Looking for an oil-free vegan salad dressing? Try this magical applesauce vinaigrette recipe. Easy, vegan, gluten-free, and healthy!
Cooking and baking are sometimes described as science… but I like to think of it more like magic. Because sometimes an idea unfolds and is realized in food form with a way that is almost mysterious, yet very exciting!
This week this magic happened with an idea for an oil-free salad dressing. I actually had this concept for a fat-free vinaigrette years ago, when I was writing Vive le Vegan.
I toyed with it, but left it behind at the time. As recipe developers, we sometimes do this. Either the notion becomes further developed down the road as our cooking evolves, or it never materialized.
Why Applesauce?
The idea that was with me for years and manifested this week is… wait for it… using applesauce in an oil-free salad dressing.
Sounds a little strange at first, right? But, think about the qualities of applesauce.
It has viscosity and moisture (the very things that help replace fat in baking) so why not aid a vinaigrette as well?
Initially the combination didn’t quite come together for me in terms of flavor balance.
After a few rounds of testing this week – ta-dah! The magic happened.
The applesauce blends and helps emulsify the other ingredients so that you have a thicker, more rich and full-bodied textured dressing.
Magical Oil-Free Vegan Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp mild miso ex: chickpea miso or brown rice miso
- 3/4 – 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup or more to sweeten to taste if desired
- 1/4 tsp rounded sea salt (or more to taste)
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Using an immersion blender and deep cup (if using a blender, you may need to double the batch for enough blending volume), combine all ingredients, whizzing through until very smooth.
- Taste, and if you’d like a little sweeter add another teaspoon or so of maple syrup.
- Season to taste with additional salt and pepper as well.
- If you’d like a thinner dressing, simply add a couple of teaspoons of water and blend through again.
What are your favorite vinaigrette and salad dressing ingredients?
Note: This oil-free salad dressing recipe is now in Plant-Powered Families.
Update: My OIL-FREE salad dressings now here!
Lisa Silver says
Wow! Just…WOW! I made this for a beet, apple, walnut salad with greens. OMG! It’s perfect! I will be using this on everything from now on. I would have never thought, “applesauce, let’s put applesauce in the dressing.” But it works wonderfully. If anybody is skeptical, just try it. You’ll be amazed!
Dreena says
Yay! Just wonderful to read, thank you Lisa. Sometimes odd combinations can work magically!
Eleanora M Hopkins says
What is the calorie count on this recipe? I have to watch my calorie intake carefully.
Dreena says
Hi Eleanora, I don’t have it but you can enter the ingredients to compute per tbsp here: http://nutritiondata.self.com/
Barbara says
Wow, this is amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Dee Dee morris says
My hubby and I are on the Engine 2 – 28 day challenge and finding an oil free dressing was soooo difficult! Until tonight. I made eggplant lasagna rolls and while they were baking a searched for an easy, quick dressing to throw together for a salad. Find this and although I would have normally questioned the ingredients, I just went for it, substituting where I had to (no dijon mustard so I used regular yellow…, no miso so I just omitted it) After not having a salad for 2 1/2 weeks, I was happy as ever to have a salad AND that the dressing was yummy!! Hubby wouldn’t try it so I devoured the salad, commenting as I ate. When I had nothing but a bit of dressing left in the bowl, he dipped his finger into it and then again and again, finally stating “okay, I could eat that, did you make more?” Yay! E2 win, hubby win, health win!!!
AMANDA says
IF I MADE A DOUBLE OR TRIPLE BATCH, HOW LONG WILL THIS STAY GOOD IN THE FRIDGE?
THANKS!
Dreena says
It keeps well up to a week or so.