Caramelized Onion & Bacon Dressing

Salad dressing is one of those things that people tend to have strong preferences about.

On the side. Tossed with lettuce.

Rich and creamy. Light vinaigrette.

Just a drizzle. Glopped on.

And don't even get me started on you die-hard "Ranch on everything" people!

Though I like a variety of dressings and vinaigrettes, homemade dressings always beat out the competition for me. The benefits of making your own dressings at home are obvious -- you can customize them to your liking and adjust the seasonings, quality of ingredients and even fat content.

I've become a big fan of yogurt-based salad dressings with their tart and creamy flavor. So, when the opportunity popped up to create my own yogurt dressing using Stonyfield Organic, I didn't have to think twice about it. Well, that's not entirely true. Have you ever thought about how many flavor combinations you can create for salad dressing?!

I ended up going with a combo that always works together: Caramelized Onion & Bacon. Instead of dressing a plain salad with this creamy, savory dressing, I drizzled it over arugula... perched on top of a Cheddar, Pear & Pecan Flatbread. Yum.

I left my version of this dressing on the thicker side {which actually makes it a great dip for crudites or pita chips}, but you can thin it out for easier pouring if you prefer, or use regular plain yogurt instead of Greek-style.

Don't stop at just one homemade dressing in your cooking repertoire! Check out these other yogurt-based dressings over on The Cookful, including this sweet and tangy Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing!

Disclosure: I was given coupons and compensation for the ingredients needed to create this recipe. As always, all opinions here are my own. :)

Caramelized Onion & Bacon Dressing

1/2 cup caramelized onion* {I used red onion but you can use whatever you'd like}
1 cup Stonyfield Greek Yogurt {I used the whole milk kind}
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
2 to 3 slices of crisply cooked bacon, crumbled

1. Combine caramelized onions, yogurt and vinegar in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.

2. Stir in crispy bacon. Season to taste. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

For Flatbread:

1 flatbread base, such as lavash, naan bread or store bought crust
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/3 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, such as Cabot
1/2 a pear, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped candied pecans {or regular pecans}
1/2 cup arugula leaves

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place lavash or flatbread crust on a baking pan lined with foil. Drizzle bread with olive oil and brush to coat. Bake for about 5-7 minutes or until the edges begin to brown.

2. Remove from oven and top with cheese, pear slices, and candied pecans. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and starting to brown and bubble in spots. {You'll want the pears to cook and soften a bit, too.}

3. Remove from oven and cool slightly before topping with arugula and drizzling with Caramelized Onion & Bacon Dressing.

*To caramelize onions, simply add about a tablespoon of olive oil to a pan, add thinly sliced onion and cook them down over medium-high heat, stirring frequently until the onions are very soft and turn a deep golden color. If they begin to burn to stick to the pan, add a little bit of stock of your choice, water or wine to the pan and continue to cook until the onions are ready and the liquid is completely evaporated.

Jambalaya Flatbread

In a miraculous turn of events, I managed to get the grocery shopping AND laundry done before noon on a Friday.

Before you applaud me for getting good at this mom thing {because you know I was patting myself on the back}, I have to tell you that my 9 month old child decided to pull down a small display of animal crackers as our groceries were being rung up by a Channing Tatum-esque cashier. The clear plastic barrels filled with little animal shapes crashed to the floor with a sound loud enough to shake me from my self-congratulatory fog and remind me never to get too cocky about my parenting skills. {On another note, Channing 2.0 may never have children of his own.}

Aside from that, our day has been pretty standard. And by standard I mean filled with attempts at productivity dashed by bouts of playing/fussing/chasing/catching, etc., etc.

I did, however, scratch together enough seconds to pop into the kitchen for a moment and make this:

I'm can't tell you if it was the excessive amount of green bell peppers or the soundtrack from The Princess and the Frog playing in the background that gave me the idea, but I can tell you that a good idea it was.

This Jambalaya Flatbread is such a fun Friday food for a casual dinner in or as an appetizer for guests. The hint of spice from the andouille sausage is balanced out by a creamy tomato base, seasoned with a dash of celery salt to give the classic taste of the "trinity" {onion, bell pepper, celery} that goes into jambalaya. Soft, sauteed bell peppers and onions in contrast to the crisp flatbread crust
makes every taste bud do a little dance.

Celebrate your Friday successes {or forget about your mishaps} with Jambalaya Flatbread tonight. Here's to making it to the weekend!

Jambalaya Flatbread 

Store bought {or homemade} pizza dough
Olive oil
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup diced onion
4 ounces cream cheese, softened at room temp
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
{Optional} Dash of cayenne pepper
1 to 2 smoked andouille sausage, very thinly sliced

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, place it in the oven to heat it up. If not, prepare a baking sheet with a little bit of olive oil. Set aside.

2. In a skillet over medium-high heat, heat olive oil. Saute green bell pepper and onion until just softened and translucent. Set aside.

3. Meanwhile, with a hand mixer, beat together cream cheese, tomato paste and celery salt {and cayenne if using}. Set aside.

4. On a floured surface, cut dough into quarters. Roll out each quarter to desired thickness -- I made mine very thin for quick baking and a crisp flatbread. You should be able to get 4 flatbreads out of 1 pound of dough depending on how big you make them. Place on pizza stone or oiled baking pan. Bake for 5-7 minutes or until the dough is just set and starts to bubble.

5. Remove flatbreads from oven. Spread each evenly with cream cheese mixture. Top with sauteed bell peppers, onions and sausage.

6. Return flatbreads to oven and bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until the sausages begin to brown a bit and the crusts are crisp.

Enjoy hot!