Here at Paleo Comfort Foods, we’re all about finding your favorite meals, recipes, and making them suitable for a paleo diet. A paleo diet means sticking to those foods that our early ancestors enjoyed, and when humans were hunters and gatherers.
This means that you tend to avoid foods that did not come before farming and processing. By cutting out processed foods, you can enjoy only nutritional fruits and vegetables, filled with vitamins, minerals and fiber, and eat only lean meats and fish for protein.
Although this diet is better for you, it can be hard to cater to the switch in diet and lifestyle, and you may find yourself missing foods from your favorite places like Trader Joe’s. Luckily, we have a copycat recipe of Trader Joe’s iconic, delicious and healthy dressing; the Green Goddess Salad Dressing.
Why Trader Joe’s Green Goddess Dressing Recipe is so Good
The Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing is so dreamy, delicious and oh so creamy. It can really take your salads to the next level, and trust us on this one, if you haven’t tried it yet, you are missing out!
What is even better is that it is also gluten free, dairy free and sugar free and perfect for those on a paleo diet. In addition to this, the Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing is actually pretty healthy, as it is super low in calories and has a very low fat content unlike other restaurant salad dressings.
This salad dressing only has about 20 calories and 2 grams of fat per serving, whereas other Green Goddess dressings from various restaurants can have up to 80 calories per serving and up to 9 grams of fat!
Another reason why we love this dressing is that it looks great, bright and colorful when served. So, if you want to impress your dinner guests, then serving up this copycat Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing is a great choice!
What’s in Trader Joe’s Green Goddess Dressing?
Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing is so beloved because of its thick, creamy texture. Now, this soft, creamy texture comes from the fact that the majority of the dressing is made with crushed avocados.
However, to avoid it being too lumpy and thick, cold pressed lemon juice is added to thin out the mixture, and give the dressing that zesty and acidic taste. This can also be achieved with a little vinegar too.
Then, there are the herbs and spices for flavor. Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing is most often made with green onion, chives, basil and garlic for a more flavorful and delicious taste, and is blended together to create that silky smooth texture for your salads.
So, to make your own, the ingredients are very basic and simple. All you need is:
- Avocado
- Green onion
- Lemon juice (cold pressed if possible)
- Apple cider vinegar
- Chives
- Salt and pepper
- Basil
- Garlic
In some locations, the Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing will have sour cream mixed in, but as we do not eat dairy products as part of a Paelo diet, we are going to skip that part!
How to make Trader Joe’s Green Goddess Dressing
The great thing about this copycat Green Goddess recipe is that it yields enough for 12 servings, and only takes 5 minutes to make! Additionally, you don’t have to worry about your waistline, as there are only about 30 calories per serving, with roughly 51 mg of sodium, 2g of carbohydrates and 1g of fiber per serving. So, it’s guilt free, and dairy free, so is fine for someone who has a paleo diet and lifestyle!
Now if you want to make this simple copycat Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing for yourself, then it will only take you a few minutes. All you need to do is gather your ingredients, chop up the onion and chives, and stick it all together in a blender!
So, first you will need:
- 1 medium avocado
- ⅔ cup of chopped chives
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp chopped onion
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- ¼ cup of parsley
- ½ cup of water
- ½ cup of basil
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp pepper
Once you have gathered all of your ingredients, and chopped up the onions, chives, and minced the garlic, you will want to combine all of the ingredients together in a blender, or a food processor.
Then, blend and puree the ingredients until the mixture is completely smooth, velvety and creamy. Scrape it all out of the blender, and serve up in a bowl!
How to eat Trader Joe’s Green Goddess Dressing
Now, of course, you can serve this up as a salad dressing, however the Green Goddess dressing is rather thick in nature, so if you want it as a dressing, then we recommend adding in a little more water until you get the consistency you like. However, you can eliminate the water altogether, and serve up this copycat Trader Joe’s Green Goddess dressing as a dip for snacking on!
Trust us, you will impress all of your friends and family, with this healthy, green and creamy dressing that all can enjoy.