Italian dressing has been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember. My mom always served a simple green salad with dinner, and I gravitated toward Wish-Bone’s Italian dressing for drizzling on top. I was especially glad to reach for the extra zesty variety when we had it.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—homemade salad dressings taste so much better than store-bought. This classic Italian vinaigrette is bold, lively and irresistible! My collection of salad dressing recipes was incomplete without it.

This dressing is easy to make with basic pantry ingredients. You’ll need olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, garlic, and dried oregano. You’ll also reach for salt, pepper and red pepper flakes (if you like mild heat). Finely grated Parmesan is entirely optional, but lends a familiar Olive Garden vibe.

The beauty of making your own Italian dressing is that you know exactly what’s going into it—like real olive oil and no preservatives.

You can also adjust the flavors to suit your preferences. Whether you like extra zesty or more mellow dressing, you’ll find guidance in the simple recipe below. It’s ready in under five minutes and keeps for a week!

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This balsamic vinaigrette recipe deserves a moment in the spotlight. When you’re improvising a seasonal salad, no matter how simple or elaborate, balsamic vinaigrette is always an excellent choice. It’s a classic for a reason, and I love the lightly figgy flavor that balsamic vinegar imparts.

This balsamic dressing strikes a delicate balance between tangy and sweet. It’s just right.

This homemade balsamic vinaigrette calls for basic pantry ingredients, yet tastes far superior to any store-bought dressing. This is true for all homemade salad dressings, even when they’re made exclusively with pantry ingredients like this one.

I can’t entirely explain why freshly-combined basic ingredients taste so much better than pre-made dressing from the same pantry shelf, but the difference is undeniable. It’ll smack you right over the head.

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Have you met my all-time favorite chickpea salad recipe? Sure, I have many beloved chickpea salads on the blog already, but this is my tried-and-true favorite from my cookbook, Love Real Food. In the book, I called it the “Outrageous Herbaceous Chickpea Salad,” which is exactly right!

“Here’s a simple chickpea salad that I could eat every single day. It’s bursting with fresh Mediterranean flavors, thanks to chopped bell pepper, parsley, red onion, and celery. Lemon and garlic take it from tasty to transcendent. This salad packs well, so it’s perfect for potlucks and picnics. It’s also a great lunch option, so long as your serving is large enough…”

I love this recipe as much today as I did when I created the recipe several years ago. In fact, I stand behind all of the cookbook recipes, and it makes me so happy to hear that you’re cooking from the book!

I’m truly a healthier eater when I have this salad in the fridge. It’s the perfect hearty side salad or mid-afternoon snack. Pile it onto a bed of greens, or cooked whole grains like farro or quinoa, or even onto your scrambled eggs or cheese nachos. You can’t go wrong with this one.

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Let’s talk about roasted red peppers! Roasted red peppers are one of my favorite recipe components. They offer rich, deep bell pepper flavor and a lovely, tender texture. I love to add roasted red peppers to dips, salads, sandwiches and more.

Homemade roasted red peppers taste the best, no doubt about it. Since it’s bell pepper season, I’m sharing my tested and perfected roasted red pepper recipe. Now that I’ve finally nailed down all the factors, I’ll be roasting my own more often!

Roasting red peppers is a fairly simple process, though certainly not as simple as reaching for a jar of store-bought roasted red peppers. The downside to using jarred roasted red peppers is that they vary significantly in flavor—grab the wrong brand and you just might ruin the whole dish (been there, done that). Divina and Whole Foods 365 are reliable winners, in my experience.

Grab a helper when it comes time to peel the peppers, and your homemade roasted red peppers will be ready before you know it. They’ll keep in the fridge for over a week, too, and liven up all your dishes in between.

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Have you ever tried roasted tomatoes? Specifically slow-roasted cherry tomatoes, the best of all roasted tomatoes? If not, you have really been missing out! Last summer, our garden produced more cherry tomatoes than we could eat fresh, so I roasted several batches over the weekends.

You might be thinking that it’s hard to beat fresh cherry tomatoes (and I agree), but roasted cherry tomatoes are even nicer. The flavors and textures condense in the oven, yielding spectacularly sweet-tart, rich tomato flavor.

Once roasted, these tomatoes keep in the refrigerator for over a week, so this is a great way to preserve tomatoes a little longer. Commenters report that these tomatoes freeze wonderfully for winter time, too—Chris says you can pull them out of the freezer bag and add them to salads!

Honestly, I eat these tomatoes like candy. I have to stop myself from eating them all straight off the pan. Unlike most other roasted veggies, which I typically serve as a side dish, these roasted tomatoes are the perfect addition to many summer meals. They’ll turn a simple pasta with basil into a highly memorable dinner.

