Pomegranate Vinaigrette Dressing

Not only are homemade dressings like this pomegranate vinaigrette easy to make, but they are also much healthier and more tasty than bottled dressings. You can recreate any dressing you love with much healthier ingredients. No need for artificial dyes or flavors, processed ingredients, trans fats, or dairy products. This pomegranate vinaigrette comes together with just a handful of simple ingredients, so you only taste what you include in the recipe.

This dressing requires pomegranate juice, but most bottled pomegranate juice contains added sugars and is processed. You can easily make your own pomegranate juice by blending pomegranate arils. Pour the blended mixture through a fine mesh strainer and you have fresh pomegranate juice! You will need about one cup of pomegranate arils to achieve the amount of juice necessary for the vinaigrette. Pomegranates are rich in antioxidants, vitamin C, and offer a uniquely sweet-tart flavor. To enhance the sweetness, though, we included a touch of grade A maple syrup.

Pomegranate is a seasonal fruit during late fall and early winter. The sweet-tart flavor lends itself to salads that contain spinach, arugula, raw pecans, pears, berries, or raw walnuts. Even though this is a vinaigrette, there is no vinegar on the ingredient list. Freshly squeezed lemon juice and orange juice take the place of the vinegar, giving you that acidic not you crave from a vinaigrette dressing.