Winstead Wandering

Prone to Wander

homemade buttermilk ranch dressing

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You don’t have to settle for the gloopy bottled stuff. Homemade buttermilk ranch dressing is fresher and lighter, and it’s the perfect condiment for just about anything.

You don't have to settle for the gloopy bottled stuff. Homemade buttermilk ranch dressing is fresher and lighter, and it's the perfect condiment for just about anything.

A lot of my from-scratch recipes come about because, whenever possible, I prefer to know what goes into the food I feed my family.

This is not one of those recipes. I set out to make homemade ranch dressing because I was tired of how gross the bottled version is. I love the ranch dressing available at restaurants, but the store-bought kind just doesn’t measure up. I wanted access to restaurant style ranch at home.

I eat this ranch on everything. Clearly, it’s awesome on salads. It’s also amazing on chicken tacos, as a dip for veggies and chips, and served with chicken nuggets or French fries.

You don't have to settle for the gloopy bottled stuff. Homemade buttermilk ranch dressing is fresher and lighter, and it's the perfect condiment for just about anything.

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mississippi comeback sauce

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Mississippi comeback sauce is the fun cousin of fry sauce: it’s creamy, has a surprising depth of flavor, and is perfect for fries, burgers, dogs, and more.

Mississippi comeback sauce is the fun cousin of fry sauce: it's creamy, has a surprising depth of flavor, and is perfect for fries, burgers, dogs, and more.

As a Mississippian, I feel it’s my duty to share this recipe with the world. Or, you know, with my 72 readers.

Either way, I’m putting this out there because everyone, in every state, deserves to know the beauty that is Mississippi Comeback Sauce.

This sauce is more than a sauce, really. It’s a staple, a tradition, an institution. It’s the first cousin of fry sauce, but the witty, down-to-earth cousin that everyone wants to hang out with. Sure, you might have been settling for fry sauce your whole life, thinking it was as good as you could get. I know, that used to be me.

Until I discovered comeback sauce. When that happened, there was no going back. Why would you settle for Chris Kirkpatrick when you could be hanging out with Justin Timberlake? You wouldn’t. So don’t settle for less in the condiment department, either. Make this Mississippi Comeback Sauce.

Mississippi comeback sauce is the fun cousin of fry sauce: it's creamy, has a surprising depth of flavor, and is perfect for fries, burgers, dogs, and more.

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southern pimento cheese

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This stuff is called the caviar of The South. Pimento cheese is super easy to make, full of flavor, and would be the perfect addition to your game day feast.

This stuff is called the caviar of The South. Pimento cheese is super easy to make, full of flavor, and would be the perfect addition to your game day feast.

I didn’t grow up in the South, which is what I blame my lack of pimento cheese exposure on. It isn’t something that’s eaten in Oregon- or even sold in stores, for all I know- so I just never ate it. After moving to Mississippi, I’d see it in the grocery store. It’s neon orange color was enough to deter me from even being interested.

That’s why, when my mother-in-law mentioned having pimento cheese, I wasn’t too excited to try it. She mentioned she thought I’d love it, though, and since she seems to know my food preferences well, I gave it a try.

All I could think of during that first bite was the time I wasted not knowing such a food existed. This stuff, y’all. It’s mainly cheese, which is why it’s so damn delicious. But it also includes the perfect blend of seasonings, including the southern staple Tony Chachere’s, and mayonnaise for smoothness (don’t let the mayo throw you; I’m not a fan of the stuff, but you can’t taste it).

Southern pimento cheese dip is perfectly creamy, with just the right amount of spicy kick from the Tony’s. The pimentos add a note of flavor without being spicy. It’s wonderful served as a dip with crackers or chips, but, as you’ll soon see, there are other creative-yet-tasty ways to cook with it.

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