machine still running, add oil in a slow, steady stream until mixture is thick and smooth. Add poppy seeds, and process just a few seconds more to mix.

YUM!

OK – if you want to make the salad; core, slice and cube an apple and a red pear, and toss with a bit of the dressing to keep ‘em from turning brown.

When ready to serve, toss the apple and pear mixture in a large bowl with chopped Romaine, cashews, mebbe a bit of thinly sliced red onion, freshly grated Swiss cheese, and additional dressing (OR, if you have folk at your table with nut aversions or allergies – pass the cashews as a side dish option).

My only regret was that I had made just enough for six servings, and Bob would have really liked a second helping.