Summertime for me means lots of fresh salads, fruit and light, zesty balsamic dressings. In the winter I reach for good old Ranch, but when we’re grilling or just eating out on the deck, I want my citrus, balsamic and olive oil. As you might imagine, my cupboard is full of different infused oils and flavored balsamic vinegars, and blending them together is something I love. I have basic balsamic vinegar in the cabinet too, but I admit, I do love the infused varieties.

For today’s post, I thought I would share four of my favorite combinations. I will add these to the recipe box in the next day or two as well, but because they are so simple, I am going to share them here first. If you read all the way to the end, your reward will be links to where I get most of my flavored balsamic and infused oils. If you live local, you can pop in and pick them up, but you may also have some sources near you that you can tap into. I’ll provide links to the websites for the places I share here in today’s post and on my favorite links page if you want to check into shipping options. Okay…here we go!

Ginger and Lime

This is the very first combination I ever did, and while it doesn’t include any balsamic, is still one of my favorites. It’s a blend of light olive oil, fresh ginger (or ground ginger if you don’t have fresh), lime juice and honey. Mixing is easy too. Just pour everything in a bowl and whisk, or if you have a salad dressing mixing bottle use that and shake, shake, shake! This will give you enough dressing for about 4-ish people. Three if you’re greedy. No judgement here!

• 2 tbls lime juice
• 1/4 cup light olive oil
• 1 tsp minced ginger, or 1/2 tsp ground
• 1 heaping tablespoon honey

Lemon and Mango

This one calls for lemon olive oil and mango balsamic plus a little mango juice. The latter gives it a little more body than just oil and vinegar and tastes so yummy! I usually mix a 2:1 ratio for the oil and vinegar, add the juice and whisk it together. The ratio below will yield enough for 4 salads.

• 4 tbls lemon infused olive oil
• 2 tbls mango balsamic
• 2 tbls Naked mango juice smoothie

Lime and Raspberry

This one is a blend of lime infused olive oil and raspberry balsamic and crushed raspberries if you have them. If you really want to add zip, put a teaspoon or so of lime juice in. Lime and Raspberry are so good together and the crushed raspberry will add some color to your salad. This recipe will yield enough for 4 salads.

• 4 tbls lime infused olive oil2 tbls raspberry balsamic1/4 cup crushed raspberries1 tsp lime juice (optional, but zippy)

Blood Orange and Fig

This blend is so good with chicken, dried cranberries or cherries and orange slices. I like to put a lot of different stuff in my salads but this dressing will push ordinary right over the top. The fig balsamic is rich and dark and packed with flavor. Don’t forget the toasted almonds!

• 4 tbsp Blood Orange infused Olive Oil
• 2 tbs Fig Balsamic

What about the salad?

Salads are probably the easiest meal you can prepare. There are endless possibilities and you can pretty much clear out your fridge in the process of making one. I call that a win-win! My base salad lately is a mix of iceberg lettuce and green cabbage. i like the texture of the cabbage and it adds a little extra crunch to the salad. I also am a fan of those pre-packaged salads with all the extra stuff in them, but holy Hannah, are they expensive! Especially when you don’t eat them before they get funky.(insert sad face here.) Never a lover of the science project, I decided to just save myself some money and buy cabbage in its original form and chop it up myself. (Mom Kemmer didn’t raise any fools!) We get about 6-8 salads out of a head of cabbage and that stuff lasts forever in the fridge! That’s also a win by the way. From this really basic base I just add whatever I have on hand plus chicken or pan seared shrimp and one of the dressings above. The fruit on the salad (because there’s ALWAYS at least one fruit component) generally dictates which dressing I choose.

Olive Oil & Balsamic Shops in Minneapolis/St. Paul area.

Shop local if you can, but these all offer shipping if you don’t have an olive oil store near you.

Annona Gourmet – (St. Anthony, MN) This little store is owned and operated by the nicest lady and she’s super helpful. Last i checked she offered a frequent-buyer program where you can get a discount off your purchase once you buy a minimum number of bottles. She also has jams and jellies, pickles and other goodies made by local talent.

Stillwater Olive Oil Company – (Stillwater, MN and White Bear Lake, MN) I discovered my love of flavored balsamic and infused olive oil several years ago when we were in Stillwater, MN with some friends. I bought a LOT of stuff that day and haven’t looked back. They have a great selection and also offer a member’s discount once you’ve purchased a minimum number of bottles.

Love that Olive – (Maple Grove, MN) This is another little store I like. They have a nice selection to choose from and also have some gourmet food offerings and gift items.

Happy Salad Days!