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Honey Poppyseed Dressing

This post is part of a paid partnership with Canola Eat Well. I'm being compensated for writing this recipe.

It's summer BBQ season and I'm feeling inspired by some recent virtual visits organized by Canola Eat Well. In previous years, the Canola team has invited Canadian food writers, chefs and other food voices to Manitoba to learn how canola is grown, meet some farmers under those big blue prairie skies, and eat great food. When they announced some virtual sessions this spring, I jumped at the chance to reconnect, learn from some big name chefs like Ned Bell, and listen to live music.

Although I spend a lot of time in virtual meetings during the day, these sessions felt like a little island in my evening to do something different and delicious. I'm not going to say I fell in love with canola oil again. The truth is canola oil and I are longtime friends. This homegrown Canadian ingredient is a staple in my kitchen and it continues to come out of the pantry often.

One of my favourite uses for canola oil is salad dressing. That's because neutral-flavoured oils like canola allow you to bring in a variety of other flavours without becoming overpowered. This honey poppyseed dressing is easy to make, fun to shake, and turns my store-bought shredded kale salad into something I'm willing to call homemade.


Honey Poppyseed Dressing
Makes approx. 1 cup (250 mL) of dressing, which is enough for a family-size salad

2/3 cup (150 mL) canola oil
1/4 cup (60 mL) white wine vinegar
1 tbsp (15 mL) prepared yellow mustard
1 tbsp (15 mL) honey
1 1/2 tsp (7 mL) poppyseeds
1/4 tsp (1 mL) coarse salt

Add all the ingredients to a jar. Pop on the lid, shake it up, and pour over your prepared salad.

With a brassica salad like kale or cabbage, I like pour the dressing at least 20 minutes ahead of time to allow the dressing to make the vegetables more tender before serving.