Who in the heck was George Arliss and what does he have to do with Green Goddess Salad Dressing?
Arliss was a British actor in the early 1900s–sort of the Michael Caine of his day. He was the first British actor to win an Academy Award. He won for his portrayal of Disraeli in the movie of the same name.
In the annals of food history, Arliss inspired the creation of the original Green Goddess salad dressing by a chef at San Francisco’s Palace Hotel.
As the story goes, Arliss was in town starring in a play (later to be a movie) titled The Green Goddess and staying at the elegant Palace Hotel. Bored with the salad dressing offerings in the hotel’s restaurant, he challenged the hotel’s executive chef to make something better. (Arliss must have been something of a divo.) The chef, Philip Roemer, developed a great new dressing and named it Green Goddess to placate the fussy Arliss. To this day, the dressing is a favorite in the hotel’s beautiful Garden Court Restaurant shown below. (I had the good fortune to have brunch in that dining room and the room is stunning.)
This iteration of Green Goddess Dressing can be whatever you want it to be—a dip, a salad dressing or whatever. It can be a herby vinaigrette-style dressing or it can be made creamy with the addition of mayonnaise. Avocados can also be used as I did here.
This recipe was inspired by a Green Goddess Salad Dressing recipe in the cookbook Mandy’s Gourmet Salads. You can buy this cookbook on Amazon here. This is a great salad cookbook!
Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen.
Avocado Green Goddess Dressing/Dip
Ingredients
- 2 T. chopped green onion (white part only)
- 1/4 C. packed basil leaves
- 1/2 C.flat leaf parsley
- 1/4 C. tarragon leaves
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/4 C. apple cider vinegar
- 1 t. Dijon mustard
- 1/2 C. olive oil
- 1/2 avocado
- 1/4 C. mayonnaise
- 1/2 t. fine sea salt
- 1/4 t. black pepper
Directions
- Step 1 Combine green onions, basil leaves, parsley leaves, tarragon leaves, garlic, vinegar and Dijon mustard in a blender. Blend until the herbs are finely chopped.
- Step 2 Drizzle the olive oil into the blender until the mixture is emulsified
- Step 3 Add avocado and mayonnaise. Blend.
- Step 4 Add salt and pepper to taste.
