Spicy Cilantro Ranch Dressing

I've never found a really good spicy ranch dressing. I've tried Salsa Ranch, Sriracha Ranch, Salsa Ranch. . .Several that sounded promising, but they just weren't right. I knew I wanted to create one with a special sort of spicy-heat, but it also had to have the unique green-freshness of cilantro. This quest went on my cooking bucket list. Today the ingredients I wanted to use finally just clicked for me when I remembered the Coriander Chutney I love so much, has the perfect, well rounded heat, from the Serrano peppers the cilantro is cooked with to make the chutney!  Bingo!

1/2 c your favorite Ranch Dressing

1/4c mayonnaise
1/4c sour cream
3T fresh lemon juice

2T SWAD *Coriander Chutney

Spoon everything in a squeeze bottle, stir with an iced tea spoon then shake well. Let the flavors blend a half hour before serving. If you like smoked flavor, this might also be good with a little smokey seasoning added. . .Lin

*Just to clarify, in the US, cilantro is the name for the plant's leaves and stem, while coriander is the name for its dried seeds.  Internationally, the leaves and stems, as well as the dried seeds are all called coriander.

Chive Flower, Pistachio, Cilantro-Ranch 5-Ingredient Salad

Anytime I begin with one of my 5-Ingredient Salads, things can only get better and more interesting depending on the current additions. This time, I added mung bean and lentil sprouts, pistachios and a couple pulled-apart chive flowers. The entire chive is edible, and the flowers are often overlooked for an amazing onion-y pop of flavor, as well as their pale violet color and delicate beauty.

The other wonderful, surprise, addition to this salad was the dressing. . .

I combined equal parts of ranch dressing and coriander (cilantro) chutney. Ohhh my. . .so much freshness! However, be aware, there are Serrano peppers in the chutney, so depending on your heat preferences, you may not need to add black or cayenne pepper. After I dressed the salad I realized another great, flavorful addition, would have been a finely minced, crushed, fresh garlic clove.

Mmmm . . . It's Salad Season!
Have fun with them! . .Lin

Crunchy-Spicy Avocado Chicken Salad

1 12.5oz. can chicken - drained

½ lg. yellow onion - chopped

2 mini English cucumbers - chopped

1c celery hearts and tops - chopped

1-2T coriander (cilantro) chutney

1 avocado - not shown - diced

2T good quality extra virgin olive oil

fresh ground salt and black pepper

1T fresh lemon or lime juice

Combine all the ingredients in a medium glass bowl.  This turned out to be a really spicy, and flavorful salad, due primarily to the coriander chutney.  Very spicy!  I used a tuna salad recipe as an inspiration, added the celery, since I didn't have fresh cilantro.  However, the 'sour-tanginess' of tuna didn't appeal to me. 

I checked my cabinet and found that I had 4 large cans of chicken, but only 1 small can of tuna.  Decision made!  The original tuna salad showed large English seedless cucumbers halved, then chopped.  Mine were the mini version, quartered, then chopped.  They were for sure big enough, could have been even smaller.

This is a really good, fresh, crispy, high protein salad. . .Lin