Gram's Homemade French Dressing

Everything tasted better at my Gram's house. She used real butter, Vitamin D milk, real salad dressing, real mayonnaise, real everything! I use the term "real" because my Dad is a Diabetic, so at my house there was "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter," skim milk, and fat free dressing, low fat mayo...you get the idea! My Grandma's food was from scratch and full of flavor. No low fat, low calorie anything. Even simple green salads at her house tasted amazing. Grandma's salads weren't complicated. They usually consisted of iceberg lettuce, carrots, tomatoes and onion. But she always had delicious dressings - Vidalia Onion, Poppy Seed, or her homemade French dressing. 

Gram's french dressing is sweet, rich, and so much better than store bought. I had never made it before, but have eaten it lots of times. The recipe only called for "oil" and my gut told me that Gram didn't use olive oil, but I tried making the dressing with it anyway. Whoops. The olive oil flavor was too overpowering, so I know now that Grandma must have used vegetable or Canola oil. Next time, my friends, I will get it right!

My Grandma is 15 in this picture and it was 1946. She was a Majorette for her high school and helped to lead the band.  As a little girl I looked at this picture and wanted to be beautiful and glamorous like my Gram, so in first grade I signed up for baton lessons. I learned a few moves, enough for show and tell at school and to show my Gram. Grandma kept one of her old batons in the basement, so the two of us practiced our baton twirling together in her living room.  40 years after this picture was taken, Gram still had her baton skills. This picture and my baton memories make me smile, and goes to show how much I admired and looked up to my Grandma, even from an early age. PS Please notice that she autographed this picture. :)

Gram's Homemade French Dressing
Printable Version

Ingredients
1/2 cup of sugar 
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup ketchup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Squeeze of lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced

Directions
Blend all ingredients together. Refrigerate. Shake well before serving.