Vegan Chunky Thousand Island Dressing
– raw, vegan, gluten-free –
I knew I needed a Thousand Island Dressing when I decided to create a Raw Reuben Sandwich finally. Making one of these has been on my “OMGosh-I-am-craving-a-Reuben-sandwich-if-I-walk-past-another-restaurant-making-those-I-am-going-to-die!” list. They smell just heavenly to me. I have so many lists of dishes that I want to create. Over time I am slowly scratching them off as I recreate my raw, whole food, versions.
So onward… Thousand Island it is!! So what the heck goes into making this famous dressing? I remember watching my dad create some concoction of ketchup, mayo, and pickles? Was that it? I don’t know; I didn’t pay that close attention.
Even though that may have seemed like making it from scratch, it is a lot different when converting to raw because you REALLY have to make recipes from scratch. Therein lies the fun challenges. So, I Googled and saw that the Wishbone Brand used the following ingredients…
INGREDIENTS: Water, Corn Syrup, Sweet Pickle Relish (Cucumbers,Corn Syrup, Sugar, Distilled Vinegar, Salt, Onions, Spice, Pepper,Alum, Calcium Chloride, Natural Flavors, Polysorbate 80, Turmeric), Tomato Paste, Sugar, Soybean Oil, Distilled Vinegar, Contains Less than 2% of Egg Yolk, Salt, Natural Flavors, Modified Food Starch, Garlic Powder, Onion (Dehydrated), Spice, Xanthan Gum,Carrageenan, Coloring, Phosphoric Acid, Lactic Acid, Sorbic Acid,Sodium Benzoate, Calcium Disodium EDTA (to Preserve Freshness), Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E).
Holy Rust Buckets Batman! Haha, I can’t tell you which Batman movie that came from or who the actor was playing that role, the only thing I walked away remembering was that phrase. Sometimes it comes in handy, especially during moments like these. I encourage you to make this recipe and then share with me the first words that come out of your mouth… remember this is a family-friendly site. :)
Ingredients:
Yields 3 3/4 cups
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked 2 +hours
- 1/2 cup (38 g) sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated in 3/4 cup warm water
- 1/4 cup (58 g) water
- 5 Tbsp (60 g) lemon juice
- 2(38 g) Medjool dates, pitted
- 1 tsp (7 g) Himalayan pink salt
- 1 tsp (3 g) onion powder
- 1/2 tsp (1 g) garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp (21 g) raw apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup (65 g) extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup (75 g) red onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup (85 g) sweet pickle, chopped
Preparation:
- After soaking the cashews, discard the soak water and place it in a high-powered blender.
- Rehydrate the sun-dried tomatoes by placing them in enough hot water to cover. Soak for 10+ minutes or until soft. See #4.
- Add the water, lemon juice, dates, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and vinegar. Blend until creamy smooth.
- You shouldn’t detect any grit. If you do, keep blending till it is creamy smooth when you rub it between your thumb and finger.
- This can take 1-3 minutes, depending on the machine.
- Add the sun-dried tomatoes and soak water, and blend long enough to break down the tomatoes into small flecks.
- While continuing to blend and a vortex is created in the mixture, add oil in a steady stream until emulsified. Transfer to a bowl.
- Stir in the onions and pickle.
- Store in a tightly sealed container the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
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Your recipes make me sooooo hungry. I am going to make the salad dressing today. Pleeeasssse post the Raw Reuben recipe.
I am working on it Mozelle. I didn’t have Internet connection yesterday… shew… it is amazing how much we depend on that. :P Have a glorious day. amie sue
Better than store bought! I made it for vegan Reuben sandwiches, and it was the perfect finishing touch. Will try raw Reubens next time. The tasty dressing is already waiting for them. ;) Thank you!
So happy that you enjoyed the dressing Kathleen. I use to eat Thousand Island dressing with just about every salad… but I have to agree, homemade, from scratch is always better. Thank you for leaving a comment. Have a blessed weekend! amie sue
I love your recipes. I am however the only one in my home that would consider eating raw or vegan or even vegetarian. Because of that I would not use the dressing in two weeks.
My question is: Can the dressing be canned and stored on a shelf?
Hello Marlene,
I understand what it is to be the only one in the household who aims to eat a healthier diet. I use to be in that situation years ago. Even to this day when I make food for guests, I never tell them that it is raw or vegan, etc UNLESS it is vital to their allergen needs or belief system. This recipe tastes amazing that they wouldn’t even know unless they just don’t eat salad dressings at home. But to your questions. I don’t can any of my raw foods because it wouldn’t be raw after going through the process. Store on a shelf? No, the ingredient are whole and fresh and that decreased the shelf life. You could always cut the recipe in half if you wanted to.
I hope this helps. Have a blessed evening, amie sue
Hi amie sue, do you make your own sweet pickle for this dressing? It looks delish…mmmmm I can almost taste it lol x
Good afternoon Lynn :)
I have used raw pickles that I found locally, I have used organic, agave sweetened pickles that weren’t raw… I do my best with what I have available to me. In fact right now… I just got done making some. They are fermenting and will be done in 2 days. I will keep you all posted as to how they come out and if they are a success, I will share how they were made. Have a blessed evening, amie sue
Hi Amie,
your receipes are always so great and full of inspiration.
