Homemade Catalina Salad Dressing

Tomato-based salad dressings are versatile and delicious. We especially love this Homemade Catalina Dressing on our Vegan Taco Salad. Ready in just 5 minutes (literally, I timed myself twice), it’s fast, easy and will leave your tastebuds watering!

A bottle of Kraft is around 3 cups of dressing and costs $2.54.

Homemade Catalina Salad Dressing is >1 cup and costs approx. $1.70.

It’s more expensive than the store-bought dressing that inspired it… except it’s made with healthier and higher-quality ingredients such as organic tomatoes (they’re on the Dirty Dozen list, so eat organic whenever you can) acids and oils. The homemade version also excludes the refined sugars, preservatives and dyes. Well worth the 5-minute effort!

Tomatoes

The redness of tomatoes (as well as in watermelon, papaya, red grapefruits, and guava) comes from a carotenoid called Lycopene. Lycopene is an antioxidant that totes powerful effects according to this 2018 study:

• antiatherosclerotic – resists the buildup of plaque (from fats, cholesterol and other substances) in your artery walls which can restrict blood flow
• antioxidant – protects cells from damage which can lead to various diseases
• anti-inflammatory – reduces inflammation, often alleviating pain
• antihypertensive – reduces blood pressure, which when too high can cause strokes and heart attacks
• antiplatelet – prevents blood clots
• anti-apoptotic
• protective endothelial effects
• the ability to improve the metabolic profile
• reduce arterial stiffness

Researchers found that men with the greatest amounts of lycopene in their blood had a 55% lower chance of having a stroke, and a 59% reduction in strokes due to blood clots. Researchers suggest that lycopene, in addition to attacking free radicals, also reduces inflammation and cholesterol, improves immune function, and prevents blood from clotting. That may be key to reducing strokes, which are caused by blockages in blood flow to the brain (from clotting) or by brain blood vessels that burst.

Harvard Health Publishing

Homemade Catalina Salad Dressing

A healthy and homemade version of the classic Catalina salad dressing. Perfect atop a taco salad, or as extra flavour to a variety of other dishes. Enough for a large bowl of taco salad, approx 4 large adult entrées.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Servings: 1 cup

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 156 mL can organic tomato paste
• ¼ cup oil olive, almond, avocado etc.
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp dehydrated chopped onion
• 2 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp maple syrup or honey
• ½ tsp Himalayan sea salt
• ¼ tsp smoked paprika

Method

 

1. Combine all ingredients into either a high-speed blender or high-rimmed bowl and blend with an immersion blender. Blend until it is a purée.
2. Store leftovers in the fridge and consume within 4 days for optimal freshness.

Bon appétit!