Last Updated September 11th, 2021 at 03:40 pm by Lisa
Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette is made in a mason jar, this homemade salad dressing recipe is made in minutes with real lemon and parmesan cheese.
"Make and shake" your own lemon dressing right in a jar, then pop in the fridge to enjoy all week...
Wait, did you say Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette?
Um yes, I did. My dear friend Kim and I tried a new restaurant and we fell in love with their parmesan vinaigrette.
And of course, we talked about it most of the way home.
Then I got to thinking, I will surprise Kim the next time she comes to dinner. And so it happened.
Why You Will Love This Dressing
- Two words: make and shake. This lemon salad dressing couldn't be easier. Make it by putting all of the ingredients in a mason jar and shake the jar to combine them. Then serve and enjoy. (No mason jar on hand? A blender works or whisk and bowl will work too.)
- It is full of FRESH ingredients. No preservatives or hard-to-pronounce ingredients like you find in some salad dressing recipes. Just fresh, wholesome ingredients packed with flavor.
- It's a versatile dressing. This lemon dressing with parmesan will go well on almost any salad and is terrific with Italian dishes.
- It stores perfectly in the fridge. If you can keep from using it all as soon as you make it, the leftovers will store perfectly in the fridge right in that jar.
- It's a low-carb dressing recipe. In fact, it is a NO-carb dressing recipe. If you are following a low-carb or keto diet, this is the perfect salad dressing to pair with your salads.
You Need
I bet you have most, if not all, of these ingredients in your kitchen and pantry right now...
- 1 cup good olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons shallot (peeled and minced)
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ cup parmesan cheese grated
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon cracked pepper
- 1 whole lemon zest (zest first!)
- 1 whole lemon juice (regular or Meyer lemons)
Let's Make It!
Step 1: In a clean mason jar with a tightly fitted lid, add all the ingredients.
TIP: You can use a blender, or Vitamix, and blend away. Or whisk in a bowl, but a common mason jar is so fast and easy, and stores perfectly in the fridge!
Step 2: Place the lid on tight, and shake for about a minute. That's it!
Step 3: Re-shake jar with the lid on to recombine, drizzle over salad.
This Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette is a fresh new twist on my regular Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette and oh-so-good...
How To Use A Vinaigrette
- I served this dressing on a simple green salad, with white lasagna, and cheese toast. Yum.
- It's divine on a salad full of fresh tomatoes.
- Use as a chicken marinade, and roast or grill.
- Toss it in a feta salad made with bell peppers.
- It pairs perfectly with pasta salad, just toss it on.
- Give it a try drizzled on crusty fresh bread.
If you've ever wondered what qualifies a salad dressing as a "vinaigrette," it has to do with the ingredients:
To be a vinaigrette, an acidic ingredient like lemon juice or vinegar, or both must be mixed with oil like olive oil or vegetable oil.
"Traditional" vinaigrettes are three parts oil to one part vinegar, but the vinaigrettes of today often break that precise ratio.
More Delicious Vinaigrettes
Once you see how simple this lemon vinaigrette is, you'll make this over and over, and skip bottled dressings...
This easy cranberry vinaigrette is made in a mason jar and sooo good.
Mango Slaw has a fresh clean crunch from the jicama and green cabbage with a sweet and tangy kick from the Mango-Lime Vinaigrette.
More Dressing Recipes
- For a light, healthy, fruit- and vegetable-packed salad, try Broccoli Grape Salad with a light creamy 3 ingredient Creamy Orange Dressing Recipe.
- This Easy Roast Chicken Apple Salad with Yogurt Blue Cheese Dressing recipe is fresh, hearty, and colorful.
- Last but not least, for a unique spin on traditional salad, you've got to give this Frozen Iceberg Wedge Salad a try. Yes, frozen salad! It's perfect for hot summer days, and the Pistachio-Avocado Dressing makes it not just a dish that will cool you down, but it will also fill you up.
- If you want a festive salad for the holidays, you'll definitely want to make this Festive Holiday Salad with Pomegranate Mason Jar Dressing. It is a bright and fun salad that your guests will love.
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Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1 cup good olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons shallot (peeled and minced)
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ cup parmesan cheese grated
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon cracked pepper
- 1 whole lemon zest (zest first!)
- 1 whole lemon juice (regular or Meyer lemons)
Instructions
- Finely mince the shallot and grate the parmesan cheese.
- In a clean mason jar with a fitted lid, add all the ingredients; olive oil, white wine vinegar, shallot, Dijon mustard, parmesan cheese, sea salt, pepper, lemon zest and lemon juice. Place the lid on tight, and shake for about a minute. That's it!
- Re-shake jar with lid on to recombine, drizzle over salad.
Notes
Mixing
You can use a blender, or Vitamix, and blend away or a whisk and bowl. But a mason jar is so fast and easy, and stores perfectly in the fridge! The olive oil will firm up in the fridge, just pull the dressing out about 30 minutes before using, and give it a good whisk or shake in the jar.Leftover Vinaigrette Ideas
- It's divine on a salad full of fresh tomatoes.
- Use as a chicken marinade, and roast or grill.
- Toss it in a feta salad made with bell peppers.
- It pairs perfectly with pasta salad, just toss it on.
- Give it a try drizzled on crusty fresh bread.
Hi! Also don’t have tarragon vinegar so subbed apple cider vinegar with a teaspoon-ish of dried tarragon. Lovely on a green mixed salad. Thank you!
Hey Mitzi, great sub suggestion! Homemade dressing is so easy, and flavor-packed, thank you for your nice comment!
Can you recommend a substitute for the tarragon vinegar? I don't have that and would love to know a replacement
Yes Jennifer, you can use apple cider vinegar or distilled vinegar will both work just fine! Funny, today I am working on a new dressing recipe (made in a Mason jar just like this one, but it uses Meyer Lemons! Hope to have that recipe up in the next week....happy cooking!
Oh girl, this salad dressing is out of this world! Perfect on my farmhouse Cobb salad! Love a good homemade dressing!