Basil Vinaigrette

I first had basil vinaigrette at a college dining hall, of all places. I couldn't quite figure out why I liked the dressing on their green salad so much but I was so impressed with it I had to ask the staff what it was because the menu didn't say. Basil vinaigrette, they told me. I should have known. I love basil.

I immediately went looking for a recipe and found this one. I don't normally have this much basil on hand, but went to the farmer's market to get some. The other time I unexpectedly had a lot left in my garden box at the end of the summer and picked it all to make this.

Notes:

• I like putting this on spring mix + cherry tomatoes + small fresh mozzarella balls for a caprese-inspired type of salad but it's great on just greens, too.
• Make sure to pick as much of the stem off the leaves as possible because it can give the dressing an unpleasantly bitter flavor.
• I have made this twice now and have used a slightly smaller amount of red onion instead of shallot in a pinch.
• It starts to oxidize after a bit so make sure to eat it within 3-5 days before it turns brown and gross.

Verdict: This turned out a bit thicker and more tart than the basil vinaigrette I was trying to recreate but it's still quite good. Debating adding more olive oil to it to make it a little looser, maybe decreasing the vinegar a little too.

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RECIPE: Basil Vinaigrette