Matthew Woolen is a master pastry chef and has worked in a variety of Seattle restaurants, including gastropub Old Sage, Zhu Dang, and a gluten-free restaurant called Capitol Cider.

Matthew Woolen

Chef Matthew Woolen took a stab at making a creamy ranch dressing using only plant-based ingredients. These are his notes. The intention here was to be able to enjoy America’s favorite dressing and dipping sauce, but make it dairy-free using fresh blended cashew nut milk, olive oil to form an emulsion, and dehydrated alliums for flavor. For what it’s worth, the first go was pretty damn good. If I were to do another batch, I would revisit making an emulsion with aquafaba, just like our mayo <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/no-egg-mayo-from-a-can-of-beans">recipe from a can of beans</a>, and then add some acidulated nut milk along with the herbs, salt, pepper, and the seasoning powder.

Plant-Based Ranch Dressing Trial Notes