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Pineapple Vinaigrette Makes To-Die-For Salads

March 13, 2012 | 9 Comments

It’s raining here today and I’m feeling sun-deprived. So how about we make a little pineapple sunshine for our taste buds?

In my constant struggle to get my husband to eat vegetables (according to John, “vegetables kill!” – now you see my challenge), I know my only hope is to make them irresistibly tasty. When it comes to salad, that means making a truly kick-ass salad dressing. I find that most of the store-bought dressings are, well, offensive. Many are made with things I can’t pronounce, and unfortunately so many of the organic ones lack interesting flavors. Blah doesn’t cut it on my dinner table and I doubt it does on yours either. Never fear, my friends. This Pineapple Vinaigrette will make your palate sing! It turns a boring salad into a spectacular feature dish that will have even vegetable-haters begging for more.

I’ve gotta give credit where it’s due: There’s a cool restaurant called Flatbread in Paia, Maui that has the best Pineapple Vinaigrette salad dressing on the planet, but unfortunately they will not share the recipe. Sadly, they were immune to my incessant pleas, tears and attempts at bribery. But by channeling RainMan with my taste buds, I think I was able to successfully deconstruct the dressing, or at least create a reasonable facsimile of it.

I hope you try it today – its sure light up your day with its sunny flavor. If you do give it a go, please let me know what you think!

Pineapple Vinaigrette

1/3 cup pineapple vinegar (I use one from “11 Olives” – it’s a white pineapple balsamic that is to die for. You can get it at http://www.11olives.com)
1.5 tsp tamari (tamari is a mellower version of soy sauce – find it at your grocery store in the soy sauce section)
1 tsp real maple syrup
1 tbsp fresh orange juice
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and pressed through the garlic press
1 tbsp shallots, finely chopped
1/2 cup light oil (such as canola) or flavored olive oil (www.11olives.com has ridiculously tempting flavored oils. The blood orange olive oil goes amazingly well with this dressing – I highly recommend it)
Whisk all the ingredients except the oil. I think it’s best if you can let it sit for two hours to let the flavors fully blossom, and then rewhisk it vigorously. If you don’t want it chunky, run it through a sieve and blend in the oil. Personally, I don’t run it through the sieve since the garlic, ginger and shallots add a lot of flavor over time, but if you don’t want to risk having bits in your salad, by all means sieve it. Enjoy!