lemon vinaigrette

the lemon vinaigrette

dressing was so good the last time I made it a little over a month ago. It isn’t always that good — good, but not like that one. I am particular about salad dressing because a) I didn’t eat much salad most of my life and b) I don’t buy dressings. Sometimes, a little orange juice and craisins are enough. I have graduated to sometimes using flavor-infused balsamic vinegar: lemon-infused specifically.

I made the vinaigrette again last night, but it wasn’t as good — too vinegary, not as lemony as I (or my husband) would like it. Think it also has a tad too much water. But what I did do was measure. I measured what I wanted to put in, but by doing so, I either added or subtracted from what I felt like putting in so that it would “measure” to a tsp or a tbsp or whatever so I could have a recipe. That is not how I usually make this dressing. Although, if it works next time, when I adjust it, I won’t have to experiment anymore, fun as it is — but sometimes I just want to make it. Although (again), I know from experience that many of the dishes I cook have no set measurements. And they always work (except rice, of course).

I also make a balsamic dressing, which is reciped (I know it’s not a verb, but it’s what I want to write), so it’s easy to replicate, like a rubber stamp. 😃

The lemon one is just magic. I will shift the lemon-to-vinegar ratio next time. I made a ton of it (figuratively speaking), so it won’t be for a while. Some foods are best created by the hands and heart, leaving the mind behind. Or somewhere.

lemon

  • white wine vinegar
  • fresh lemon juice
  • corn oil
  • water as needed
  • honey
  • mustard (Grey Poupon style)
  • salt + pepper

For the magic one (oof, could jump to “magic” things but will leave that for another time), I substituted regular vinegar for the wine vinegar (because we didn’t have it) and agave for the honey (because I felt like it).

balsamic

  • olive oil
  • balsamic vinegar (use a middle-of-the-road balsamic)
  • sugar
  • garlic powder
  • salt + pepper

i have an electronic recipe book

where I have accumulated recipes I’ve had for decades, new ones, and some from the web that I like. A Scrivener concoction. I’m hoping it will replace the ring-bound contraption that’s falling apart, but I like the contraption. At least the best recipes are in two places now.

the kitchen above is at The Breakers mansion in newport, ri

It is a favorite of mine, should see the others, but this one is nostalgic in some way to me. Not because it is old, they all are, and out-of-date, over-the-top (lots of hyphenation). It has been dear to me for a long time, then to boot, my first “real” date with my husband was in Newport: dinner at a wonderful place (that also, now that I drink them, makes yummy French 75s)— a drive to a fudge shop (sigh!) — and then experiencing something I had wanted to do for years: attend a concert at the Newport Music Festival — mainly classical music performed in the mansions. And yes, we went to a performance at The Breakers. I have yet to tire of photographing the place. It whispers summer to me regardless of the time of year.

The photo has nothing to do with anything, but I don’t have a lemon photograph and didn’t feel like searching for one. The tour at the mansion concludes in the kitchen, and I leave there with the same thought every time: if I could cook here once …