“It’s almost like a bleu cheese dressing, but not nearly as intense.”
If you don’t enjoy the strong flavor of bleu cheese, or you cook for someone with an aversion to it, consider Shelburne Farms Chef Jackie Major’s Potluck Cheddar Dressing as a worthwhile substitute for a multitude of summer dishes.
It’s Chef Jackie’s summer go-to. “I am going to potlucks and grilling all summer long, and this is going to be a staple in my house for the season.” The Marshall Reserve cheddar has a rich, nutty flavor, and blending a portion of the mixture creates a creamy consistency in the final product. Use it in a potato salad, a roasted vegetable salad, as a dip for a veggie platter, or even as a sauce for chicken wings.
And, it may even turn up on the hearty lunch salads served from our Farm Cart in the coming weeks.
A quick potato salad ratio from Jackie: “Mix half a batch of the dressing with 4 cups new potatoes, 2 celery stalks, 1 scallion, and herbs all chopped up, and, boom, you have potato salad.”
“Or, come stop by the Farm Store after your next walk and pick up some fresh produce, roast it up, and mix with the dressing for a beautiful prepared veggie salad. I like using roasted radish, roasted carrot, and broccoli rabe in particular.”
The recipe makes enough to dress one large potato salad (about 8-10 cups of salad), two small salads, or one small salad and leftovers for a dip.
Potluck Cheddar Dressing Recipe
Yield: 3½ cups
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp chives, chopped small
- 1 Tbsp parsley, chopped small
- 1 Tbsp dill, chopped small
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 small clove garlic, grated
- ½ lemon, zest and juice
- ½ Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup cream
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- ¼ cup milk
- 4 oz Marshall’s Reserve cheddar, broken into small chunks (Chunks are key! The cheese will disappear in the dressing if grated.)
- ¼ cup sour cream
Method
- Whisk together the herbs, seasonings, garlic, lemon, Dijon mustard, and vinegar in a bowl.
- Add the mayonnaise, cream, buttermilk, and milk to the mixture (note: do not add the sour cream at this time). Whisk until smooth.
- Add the cheddar chunks.
- Put half of the cheddar mixture into a food processor and blend until smooth. Blending will create a more enhanced cheddar flavor.
- Return the mixture to the main bowl and gently mix in the sour cream. Adding the sour cream at the end is important: it has a tendency to lose its body and become very thin if blended in the food processor.
