Re-Purposing: Mustard Bottle Salad Dressing

Making your own salad dressing can seem pretty daunting. But opting to do-it-yourself saves you from the excess sodium and preservatives often dumped into bottled salad dressing (and it saves you some cash!). A mustard bottle on its "last legs" is the perfect container for mixing up and storing your new concoction. Mustard serves as a natural emulsifier, which helps keep the oil from separating too quickly. With no measuring and just a few ingredients, this "project" takes almost as little time and effort as opening up the bottled kind!

How to: 

1 almost-empty bottle or jar of mustard (type is up to you!) 

+ 2 parts acid (vinegar or lemon juice) 

+ 1 part olive oil 

+ herbs/spices (optional) 

+ pinch of sweetness (also optional, but honey, sugar, fruit juice all work well)

Give it a shake and pour it on! 

Here are a few of my favorite varieties:

• Dijon mustard with lemon juice + olive oil + garlic + honey poured over herb salad;
• Brown mustard with apple cider vinegar + olive oil + celery seed + pinch of sugar (great for cole slaw!)
• Dijon mustard with balsamic vinegar + olive oil + chopped fresh basil on spinach and strawberry salad.