Alright, Mom, here is the one that you have been asking for.  After trying this dressing, you will never feel the need to order a Thai salad from a restaurant ever again, because you will have the secret.  I can't take credit for this one, and I don't remember where I found it, but I am pretty sure I have made it often enough to memorize all of the ingredients.

Thai Peanut Dressing

4 T. peanut butter
3 T. olive oil
2 T. rice vinegar
2 T. fresh squeezed lime juice
2 T. honey
2 T. brown sugar
1 T. soy sauce
1 clove of garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
1" cube (approx.) of fresh ginger, peeled, chopped into quarters
1/4 t. crushed red pepper
2 T. fresh cilantro leaves

I am pretty sure I remembered everything...  Anyway, put all the ingredients into a super-blender (Vitamix and Blendtec are plenty capable) or food processor and blend until smooth.  Then pour over a large bowl of salad which could happily include any of the following:

chopped kale
chopped cabbage, varying colors
carrots
green onions
bell peppers
cucumbers (cut out the wet seedy part of the cucumber to keep the salad crunchier)
snap peas
toasted almonds
tofu cubes
frozen peas

Toss and enjoy.  Forever.

*Note: this is not a low-calorie salad, but if you use Adams peanut butter you'll probably feel a little bit better about it.  Also, I tried the dressing without the peanut butter (when I ran out) and it still comes out deliciously, just as a spicy ginger-lime dressing.  I highly recommend trying both.

Table of Dressing Contents

This is a mental table that I have been compiling for some time now and I find it endlessly useful when throwing together a quick salad.  While salad dressings can definitely be more involved than this, I find that they all have these basics, and by following the lipid+acid+sweetener formula you can start to experiment with your own combinations and begin adding spices for complementary flavors.

Dressing	Lipid	Acid	Sweetener	Ideal Uses
Honey Lime	1 tbsp olive oil	2 tbsp fresh lime juice	2 tbsp honey	spinach and fruit, garden and corn salads
Honey Mustard	1/4 c. olive oil	2 tbsp spicy mustard	2 tbsp honey	salads with meat and cheese, also pairs well with apples
Creamy Balsamic	1/4 c. mayonnaise	1 tbsp balsamic vinegar	1/4 c. powdered sugar	fruit, nut, and strong cheese combinations
Raspberry Zinger	2 tbsp. olive oil	1 tbsp balsamic vinegar	1/4 c. raspberry jam	especially good with milder fruits, like pears and apples
Zesty Orange	2 tbsp. olive oil	1 tbsp balsamic vinegar	1/4 c. orange juice concentrate	citrus salads, cilantro

Welcome, my dear sisters, visitors, friends, to the virtual kitchen!  We all know that there are few things in this world as powerful as food, and on some days the inspiration of a new recipe shines through the dreariness like iridescent light through raspberry jello.

I am thoroughly stoked about the prospect of sharing recipes on this blog, mostly because I know the things that my sisters make are A)recipes that I would like, with B)ingredients that I can afford and C)a list of instructions that I could take a screen shot of (i.e. not too involved).  Who wouldn't want that?!

If I had to label areas of expertise by author in this blog, it would probably be something like this:

B: gourmet foods, ethnic offerings
K: salads
A: tighter-budget, on-the-go, high protein meals
M: pastries and desserts

Now please, as authors, don't feel limited to your area of expertise.  Obviously one goal of this venture is that we all expand our sphere of comfort cooking.  I guess this information is more precautionary than anything else, like to warn you that if you try a dessert that I posted, it will probably taste a little bit like spinach and have more fiber than your average brownie...

With that disclaimer, please peruse to your palate's pleasure.  :)