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Home » Recipes » No Oil

Vegan Creamy Garlic Salad Dressing

Garlic lovers - here's your time to shine! This creamy garlic salad dressing is made with raw, plant-based ingredients and it packs a lot of flavor. It's a great dressing recipe for salads, wraps, sandwiches, or burgers.

Creamy garlic salad dressing in a small bowl
by Aly Michell Dated: November 18, 2020 Last Modified: August 28, 2023 2 Comments
182 shares
(This post may have affiliate links. Please see my disclosure.)
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Jump to:
  • Recipe Notes
  • How Garlicky Is This Dressing?
  • Ingredients In The Salad Dressing: 
  • How To Make A Simple Salad 
  • How To Store 
  • Vegan Creamy Garlic Salad Dressing

Salads are okay. An easy salad with a creamy, garlic salad dressing made from plant-based ingredients makes salads lip-smackin' delicious.

Warning: only serious garlic fans should proceed further. 

I don’t often buy salad dressings, because I find they sit in my refrigerator for an ungodly amount of time. Then the sniff test happens - and it’s all over.

That salad dressing never had a chance to live a full life. 

So, sometimes I make homemade salad dressings from scratch with the stuff I have in my home. I can control how much I want to make and I call the shots for what goes into it. 

For this salad dressing, I decided to go for an umami-and-creamy type of salad dressing made with pan-toasted chopped walnuts, garlic, dates, dijon mustard, and smoked paprika. 

More Recipes With Garlic: 

  • Garlic Butter Dipping Sauce 
  • Creamy Garlic Potato Soup
  • Garlicky Mashed Potatoes 

Recipe Notes

Small white bowl with garlic cloves
  1. No need to chop the garlic. It’s going straight to the blender and that’ll take care of breaking the ingredients down to a thick sauce. 
  2. I recommend using a high-speed blender with a great blade, for example, a  Nutribullet or Oster blender. This will help smoothen out the texture and make sure no chunk is left is behind. 

How Garlicky Is This Dressing?

Small white bowl with creamy garlic salad dressing and side of green salad

Don’t be fooled - one garlic clove is enough for this recipe. Because we’re using raw garlic, its flavor will show up full-force in the dressing. 

But if you’re feeling like you need more garlic in your life, go for two cloves. But, I’ve warned you, so you can’t complain about how garlicky it was. 

Just a tip: the longer you cook or roast garlic, the sweeter and mellow its flavor becomes. When you consume garlic raw or quickly cooked for a minute, it’ll have a sharper garlic flavor. 

Ingredients In The Salad Dressing: 

Ingredients for salad dressing: mustard, garlic, dates, walnuts
  • Walnuts 
    • The walnuts are the base of this recipe - it is what provides that creamy texture we’re looking for. 
  • Smoked Paprika 
    • The smoked paprika provided a pinch of color and smoky flavor to the dressing. 
  • Dijon Mustard 
    • Dijon mustard helps brings another layer of creaminess. Additionally, it adds a touch of spiciness and umami. 
  • Dates
    • We’re using dates as a plant-based, whole food sweetener to mellow out the flavor profile of the dressing. In addition to of course bringing a soft sweetness. 
  • Garlic 
    • This is the star of the recipe. One garlic clove will go a long way to bringing a zippy garlic flavor. 

How To Make A Simple Salad 

A good salad is one with a variety of flavors, textures, and a good protein/fat/carb ratio. They can be loaded with different ingredients, or you can take a simple salad approach. 

Because I just wanted a light side salad to accompany the rest of my lunch, I tossed a handful of spinach and arugula with the homemade salad dressing. I also added a few croutons for a good crunch.

However, feel free to top the salad with what you enjoy. 

Salad Topping Ideas 

Here are some salad topping ideas that I think pair well with a garlic salad dressing and  a bed of spinach + arugula: 

  • Pan-Toasted Corn 
  • Chopped Tomatoes 
  • Croutons 
  • Sliced Red Onion 
  • Chopped vegan bacon

If you're not in the mood for a salad, you can use the dressing with vegetables including carrots, cucumbers, celery, green beans, and bell peppers.

How To Store 

Store the garlic salad dressing in an air-tight container. It will keep fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. 

For soup recipes to go along with that salad, try out roasted tomato basil soup, creamy garlic potato soup, or 20-minute black bean soup.

Pinnable for Pinterest. Collage for garlic salad dressing
Creamy garlic salad dressing in a small bowl

Vegan Creamy Garlic Salad Dressing

Aly Michell
Turn that dull bed of greens to a bed of garlic yum. A homemade, vegan creamy garlic salad dressing that's insanely delicious, plant-based, oil-free, and healthy.
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Cook Time 5 minutes mins
Total Time 5 minutes mins
Course Dinner, Lunch, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 1 cup
Calories 307 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • ⅓ cup walnuts
  • ½ cup water
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
  • 2 dates pitted, roughly chopped
  • 1 garlic clove peeled

Instructions
 

  • Set a non-stick pan over medium heat. Once warm, add the roughly chopped walnut pieces. Dry cook and toss the walnuts until golden, about 5 minutes. Toasting the walnuts will soften its bitterness and enhance its flavor. If you want to keep this recipe raw, skip the toasting.
  • In a high-speed blender, add all of the ingredients including the walnuts. Blend until smooth and creamy.
  • Refrigerate and chill in a container for at least one hour.

Nutrition

Serving: 1-cupCalories: 307kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 7gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 19gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gSodium: 121mgPotassium: 301mgFiber: 4gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 263IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 60mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Tag @plantbasedandbroke on Instagram and show it off to us!

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Please leave a comment below, share it, rate it, or tag a picture @plantbasedandbroke on Instagram and hashtag it #plantbasedandbroke. Show off that creation with us.

182 shares
Category: All, Dinner, Lunch, No Oil, Snacks, Summer

About Aly Michell

Over 10+ years of plant-based eating and cooking on a budget!

Previous Post:Tomato braised mushroom with Puerto Rican riceTomato Braised Mushrooms
Next Post:Vegan Tofu Sausage GravyVegan tofu sauasge gravy in a gray bowl

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sylvia W

    November 19, 2020 at 11:20 am

    5 stars
    I have only just read this, not yet made it, but as a fairly new subscriber I just want to say thank you - this sounds delicious, and I expect to use it quite soon.

    Reply
    • Aly Michell

      November 19, 2020 at 12:07 pm

      Hi Sylvia! Thank you for stopping by! Hope you love the recipe 🙂

      Reply
5 from 1 vote

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Hi, My name is Aly Michell! I create plant-based recipes that are easy, accessible, using everyday cookware.

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