Rosemary Balsamic Vinagrette & Giveaway

I have been making a salad everyday for my lunch and this is my new favorite dressing. I am a big fan of homemade salad dressings. They are so much better than anything you can buy, free of all the preservatives and unnatural ingredients and cheaper to boot! Just a win win win situations! I have a beautiful rosemary plant that is going crazy. I am telling you, everything grows so beautifully here in Tennessee. I had to baby my herbs in Utah but not here. I planted a basil plant, rosemary and thyme a few weeks ago and they have all exploded into big beautiful plants! I have already made a nice batch of Pesto with all the basil leaves. I can't wait to have a garden here! That is in the plans for next year
Anyway, back to this dressing... the combination of Rosemary and Balsamic Vinegar is awesome! Lately I have been trying to cut some calories here and there (swimsuit season, ya know?!)so I have been substituting half the oil for water. It is quite runny that way but it still tastes great! Either way, I hope you enjoy!

Rosemary Balsamic Vinaigrette
submitted by Melanie

Printable here

1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic
1 Tb fresh rosemary leaves (or 1/2 tsp dry)
2 Tb water
1/2 t coarse salt (such as Kosher)
1/4 tsp ground pepper
Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. With machine running, add 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil in a think stream, blend until creamy.

My favorite Salad Combinations with this dressing:
Option #1
Romaine lettuce and Spinach
Toasted pecans
feta cheese
Pear slices

Option #2
Romaine and spinach
Grape Tomatoes
Pine nuts
Fresh Mozzarella
Sweet Red Pepper
Cucumber
Croutons
Chicken (opt)

**Now for the Giveaway**

I know that many of you have a SLR camera like me and so I thought you might be interested in this... I was recently introduced to some awesome camera strap covers at Shey [B] and she has offered to give a $25 gift certificate to one of our readers. Please go to her website here and tell us which one you would like.

We will use trusty random.org to pick the lucky person and make the announcement on Saturday Morning!