This sweet basil dressing with lemon and honey is the perfect vinaigrette for a summer salad. The sweetness from the honey pairs perfectly with the gentle acidity of the lemon and apple cider vinegar. Together, they bring out the fresh, herby flavour of basil, creating a vinaigrette that just screams summer! Add a touch of garlic for an extra punch, and you’ve got a fresh, vibrant, homemade sauce that will elevate any salad!
Why you will love this recipe
When summer comes around, we crave fresh, light salads. But I often get in the rut of making the same thing over and over again. This sweet basil dressing helps us to escape our boring salad routine! With its mix of sweetness, acidity and freshness from the basil and garlic, I find it is the perfect sauce for salads containing fruit. It goes especially well with my Quinoa Salad Recipe with strawberries.
Ingredients Needed to Make Sweet Basil Dressing with Lemon and Honey
- 30g fresh basil
- 180 ml oil (see below)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 small clove of garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp honey
Ingredients Tips and Substitutions
Basil
I love to use fresh basil in this recipe, but you can also mix it up and try adding other fresh herbs too. I think that coriander and chives would work very well alongside the basil.
Oil
I am very careful about the oils I use these days, since hearing about some of the extraction processes used to make seed oil. I prefer to use avocado oil, which has a neutral taste, but I also like to use a little bit of pressed rapeseed (canola) oil for its nutrition (it has a good balance of omega-3 and omega-6). However, I only buy organic rapeseed (canola) oil that has been mechanically pressed with no chemical treatment at all. I generally use about 130 ml avocado oil and 50 ml rapeseed (canola oil)
Another possibility would be to use olive oil, which goes well in this dressing, although the flavour is stronger.
Lemon
Make sure you use freshly squeezed lemon juice – bottled lemon juice does not have the same flavour.
Garlic
I prefer to use fresh garlic in this recipe, but you could substitute for 1/2-1 tsp garlic powder. If you use fresh garlic, you should use up your vinaigrette within 5 days.
How to Make Sweet Basil Dressing with Lemon and Honey
This recipe couldn’t be easier! Simply place all of the ingredients in a jam jar and blend with an immersion blender until smooth.
Tip: Make sure to crush the garlic before blending the dressing.
This vinaigrette is best used immediately but you can store it in an air-tight container for up to 5 days in the fridge.
Serving Suggestions For this Sweet Basil Dressing
My favourite salad to serve this vinaigrette with is this Quinoa Salad Recipe with strawberries, but it would also go very well with other salads containing fruit, such as a strawberry and spinach salad with toasted almonds, or a peach and cucumber salad with feta. You could also try it with a chicken and pasta salad with cherry tomatoes. The key is to run with your imagination and experiment – you can’t really go wrong with this recipe!
Let me know in the comments how you used this dressing!
FAQs
Can I make this basil dressing ahead of time?
While this dressing is best served immediately, you can make it ahead of time and keep it in the fridge. For best results, use within a couple of hours.
How long does this vinaigrette keep in the fridge?
This dressing will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge, but it is best used immediately.
Is this dressing suitable for a vegan diet?
This recipe contains honey and is therefore unsuitable for a vegan diet. However, if you wish, you can substitute the honey for maple syrup.
Is this dressing gluten-free?
Yes, this dressing is gluten-free.
Is this dressing dairy-free?
Yes, this recipe is 100% dairy-free.
Can I use this basil dressing as a marinade?
Absolutely, this dressing makes a great marinade for chicken.
How can I adjust the sweetness or acidity to taste?
Simply increase or decrease the amount of honey to alter the sweetness or the amount of vinegar to change the acidity.
Let me know in the comments below how you used this sweet basil dressing. Don’t forget to take a picture and tag me on social media @candleinthekitchen, I love seeing your creations!
Sweet Basil Dressing with Lemon and Honey
Ingredients
- 30 g fresh basil
- 180 ml oil see below
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 small clove of garlic crushed
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp honey
Instructions
- This recipe couldn’t be easier! Simply place all of the ingredients in a jam jar and blend with an immersion blender until smooth.
- Tip: Make sure to crush the garlic before blending the dressing.
- This vinaigrette is best used immediately but you can store it in an air-tight container for up to 5 days in the fridge.
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