A little while after the moms left this morning, I decided to make a batch of Wheatberry Salad (there wasn’t enough quinoa for our dinner!). I had the dressing already made from the quinoa salad, so I decided to just use that–but I was worried it wouldn’t be enough. So I did what I always do: I dug into the top shelf of my fridge, home to condiments, sauces, and jams galore. Hmm, maybe the strawberry-balsamic mostarda? Nah, too sweet. Hoisin? Nope, too Asian. Wait a minute, what’s that… A little bottle of Pom Wonderful pomegranate juice, which the Pom people kindly sent me a few weeks ago. I’d been using them for Fizzy, Frosty, Fruity Freezes and meaning to find a more creative use. Maybe now was the time!
So I poured in a few ounces, and tasted. Not bad, not bad, but the pomegranate wasn’t really showing up yet. Dumped in a bit more. Still needed oomph. In the end, I used a good 1/2 cup, and I must say it made this dressing pretty killer. I’d use it on almost any grain-based salad; since the ratio of oil-to-liquid is heavily in favor of the liquid, it’s too thin for a green salad. I suspect it would do very well with pasta salads–the pasta should soak up the liquid and take on a really nice, fruity-but-not-overpoweringly-sweet taste.
And you know, I have no proof since I haven’t tried it myself (yet), but I’ll bet this would make one heckuva marinade for chicken. I’ll road-test that and get back to you.
Here’s the “recipe,” such as it is:
Pomegranate Salad Dressing
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon whole grain mustard (I used a cranberry-orange mustard, just because I had it)
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1/2 cup pomegranate juice
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
Put all the ingredients into a small container with an air-tight seal, and shake. This’ll hold well in the fridge for a good week, and you double or triple it, I’m quite sure.