When I finally learned to make delicious oil-free salad dressing, I often missed creamy dressing recipes. My family, for instance, loves Vegan Ranch Dressing. So I figured if I mastered vegan ranch, why not give creamy Italian dressing a try. Creamy Italian dressing is easy to make, and it tastes much better than any Italian dressing with oil and other preservatives.
The more dressings I create, the more ideas I get for creating dips, sauces, and dressings. Even though I make a variety of Italian dressings, I had a specific salad in mind in my new Italian dressing recipe.
Once I tasted my new Italian dressing on my spaghetti salad recipe, I fell in love.
WHY DO I MAKE MY DRESSING INSTEAD OF BUYING DRESSINGS
Although making homemade dressing takes time, I can no longer buy store-bought dressing. Even store-bought, oil-free, creamy Italian dressing is loaded with preservatives and sugar. And, once I started eating homemade salad dressing, the bottled version just didn’t come close to the real deal.
WHAT INGREDIENTS ARE IN CREAMY ITALIAN DRESSING?
Substitute white beans for raw cashews for those who prefer dressings without nuts. It does, however, have a grainier texture. For that reason, I prefer using cashews in my creamy Italian dressing instead. But, to make this recipe friendly for everyone, there is a substitution in the recipe.
- White vinegar
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Raw cashews or white beans for a nut-free option
- Fresh lemon juice
- Maple Syrup
- Garlic
- Onion Powder
- Garlic Powder
- Stone-ground Mustard
- Italian Seasoning
- Water
- Basil (fresh)
- Parsley (fresh)
- Salt and pepper to taste
HOW TO MAKE OIL-FREE CREAMY ITALIAN DRESSING
Another great aspect of this recipe is it all happens in one blender cup, except the fresh basil and parsley.
Then, I chop the parsley and basil separately and stir them into the dressing. Since this recipe can be either a dressing or a dip, if you wish for a thicker dip, reduce the amount of water to ¼ cup instead of ½ cup. The dressing, however, also thickens when placed in the refrigerator.
Additionally, I suggest adding salt and pepper after the flavors develop in the refrigerator. Because people have different diets, I recommend adding salt and pepper to please your tastes.
LOOKING FOR GREAT OIL-FREE DRESSINGS? CHECK IT OUT
- Italian Dressing
- Yogurt Dressing Recipe
- Carrot Ginger Dressing
- Vegan Thousand Island Dressing
- Citrus Dressing for Salads
- Lemon Basil Dressing
- Maple Dijon Dressing
- Vegan Blue Cheese Dressing
- Peanut Thai Dressing
- Ranch Dressing
- Almond Butter Dressing
- Miso Tahini Dressing
- Southwest Dressing
- Vegan French Dressing
Creamy Italian Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ½ cup red wine vinegar
- ½ cup raw cashews or white beans for a nut-free option
- 1 Tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 lemon juiced
- 2 Tablespoons stone-ground mustard
- ½ cup water
- 2 Tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- If you don't have a high-speed, you should soak the cashews overnight.
- You don't need to soak the cashews if you have a quality blender.
- Drain the cashews and add all the ingredients other than the fresh basil and parsley if soaking.
- Blend until smooth.
- Chop the parsley and basil separately, and stir into the dressing
- All dressing thickens in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.
- For a thicker dip, reduce the water to ¼ cup.
Notes
White bean alternative to cashews:
Substitute raw cashews with ¾ cup white beans (drained and rinsed).Nutrition
Hi! My name is Kathy, I am a retired high school English teacher & vegan enthusiast and blogger. My entire blog is fully plant-based vegan. I truly believe what we eat & how we live determines our health & the preservation of our planet! 🙂
Anonymous
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Erin
Hi! How long will this keep?
Kathy Carmichael
Hi Erin, it will last 5 days in the refrigerator...if it lasts that long 🙂
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Jo
Sounds like a great dressing for potato salad. I am wondering though if you meant to have so much garlic included in it? It is so similar to the nut-free Italian Dressing, maybe the 3 cloves of minced garlic got left in by mistake.
Kathy Carmichael
Hi Jo, the three garlic cloves are included in the recipe card at the bottom. If you don't like that much garlic, I suggest you add a clove at a time, taste it, and then add more. Similar to spices, always add slowly to meet your individual taste preference. I hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