Probiotic Avocado Ranch Dressing
Let's keep the summer flavors rolling, with this fun and quick recipe.
It’s salad season! Do you like a creamy salad dressing?
Just as yogurt can accentuate the creamy (and slightly sour) properties of many dressings, so can kefir (regular or dairy free). With its slightly more liquid consistency, kefir can act as a great base to explore in dressings and sauces.
Pure, simple, rich with gut friendly probiotics and of course, so yummy. The dressing is something I love to have in my fridge –– it's good with everything and you can make the dairy-free option if you like. In fact, I am making this for dinner with a cob salad tonight.
I wrote this recipe a coupe of years ago for the Chopra Center. Everyone in my house loves it, as do I. You can buy a regular kefir (or even whole milk yogurt) or if you are dairy free, try a dairy-free plain kefir, now available at health food stores.
What Is Kefir?
Kefir is a traditional food, originating in Eastern Europe and Russia in the Caucasian mountains. Derived from the Turkish word keyif, which means “feeling good,” kefir became a tonic that was enjoyed beyond Eastern Europe.
Kefir is a slightly more-liquid version of yogurt. Often recommended for its impressive probiotic levels, kefir both does well as a stand-alone fermented beverage as well as a main ingredient in many yummy recipes.
A fermented drink, kefir is usually made from cow, goat, nut, or coconut milk. What makes kefir different from its cousin, yogurt, is the way in which it is made. Kefir is fermented with kefir grain—a combination probiotic bacteria and yeast. The kefir grains feed on the lactose in the milk, making it lower in lactose (if using cow or goat milk) and easier for those to digest who have lactose intolerance. When kefir is made with nut milk or coconut milk the process is similar except requires just a bit of sugar instead of the lactose (in the milk) for the fermentation to occur.
Its potent nutrient profile lends to its popularity and widespread uses for health and well-being. Kefir is especially high in vitamin B12, calcium, magnesium, vitamin K, folate, and a diverse array of probiotics.
The fermentation process enhances many of the health benefits of foods, due to the high and diverse range of probiotics and increased bioavailability. As a fermented beverage, kefir is a wonderful example of a probiotic superfood. Kefir benefits range from digestive support to immunity; it has earned its place as a hearty probiotic food you can include in your health regimen. The following are four of the main health benefits of Kefir:
Use it as a dip, a salad dressing or a simple zippy sauce to give your main course a flare. Rich in probiotics and so quick to make.
