From Scratch Ranch Mix

I'm from the Midwest, where the majority of the population has an addiction to a certain condiment. It's not mayonnaise, although that is debatable. Have you ever seen that scene in How I Met Your Mother where Marshall's mom gives Lily the Eriksen family recipe for Seven-Layer Salad? The so-called salad contains 16 cups of mayo, along with Funyuns and Gummy Bears. It always makes me giggle, because I have definitely had my fair share of Midwestern salads that contain candy (Snickers) and chips (Doritos).

I digress -- no, I was not referring to mayo. Actually, I'm talking about ranch dressing. You know, that wonderful bottle of Hidden Valley amazingness that magically goes with almost everything? I'm not going to be one of those health food snobs who pretends to not like it. It's delicious. And I have missed it immensely. But, no longer! I can now have my ranch flavor and eat it too, and so can you!

It's so cheap and easy to make from scratch, out of stuff you probably have in your pantry already. No more mystery ingredients and the taste of MSG and overly salty, stale spices. You can use this mix to flavor preeeetty much anything. Roasted chicken, meatloaf, stove-top popcorn, Toasted Ranch Almonds, fried chicken, sunflower seeds, Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken, hamburgers, garlic bread, homemade chicken nuggets, turkey burgers, kale chips, boiled, steamed, roasted, and grilled veggies... you are only limited by your imagination. Ok, enough chit chat!

This recipe is an adaptation/combination from Simply Scratch and Gimme Some Oven (is that not the best food blog name you've ever heard??). Mine fits perfectly in a cute little half pint Mason jar.

From Scratch Ranch Mix

5 tablespoons parsley, divided
4 teaspoons dried dill, divided
5 teaspoons garlic powder
3 teaspoons onion powder
3 teaspoons dried onion flakes
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Set aside divided parsley and dill. Combine all other ingredients in a food processor, and grind until fine. Remove from processor and place in storage container; stir in remaining parsley and dill.

To make ranch dressing: Add 3 teaspoons mix to 1/3 cup mayo and 1/3 cup buttermilk. Stir to combine. Add more buttermilk to achieve desired consistency if needed.

Printer friendly recipe