Thousand Island?
I always found this particular dressing to be incredibly odd, right down to the name.
What exactly is it? How did it come to be known by such a strange name? Does it ever go off? Is that colour really natural? O_o
Growing up in a household which may possibly have been considered to be the polar opposite of vegan, I noticed a rather strange habit my father had of persistently stocking our pantry to the gills with hos own regular “staples” (none of which ever seemed to consist of anything slightly resembling fruit, veg, or anything one might deem even remotely health-enhancing). Thousand Island dressing was one of such obsessively hoarded items, though I never quite understood why…
What -WAS- that stuff?
I recall having tasted some of it once or twice before eventually becoming fully vegan… Weird.
I also read the label. Gross. Truly, seriously bad ingredients. People really eat this?
One may also note my mention of this item having been stocked in the pantry, as opposed to larder or refrigerator. That junk must likely have been completely laden with preservatives, as it took ages for him to go through his “stash” and the pantry would always be full of the stuff. Yikes!
Although I’m not altogether certain that he would actually bother to try the version I’ve come up with to use with specialty items (such as the sauce layer for my raw/vegan reuben pizza ), I thought I might make a post of it anyway. Perhaps if my mother were willing/able to sneak some into their refrigerator at home (hint, hint, Mum 😉 )…
In any case, this is a relatively simple concoction which (if memory serves correctly) tastes very similar to the genuine article–only much better since it’s actually fresh and free of chemicals, preservatives, animal extracts, etc.
The abundance of natural antioxidants and plant-based Omega fatty acids derived from whole food sources also makes it far more beneficial to the body’s natural healing process. Perhaps it should actually be called:
Healthy Island Dressing!
…or should that actually be Vegan Island Dressing? 😀
For this recipe you will need the following:
- 1 cup raw/vegan hempseed “mayonnaise”
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup soaked sundried tomatoes (alt. ½ cup raw ketchup or far less ‘Solar Scorch’ raw chili sauce–soon announced as a ready-made item for sale)
- ½ Tbsp coconut nectar
- ¼ cup raw pickle relish (made using the recipe shared w/email subscribers for “raw refrigerator pickles”)
- Freshly grated horseradish root (optional–dried may also suffice)
- ¼ cup finely chopped scallions
- 2 Tbsp. organic capers, chopped (optional)
- 2 tsp Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar
- Celtic sea salt to taste
Instructions for preparation:
- Combine all ingredients in appropriately sized bowl
- Whisk together until all elements well incorporated
- Serve as desired
- Refrigerate any unused portion (best when used within 2 weeks)
- Enjoy in excellent health!
Raw & Vegan Thousand Island Dressing
In closing, I would like to offer very sincere thanks to all who followed along with these posts as part of my special Feast Day of St. Patrick series, leading up to completion of the aforementioned raw/vegan gluten/grain-free reuben pizza formulation. I truly enjoyed presenting this project as a whole, and sincerely hope that you have enjoyed having shared this journey together.
Until next time, may peace be with you! ♡Ⓥ★
