Asian Ginger Carrot Dressing

I will preface this by saying that this recipe includes onions.  I kind of fibbed to my husband and told him that I didn't put them in because he haaaaates onions.  More than anything else, he hates them, and I knew he wouldn't give it a fair chance.  Well they're processed so much in the food processor that you can't even tell they're in there.  He ate a big bowl of salad with this dressing tonight at dinner and said he really liked it a lot.  I felt guilty for lying, so I told him the truth after dinner and now he insists he won't ever eat it again.  We'll see.  :)

Anyway, this is probably my favorite salad dressing of all times, but before I stumbled upon this recipe, the only way I could get it was to buy a pint of it from our local Japanese restaurant.  Now I can make it myself!

I found the recipe on one of my new favorite websites: skinnytaste.com.  It's only 82.9 calories for a 2 tbsp serving, can't beat that!

Below is the missing ingredient ... I forgot it at the store and had to have John buy it for me later on in the day when he was already out and about.  :)

In case you're wondering, you cannot skip this step.  It's what thickens the dressing.

Ingredients:

1/4 c shredded carrots
1/4 c minced onion
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger (and in case you're wondering how to clean ginger root - I was, I've never used it before - you just peel the outer skin and then chop like you would an onion or garlic)
1 small clove garlic
1 tbsp minced celery
3 tbsp sesame oil (you can use peanut oil, also, though)
3 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Place all ingredients in the blender/food processor and process until smooth.  Refrigerate a few hours before using to let the flavors deepen.  This gets better the longer you let it sit, I promise!

Here's what it all looks like before you blend it ...

And, here's the finished product!  Enjoy!