Tuesday, June 3, 2014

La Bou's Creamy Dill Dressing

Let me just say that I have tried to post this recipe for you several times over the last two days and for some reason it never went through and I lost everything I typed. Darn it! Sorry for the delay, but this one will be worth it. Promise!

If you are from the Sacramento area you probably know all about La Bou. If you don't, well, I feel sorry for you. Okay, not really, but kinda. La Bou is a local area bakery and café that has the best salads, soup and sandwiches. I don't go there too often (because I am sure my waistline would not be too happy), but when I do, I always get the same thing - half a house salad and half a turkey sandwich on a croissant. I know a croissant isn't the best thing in the world for you, but someone very smart always remind me, everything in moderation. Even moderation. Someone recently told me they were closing some of their locations. I about cried. Almost. Kinda. Just a bit.

As much as I love what I normally order at La Bou, nothing touches their creamy dill dressing. There is just something about it that makes you have to order it every time you go there. If you've had it, you know exactly what I am talking about. I hadn't thought about La Bou much (the last time I had it was back in December when I was so luckily selected for jury duty!) until a coworker told me she replicated one of their salads that used their creamy dill dressing. She gave me a few ideas on how she made hers so I knew I had to try to make it myself! After a few tries, I was able to darn near replicate their dressing. I couldn't believe it. And the best part, it only take four ingredients - mayo, water, dill and ranch seasoning (I will soon show you how to make this from scratch and without preservatives!). Seriously. Four ingredients to the best darn dressing you'll ever have? Now we're talking! Of course if you are looking to lighten it up a bit, you can always sub the mayo for plain yogurt, but with my recipe, you can have two tablespoons of this deliciousness for just about 60 calories. That's pretty darn good if you ask me. Especially considering most other super yummy dressings are well over 100 calories for just one tablespoon!

If you are a true La Bou lover, then you know the best way to enjoy this dressing is to dip a big piece of crusty bread into it. It's so wrong, but so good. My mouth is filling with saliva just thinking about it. You better get in your kitchen and make this dressing right now. You won't find my fridge without it!

look at all that goodness!

Creamy Dill Dressing


Serving Size = 2 Tablespoons

1/2 cup your favorite mayo
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons dill (I used dried, but you can also use fresh)
2 teaspoons ranch seasoning mix 
Fresh ground pepper, to taste

Add all ingredients into a jar, place the lid on and shake it up. Enjoy this dressing on a salad, with your favorite veggies or even dunk your bread in it!


This recipe can easily be double or tripled for a large crowd!


14 comments:

  1. OMG I love their dill dressing thank you for posting this. You mentioned posting a from scratch recipe where can I find that one?

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  2. Thank you SO much! I moved from the Sacramento area ten years ago and have been dreaming of this dressing ever since. I miss La Bou!!

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  3. HI! Do you know how long it will last in mason jar or tupperware?

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  4. That dill dressing looks so great. I am so glad you shared this recipe! I have been looking for good dill dressings to add to my list of recipes, and this one definitely fits the bill! Can't wait to make it at home.

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  5. Fantastic! I used to live in Citrus Heights and La Bou was my place to go when in Sac. I made this dressing early this morning and tasted it a few minutes ago and you nailed it! It's about as close as you can get without being at La Bou. Thanks a bunch I'm in heaven now lol
    Nathalie

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  6. Yay! I used to go to La Bou twice a week when it was close to my office. Now it's probably once a week, but I also am a giant fan of the dressing. I'm going to try this tomorrow! Tfs

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  7. This is a huge blessing. I moved from Sac to Maine four years ago and this is helping me not miss Sac very, very much! YUM - Now, if I knew how to make those little swiss cheese balls that they put on our salads... LOL

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    1. The little cheese balls are just finely chopped swiss cheese, about 1/8" mini squares. Every time the cheese gets added to a salad it becomes more ball shaped. My best friend used to work at La Bou in Downtown Sac and gave me the scoop on how these were made. Hope this helps.

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  8. Sorry... but I follow directions exacly and this just tastes like mayo, nothing more... I'm going to wait an hour and maybe the taste will change. Said nothing in the directions about waiting though or making it ahead if time.

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  9. I made this, very good but I added some sour cream to give the dill something to grab onto as it just floats to the top. Added more mayo, ranch seasoning, and dill also. Let it sit overnight in the fridge and it was perfect. The dill was evenly distributed.

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  10. The jar of dressing I got from la bou yesterday includes lemon juice (it's on the label)...
    "Mayo,ranch,dill,salt,pepper, and lemon juice"

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  11. I have been craving this since I left sacramento and I’ve been craving it aonmuch I just ordered everything for my dip and incant wait to come back and leave my review I love Al your comments

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  12. 20. "Thank you for the valuable insights!"

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