Every once in awhile, you absolutely stumble over an idea that makes you feel like a real culinary wizard. This is one of those for me. I was having some friends over to grill burgers. I made a few dishes and I’d picked up some amazing produce at the farmers market, including some beautiful butter lettuces. I had a master plan, but at the last minute, I realized I needed a light dressing for those lovely leaves. I took stock of what I had on hand and inventoried the ingredients in the other dishes I had prepared so I didn’t overlap too much. I had a lot of fresh mint (I always have a lot of fresh mint), so I started there. Literally standing at my kitchen counter with that mint and those lettuces, I spied the bottle of bourbon on the bar and the light bulb switched on “mint julep!” This last minute creation was huge hit.
I love this in the simplest of salads, just beautiful fresh lettuces lightly tossed with the dressing, but it can add a lot of flavor to a salad with toasted pecans and salty goat cheese. I really want to try this drizzled over a salad topped with some grilled chicken or shrimp.
- ½ cup densely packed mint leaves
- 3 Tablespoons bourbon
- 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup olive oil
- Place the mint, bourbon, vinegar, sugar and salt in a blender and blend to finely chop the mint and dissolve the sugar. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until combined. Store in the fridge in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake well before serving
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