Oil-free Blackberry Vinaigrette Dressing

I found some blackberries in my freezer… score! I know you can buy them frozen, but these were local, beautiful, plump and sweet and I had forgotten that I still had some from the summer’s harvest. Now that Fall is upon us, I thought I’d use up those beauties in a refreshing, healthy salad dressing.

I was at Trader Joe’s yesterday. They had a huge cart of pumpkins of all shapes and sizes. I thought about buying a couple but then remembered that it’s not even October yet! I love pumpkins and have TONS of recipes on this blog, using them in many different ways. I already see some of them popping up in the recently popular posts on my sidebar. Although I am happier than a vegan at a farmer’s market that the weather is cooling off, I still prefer to wait until October to celebrate the wonder of pumpkins.

This dressing is ridiculously easy to make. I hope you’ll try it if you have any leftover berries in your fridge or freezer! You can also sub the blackberries for any kind of berry you prefer or have on hand.

Ingredients:

2 cups blackberries (fresh or frozen and thawed)
1 cup coconut water
4 medjool dates, pitted
2 TBS balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. If you don’t have a high-powered blender (what are you waiting for?), soak the dates first for about one hour. And if you prefer, you can also strain the dressing afterwards. The beauty of a high-powered blender is that, even with blackberries and their rather large seeds, the dressing is still smooth. You could also make this in a food processor if you don’t have a blender at all. Again, you’ll want to strain it to remove the seeds.