PicoBlog

Perhaps it was the glut of asparagus I bought and ate throughout this spring, or maybe it was the simple pleasure of using an immersion blender, but lately I’ve had a lot of homemade aioli and mayo hanging out in my fridge. This is not a bad thing, because those are delicious things, and they go with nearly all things. (A hard boiled egg with a little aioli smeared on it is a level-up for any lunch.) But when you make mayonnaise at home, you make a lot of it, and there are only so many sandwiches and dipping mechanisms you can conjure up in a week’s time before it spoils.

Therefore, I turn it into dressing — ranch dressing, to be precise. It’s the perfect way to convert all that aioli into something new. To put it in a slightly gross way, ranch is basically a very loose mayo (regardless of its claims to buttermilk) with added herbs and spices. This makes it extremely easy to doctor up your own version at home, and the results are always miles ahead of any ranch-y glop you’d buy at the store.

The process is simple: whatever mayo or aioli you have, you loosen up with some vinegar, lemon juice, and maybe a bit of water depending on your desired consistency. Then you add a few pantry staples that supply the familiar ranch flavor, namely garlic powder, onion powder, and some cumin. (A small dash of MSG would also work well.) From there, I like to add lots of chopped herbs like chives and dill. All of this gives you an exceptionally tangy and fresh ranch dressing.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pint homemade aioli or mayonnaise (usually the amount I have leftover)

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

• Juice of 1 lemon wedge

• Garlic powder

• Onion powder

• Cumin

• 1/3 cup finely chopped chives and dill

• Coarsely ground black pepper

Instructions

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