We’ve been into sauces and dressings in our kitchen lately, and our new favorite obsession is Groovy Goddess Everything Sauce. Starting with one of our hot sauces as a flavor base is a quick and easy way to get a restaurant quality dip or sauce on your table in no time. Here’s some ideas and a basic recipe outline to get you started in your own kitchen (scroll to the end for more information on the southwest salad and pizza) and check out our online store to purchase Groovy Green hot sauce.
BASIC SAUCE/DIP: An easy way to create a creamy, dreamy sauce in your own kitchen (think sriracha mayo, except better) is to start with a dairy (or non-dairy) base such as plain yogurt, sour cream, crema/crème fraiche, or mayonnaise, and add as much or as little Groovy Green hot sauce as you like. Groovy Green is a full-flavored but mild hot sauce (serrano pepper based) that we created for individuals who enjoy fresh flavor (lime juice, garlic, cilantro) but not the burn of our hotter sauces (Burning Embers, Hellraiser, or Deathstalker). Groovy Green, when combined with the heat cancelling superpower of dairy, will create a sauce the whole family can enjoy. In fact, I think my daughter polished off half a bottle the first day I made it! For this sauce I mixed about a cup of sour cream with a good pour of Groovy Green hot sauce, whisking it together in a large measuring cup. Taste as you go to hit the right flavor profile for your needs. Store any leftovers in a closed container in the refrigerator.
CREATE A DRESSING: My first intention with Groovy Goddess was to use it as a dressing for a southwest salad (yes, a play on green goddess dressing). After the basic sauce/dip was made, I simply thinned it out by blending it with a neutral oil (grapeseed, but canola will work just as well) until I reached a pourable consistency. I usually use a hand mixer of some variety at this point (I don’t like to lose dressing in a blender or have to clean it up after) to ensure proper blending has occurred. Again, store leftovers in a closed container in the refrigerator.
KITCHEN TIP: Last summer I was involved in preparing food for a farm-to-table luncheon series and thought I would “go-pro” by purchasing some reusable squeeze bottles for the sauces and dressings we used. Why I had never done this before for my own kitchen I will never know. Although a bit difficult to fill and clean (and you definitely need to cut the tips off so they don’t clog constantly), I have found having several squeeze bottles available in my kitchen an invaluable tool.
NEXT LEVEL: Want to take the flavor profile of this sauce to another level? Get your blender out and let’s get groovin’ (for this step I find I simply need…more power!). I started by blending together a bunch of fresh cilantro, 5-6 cloves of garlic (we go through garlic in our house by the head, not the clove), a good tablespoon of capers (anchovies are typically found in green goddess dressing but I substituted), juice from 2 fresh limes, a pinch of salt (start slow and add as needed), and a tablespoon of black pepper with enough neutral oil to make a paste. From here you can blend in your choice of dairy (or non-dairy) sour cream, plain yogurt, crema/crème fraiche, or mayonnaise, and Groovy Green hot sauce to make a thick sauce/dip. Next, decide if you want to take it further by blending in enough oil to create a dressing.
Sorry, I don’t do measurements in my kitchen; I taste my way through my creations. I generally start small (especially with salt) and work my way up until I can taste the ingredient and find a balance between sweet, heat, salt, and sour. This way I know I will end up with a sauce I will like. So have fun and get creative! Have a ripe avocado around? Blend it in! See where your imagination takes you.
Keep checking back for more ideas on how to use our products and inspiration to get into the kitchen and create healthy, accessible meals for you, your friends, and your family.
Take care!
MORE INFORMATION:
Southwest Salad: I love to create interesting, flavorful salads for dinner, and then take the additional step of packing up a second salad for lunch later in the week. This salad includes:
- brown rice and black quinoa (cooked together in a rice cooker)
- kidney beans (soaked overnight then cooked in vegetable stock in an Instant Pot)
- pan roasted butternut squash (seasoned with Cold Creek Farm Cajun seasoning)
- shredded cabbage
- fresh diced red onion and yellow pepper
- tomatoes
- pepitas (have to have some crunch!)
Southwest Pizza: I have been practicing making dough with fresh ground wheat berries. For this pizza crust I used the flour from soft white wheat berries that I ground in my Nutrimill and then followed my favorite “Really Good Pizza Dough” recipe from the March 2022 issue of Food and Wine Magazine. Here’s what went on the dough:
- Sazon garlic oil instead of sauce (sauté garlic and Cold Creek Farm Sazon seasoning in olive oil on low heat until garlic is soft)
- shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- corn (from the can, sauteed in a pan to blacken)
- black beans (soaked overnight, then cooked in vegetable stock in an Instant Pot)
- shredded cabbage (topped on pizza after baked)
- pepitas (sprinkled on pizza after baked)
Cold Creek Farm 