The Best Dressings for Winter Gatherings including Christmas in July
There are lots of festive food options to choose from when it comes to making your Christmas in July celebration as tasty as it is memorable. Whether that’s a classic roast meal, fresh salads, roasted veggies – or a little bit of everything!
One area where you can save time in the kitchen and achieve a restaurant quality result is by relying on The Pudding Lady’s Simply Stirred range of award-winning condiments (made fresh in the Hunter Valley).
Instead of making your own dressings, dips and marinades from scratch, these simple and easy options make every dish a star bursting full of flavour.
Below are some of our most popular dressings for your Christmas in July lunch, dinner or party and how to get the most out of them.
Best of all, each product can be used in several different dishes and ways on the day. Learn more below!
One of our all-time favourites for the best Christmas in July is a Caramelised Balsamic Dressing (after all, it’s a best-seller for a reason)!
-This versatile dressing has a rich traditional balsamic flavour that enhances veggies with its slightly tart, slightly sweet profile.
- For salads, it’s so simple – just drizzle a little over tomatoes, cucumber, rocket, spinach and your other favourite ingredients before serving.
- It’s also wonderful splashed over veggies like asparagus, carrot and other root vegetables before roasting, for a medley of bold flavours that add something unique to your meal
- Or, a few dashes in your pan with a little honey or sugar makes a sweet balsamic glaze for your veggies
- Our Tip: if you’re making a gravy for your veggies and other mains, you can add a few splashes of caramelised balsamic dressing before serving to enrich the taste!
Our Balsamic dressing comes in a few versions to suit a range of palettes and dishes!
• If you prefer a lighter balsamic with a little citrus zest, we think you’ll love the flavours in our Caramelised White Balsamic Dressing with Lime!
• If you’re looking for a little more “bite” from your dressing our Caramelised Balsamic Dressing with Pepper adds a little extra zing to any savoury salad.
• If you enjoy a sweet tangy twist with salads, try our Honey Mustard Dressing. This gluten free dressing is pure sunshine in a bottle and the prefect sweet, creamy finishing touch.
Bread & Cheese
Bread and cheese (enjoyed separately, or together) are firm favourites year-round; and if you plan to include these on the table at your Christmas in July luncheon or dinner, here’s our little secret to make them even tastier:
- Pour a little of your favourite Balsamic Dressing (we like a caramelised variety, like this one) in a shallow dipping bowl or small individual dipping bowls. Add a little olive oil and sea salt to the mix.
Now you have a super simple dressing that is so delicious for pieces of warmed, crusty bread!
- You can also drizzle cheese with balsamic dressing, or, if you plan to have a cheeseboard at some stage during your Christmas in July celebration, we recommend adding a few spoonful’s of Beetroot and Pear Chutney to it.
This chutney is a beautifully balanced, flavour enhancing condiment.
Potatoes
Although potatoes are a vegetable, they have their own dedicated category on our Christmas in July list since they are a wonderful all-rounder!
Here are two easy ways to make them even more special at your Christmas in July celebration:
Potato Salad
To “jazz” this dish up and elevate the flavours, add Simply Stirred Honey Mustard Dressing for a delicious twist on regular mayonnaise!
Here’s an easy recipe to make “Christmas in July Potato Trees”
Create 6 little potato Christmas trees in 5 simple steps:
- Boil 12 chat potatoes in a saucepan. Simmer for 8 minutes, then drain and cool
- Add some olive oil and sea salt and toss to combine
- Slightly flatten each potato with your hand, and place one potato on top of a second. Secure with a cocktail stick
- Preheat oven to 190°C. Place potatoes on an oiled baking tray and bake for 10 minutes until golden
- Remove cocktail sticks and press a sprig of festive rosemary into the top, et voila, you’ve created a little yummy, edible tree!
MAINS
Now to the main event! Here are some of our favourite Christmas in July options for fail-safe, delicious dressings or marinades that are ready and waiting for you!
Caramelised Red Wine Dressing with Plum and Star Anise
Juicy plum and Christmas foods are a wonderful pairing – which is why chicken, ham and roast pork taste even better with a little drizzled over it.
The aromatic red win and succulent plum with the slight spice of star anise add a little magic to your mouth!
Caramelised Soy Dressing with Ginger
The balanced saltiness of soy and spiced sweetness of ginger are delicious with chicken, seafood (such as fish and prawns) and tofu.
Classic Tomato Relish with Pepper
Have you tried our mouth-watering sweet, slightly tart relish? It can be added to a variety of cold cuts and meats and is the perfect accompaniment to a classic pie or Beef Wellington for Christmas in July.
Our Tip: you can also use this relish with pastas and as a dipping sauce for potatoes!
We hope you have enjoyed all the ways to use your favourite dressings, and perhaps discovered a flavour you haven’t seen before and want to try!
To explore our extensive range of innovative and classic Simply Stirred flavour combinations, shop here!
