Tangerine Vinaigrette

A citrus dressing is not always the appropriate fit for every meal. But when it is, this recipe is my go-to citrus dressing. It may not be the right fit for a side green salad either, depending on the ingredients with which you compose your salad, i.e., I wouldn't use it with tomatoes, fennel, onions, or many of the other myriad vegetables you might use in a salad. The flavor of the citrus is just so BRIGHT in this salad, it needs to stand almost alone. I have no doubt you'll like it if you try it.

This came from a cooking class Cherrie and I took at Our House, South County, the cooking school in San Juan Capistrano, which we frequent with some regularity. Actually, I found this exact recipe on RecipeZaar, so perhaps the cooking school found it there too. Unless you have an extensive citrus garden, you may have to plan ahead to make it since it requires limes, lemons and tangerines. When tangerines are in season, freeze some juice in ice cube trays, then put them in a double plastic zip bag, so you'll have it on hand. I've also made this with blood oranges instead of tangerines. I almost always have shallots on hand, and y'all know how fond I am of garlic, so that always exists in my pantry too. I usually use Splenda as the sweetener instead of sugar, although I didn't include it in the recipe. We have a Valencia orange tree on our slope, and a Meyer lemon tree, so I freeze juice and zest every year, so I don't waste much of the fruit.

Tangerine Vinaigrette

Servings: 16 Preparation Time 10 minutes

1 tablespoon garlic -- minced

1 tablespoon shallot -- minced

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon grated orange peel

4 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon grated lime rind

10 tablespoons tangerine juice -- fresh

1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice -- fresh

2 tablespoons sugar

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine all the ingredients except the oil and whisk to blend and dissolve the sugar. Slowly whisk in the oil to emulsify and thicken. This is better if made the day before using, and it will keep for 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Yield: 2 cups

Serving Ideas : Makes a lovely dressing for a salad of baby spinach, caramelized walnuts, sliced fresh oranges and pomegranate seeds.

Per Serving 105 Calories; 10g Fat (85.1% calories from fat); trace Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; trace Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

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