I like salad … at least I think I like salad. Actually, I think it’s a bit like when I was a kid, and I thought I liked coffee. My grandmother used to give me “boggie,” which did have a tiny splash of coffee, but was really mostly milk with a good dose of sugar. (Incidentally, that’s almost exactly how she still drinks her coffee!) I have managed to lay off the sugar since then (most of the time), but I still rarely have anything other than a latte, so I guess it’s still up for debate how much I really like coffee.
So as I said before, I think I like salad, but what I really like is the dressing. I’m sure I’m not alone in this either. When is the last time you saw someone munch on plain lettuce? (I did actually work with a very healthy, VERY thin woman who did that on a regular basis, but she’s the only one I can think of.)
Unfortunately, most store-bought dressings contain some oil, spice, or vinegar that I can’t eat any more, so after I developed latex-fruit syndrome, my salad consumption plummeted. The good news is that I’ve learned salad dressing is not hard to put together, and homemade dressing is delicious! Creating this recipe has lead to a significant increase of salad in my diet. Maybe it can do good things for you too. Try it on spinach salad with beets and feta!
Allergy Notes:
- rice vinegar
Read the label; some rice vinegar has spices or flavorings added that may cross-react with latex. Aim for one that is just vinegar. - horseradish
It can be difficult if not impossible to find prepared horseradish that doesn’t have oil or vinegar that might cross-react with latex. If you can’t find one in your local stores, you can make your own that will keep for months. Follow the directions from Bon Appétit Magazine’s website, but be sure to use rice vinegar.
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Servings |
servings
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- 1/2 cup rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 tsp horseradish grated or prepared
- 2 tsp ground chile california
- 2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp salt more or less to taste
Ingredients
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- Don an apron. (No joke. The turmeric is brutal on clothes if you slosh even a little while wisking ... but it's so good! And good for you.)
- Measure the honey into a 2-cup pyrex liquid measuring cup. Pour the vinegar on top of that.
- Sprinkle the spices over the top of the vinegar, and gently whisk the ingredients together.
- Pour into a dressing bottle, and store in the refrigerator.
My recipes avoid all ingredients listed on the American Latex Allergy Association website, and on Japan's National Institute of Health Sciences website, as known for or suspected of cross-reacting with latex as well as a few other ingredients that I have discovered elsewhere. However, latex-fruit syndrome is still an emerging issue and poorly understood. There may be other foods that cross-react, and people with latex-fruit syndrome often have other food allergies independent of their latex allergy. Each individual is different, so be sure to discuss with your allergist the safest way for you to try out ingredients that are new to you before you cook with them.