You’ll be happy to hear that roasting these cherry tomatoes require a much lower temperature than normal (just 250 degrees Fahrenheit). While they do require a couple of hours in the oven, you can throw these in the oven on a hot day without overheating your kitchen.

Tomato lovers, gardeners and weekend meal preppers, this roasted tomato recipe is for you!

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When it’s blazing hot outside, this cucumber tomato salad is exactly what I want to eat. This recipe is crisp and refreshing, light yet satisfying.

This salad features fresh cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, not-too-much red onion, fresh herbs and optional feta cheese. Once tossed in Greek dressing, this basic combination is further proof that summertime produce doesn’t need much help to taste spectacular.

Bring this tomato cucumber salad recipe to your next get-together, or serve it at home as a side salad. It keeps well for several days in the refrigerator.

I love leftovers with sandwiches—this salad would be perfect with my Caprese Sandwich, Vegetarian “BLT” Sandwich or Green Goddess Hummus Sandwich. Hope you’ll make it soon!

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Who doesn’t love a great Greek salad? Make your own starting with this Greek salad dressing recipe. This dressing is bold, zippy and delicious. It’s super easy to whisk together at home with basic pantry ingredients.

This Greek vinaigrette is made simply with olive oil, red wine vinegar, fresh garlic, dried oregano and salt and pepper. We’ll add a touch of honey or maple syrup to balance the flavors. That’s it! The end result tastes just like the dressings I’ve enjoyed in Greece.

Homemade salad dressings always taste so fresh and vibrant—they’re simply superior to store-bought dressings and keep well for a week in the fridge. Plus, you can use healthy ingredients, like extra-virgin olive oil, and avoid unnecessary preservatives. Homemade dressings are a win all around, and this one is ready in just five minutes!

Enjoy this dressing on my Chopped Greek Salad, or improvise your own salad with fresh ingredients you have on hand. You’ll find a list of my suggested salad ingredients below, and keep an eye out for a fresh summer salad featuring this dressing later this week.

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Have you tried the baked feta pasta that took the internet by storm earlier this year? That simple recipe inspired this delicious summer dip, which features some of my very favorite flavors—creamy feta, tangy cherry tomatoes, olives and plenty of fresh basil.

Baking these ingredients together near the heat source yields maximal flavor. The feta softens and turns golden, the cherry tomatoes burst and naturally sweeten, and the olives become even more intensely olive-y. Swirled together and finished with a generous sprinkle of basil, the combination is sublime.

This dish also bears a resemblance to a classic Greek dish called feta fournou, or baked feta. That dish typically features feta with bell pepper, tomato and oregano.

The flavors in today’s dip are also delicious raw, as you’ve seen in my Mediterranean Tomato & Feta Dip—make that one if you don’t want to turn on the oven! Either one will be a perfect light meal or summer evening appetizer.

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Pizza always makes a bad day feel better, and there’s nothing nicer than a perfect slice of margherita pizza. Now you can make this recipe at home any time the craving strikes!

Pizza margherita, as the Italians call it, is a simple pizza hailing from Naples. When done right, margherita pizza features a bubbly crust, crushed San Marzano tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and basil, a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkle of salt. That is all.

Sure, you could add some tomato if you’d like, but only if the tomato is truly ripe, red and worthy. Authentic Neapolitan pizza margherita doesn’t require fresh tomato. Try making this pizza as written, and you won’t miss the tomato on top. Sometimes less is more.

This pizza is simple, fresh and a guaranteed crowd pleaser. It’s a delight to make and even better to eat. How about pizza tonight?

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Tired of regular roasted cauliflower? Try cauliflower “steaks” instead! Cauliflower steak makes a strong presentation at the dinner table. Think of it more as a side dish or meal component than a protein-rich steak—after all, we’re talking about roasted slabs of cauliflower.

You can serve these cauliflower steaks as a simple side dish topped with gremolata or a sprinkle of parsley. Or, create a restaurant-worthy vegetarian meal out of them. Start with a simple base of whole grains and chickpeas or lentils, then top it with cauliflower steak and a vibrant homemade sauce. Beautiful!

Cauliflower steaks require careful cauliflower selection and slicing. Know that the outer slabs will likely fall apart into large florets, which are still very nice. Cauliflower steaks are a bit more work than simple roasted cauliflower, but they’re worth the effort.

If you follow my recipe while maintaining reasonable expectations, you’ll be plenty satisfied by your results. Keep reading for all of my cauliflower steak tips and tricks!

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