Im from Italy and wondering what are sweet pickles and how they are done. Normally I can find them in can but they are conserved in vinegar (by pickling). how these are done ? and if I cant find them, what do u suggest to replace them! I really wanna try this amazing receipe SOOOON ^_^ Thank u Have a great Sunday!
Thank you Siria :) It is always my hope that my passion becomes an inspiration to others.
Sweet pickle as just what they sound like.. sweet :) They are usually canned with various ingredients as a normal dill pickle but a sweetener is added. If you give me a few days, I hope to share a recipe with you all on how to make raw sweet pickles, often referred to as Sweet Bread and Butter Pickles. I am fermenting them right now and they ought to be ready tomorrow, so my fingered are crossed while I type this (and boy does it make it hard to type lol) that they will turn out so I can share the recipe. hehe
Keep in touch and many blessings, amie sue
Hi Amie!!! Fantastic to read this words!! Im so impatient to do your nice recipe. For sure your experiment will be wonderful!!
Im curious: In this receipe sweet pickles are a must that cant be substituted ?
I wonder how you can do everything, preparing everyday new and great receipes, replying to all comments of your fans and then live your life!! You are a WONDE-RAWOMAN! ^_^
hehe you made me chuckle Siria. :) I am going to run out and get me spandex super suit because I love the title, “WONDE-RAWOMAN!” lol
I just placed the pickles in the fridge to get them good and chilled to see how the true flavor comes out…. I will be back in touch! amie sue the WONDE-RAWOMAN!
Lol!!! wanna see a pic of your new Wonde-rawoman spandex suit !!! Im sure you look gorgeous ^_^
waiting for the pickles test results done by the great hands of Wonde-rawoman! :*
big hug
Ooooh dear lol Siria… picture? :P I had read Bob your comment and the one I had sent back to you. He said he can’t wait to see me in it too. *cowers in corner* haha. Pickles…. ok, they came out good BUT they didn’t turn out as sweet as I expected. Sooo, I bought more cucumbers and I need to tweak the recipe. Sorry for the delay. It takes time to develop recipes sometimes. :) Have a happy day, hugs. amie sue
Hi sweet Amie, how r u ? I dont wanna sound rude, hope u can apologize me, did u get chance and time to reproduce the sweet pickles ? Im water mouthering attending this fantastic recipe! thank u and have a great sunny sunday ^_^
Good afternoon Siria… You are not being rude. I appreciate that you are checking in . :) I am sorry to report that both batches didn’t meet my satisfaction. I am under the weather today but as soon as I get more ingredients, I will try try again. Have a wonderful day and keep in touch. amie sue
Thank you AMie, you are so sweet!!
Have a wonderful new week!
Siria
Lol…and then waving a ceramic knife as magic wand :D :D
ok I will be patient and wait for your test..cant wait, here in italy Im trying to find sweet pickles but nothing :(ùhave a good day!siria
Amie:
Just made this before a big ol kitchen renovation where I won’t have access to much as far as creating raw recipes!! It’s SO delicious. I have never ever eaten a sweet pickle–but figured I should follow your recipe..they are fabulous and make the dressing perfect. Love your recipes.
Lauren
Hello Laureen,
Thank you for trusting the recipe and trying the sweet pickle. :) I am thrilled that you like it. I hope that the renovations of your kitchen go smooth, easy and joyful. I know remodeling can bring on headaches, so I am sending good renovation vibes. hehe Keep me posted how it goes. :) Have a wonderful evening, amie sue
Amie Sue..
I made this delicious dressing over the weekend. It is fabulous. Much better than the “store bought” bad stuff! :) Thanks for this one, I will make it often.
BJ
Thanks for keeping in touch BJ… so happy that you are enjoying this dressing! It is a mighty tasty one for sure. Have a blessed day, amie sue :)
My daughter recently is trying to make the transition to raw vegan. Your website has changed everything for us both. I have been trying to make things interesting as well as getting her a variety of nutrition. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. I made your dressing, and she uses it as a raw ketchup as well. Occasionally she still will eat cooked food, so I made oven baked buffalo potato chips. This was delicious with them.
Good evening Lornaspencer,
What a delight to hear from you. It blesses me to know that I have brought inspiration into your diet and your daughters. Raw foods can be so versatile, just gotta love that. :) Thank you so much for sharing all of this. Please keep in touch. amie sue :)
Hi! I am new to your member site. I have been a raw vegan for five years and I was so excited to find your site. Your recipes and photography are top notch! My website is http://www.victoriarawvegan.com
Good afternoon Victoria,
Welcome. I am so happy to have you here. :) And thank you for the kind words… this site is my true passion. I hope you enjoy it! I will be sure to look at your site. Thanks for sharing it. Have a blessed and wonderful day, amie sue
Hi Amie Sue,
I am allergic to apples. What would you substitute apple cider vinegar for?
Thank you
Hello Basia,
You can use coconut vinegar or plain white vinegar in its place. Enjoy, amie sue :)