I am ready for the weekend and I think Miko is too, he’s been pouting at me for being busy.
Lots of make up cuddles and walks this weekend.
We’ve only had the AeroGarden set up for seven days, but check out the kale growth already!
All of the kale is sprouting like crazy and the herbs are even popping up too.
I will be interested to see how much kale we can get from each little grow pod, some seem really packed with sprouts.
I might just be having too much fun with this peanut powder lately, but I couldn’t resist trying it in a salad dressing too.
I found a peanut ginger dressing recipe online that was loaded with full-fat peanut butter, oil, sugar, and syrup! Dressings shouldn’t have more calories than the salad, especially if they’re empty calories! This version gets it peanut flavor from high-protein peanut powder and sweetness from raisins with a savory kick from ginger and sriracha.
Peanut Ginger Dressing
- ¼ cup peanut powder
- 3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp. tamari
- ¼ cup raisins
- 1” chunk of fresh ginger
- 1 clove of garlic
- dash of sriracha
- ½ cup water, as needed
Place all ingredients into a high speed blender and blend to a smooth and creamy texture. Serve and enjoy! Makes 2-4 servings.
Yes, that’s chopped Lightlife Vegan Smart Dogs in the salad, I was in an interesting mood. They’re hubby’s favorite vegan dog and pretty low cal for the occasional junky hot dog craving. In my defense, there are also home grown sprouts, purple carrots, and organic greens.
And the dressing brought that interesting combo to life for a dinner salad with a spicy, tangy ginger peanut flavor.
It adds a creamy and rich texture.
Ginger and peanut are so great together especially with garlic kick.
Enjoy a tangy, sweet, and savory salad with flavorful and light dressing!
Edie says
Hi Christine,
Love all your posts on your recipes & use your dressings, which are awesome…I feel I must share with you about the vegan smart dogs. I used them a lot, & loved them, but found out one of the ingredients is a chemical, carrageenan, which is lurking in many of our food products. All forms of carrageenan causes all kinds of inflammation. Hope I did not burst your bubble, but I know you are a very conscientious health minded person. You can google carrageenan & will educate you on the side effects of this chemical. Wellness Mama is an excellent source to begin. She does her research on such matters.
I am mostly macrobiotic, but include more salads & fruits in my diet.
I found out 3 or 4 years ago how harmful this chemical can be, so I
hope you are not offended.
Oh, & love your “aero garden!”
I enjoy all your pic’s, recipes, etc.
Happy eating!
Edie
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Hi Edie, thanks for the comment and information. I welcome your opinion on it and I’ve read a lot about carrageenan and avoid it in my regular diet, but maybe a little laid back on products with it here and there. I think that’s great you’re avoiding it completely, did you notice any changes once you eliminated it from your diet?
Linda @ Veganosity says
I love peanuts and ginger in a sauce or dressing. This sounds incredible.
I couldn’t help but notice the comment above about carageenan. I too was freaked out about it until I had a conversation with a food scientist who said that there are two kinds of carageenan, food grade and degraded. Food grade is not the type of carageenan that causes inflammation, it’s the degraded type that’s used in industrial products and non-food products that is bad for us. He said that there is so much hysterical information on the web that people don’t understand or even know that there are two types. Even the EU approves food grade carageenan, and they’re so much stricter than the FDA when it comes to food. Here’s a great link from Follow Your Heart that explains it. http://followyourheart.com/is-carrageenan-safe/
I’m going to post a recipe using their new egg product soon and I’ll explain carageenan further then. I just thought you’d like to read this.
Have fun walking and playing with Miko and Leela this weekend. :)
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Thanks on the dressing!
Great information, thanks! I was freaked out about it too at first and avoided anything with it and read a lot of conflicting information online. Good to know, thanks for the link!
Laura ~ RYG says
I’m not freaked out, try everything once I guess. I too love your aero garden, you must be so proud of your kale! And it’s been on my list for awhile to get some peanut powder but I just haven’t done. I think a visit to Trader Joe’s is in order. And the apple cider vinegar to keep me from getting sick ~ love that stuff! Happy weekend =)
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Thanks on the garden, looking forward to using it as a starter for our outdoor garden too. Peanut powder is a fun treat, nice amount of protein and can make a great low-cal peanut hummus like spread to. Amazon has a couple of varieties of it too that I want to try. True on ACV, I’ve been trying to use it in more recipes.
Edie says
Christine,
Answer to your question on avoiding carrageenan, I really did not pay much attention to any changes in how I was feeling after not using it, as it has been quite a while ago.
I am happy to hear Linda’s response on food grade & the degraded forms of carrageenan, but how can you tell the difference, unless it says so on the product label ? I have not noticed if it says so on any food labels. I will look up the follow your heart link, as I am curious for a need to know more.
Thanks to Linda for her comment. Will help us all.
Hannah says
Great use of that peanut butter powder! I actually got some for review as well, but it’s a different brand and a bit more dessert-focused with a chocolate flavor. Perhaps not the best fit for a dressing… But then again, there are plenty of delicious savory cocoa dishes, so maybe it’s worth a try? ;)
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Thanks and yes on savory chocolate recipes, a local Mexican restaurant makes an amazing savory vegan cocoa mole sauce I adore.
GiGi Eats says
LOL Miko is pisssssssedd! COMMON MOM – I wanna hang out with you too!!
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Poor guy, he does and it’s so sweet! :-)