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Let’s rewind to my trip to Costa Rica last month with my grandmother. It was the last day on our group trip, and we arrived at Sibu for our final dinner together. Sibu produces the best chocolate I’ve ever tasted, and they greeted us with rum-spiked, spiced hot chocolate.
I was literally a kid in a candy store all night as they presented a lesson in chocolate history (with wine and chocolate) and moved on to an incredible dinner.
After appetizers, they handed us chopped salads that looked fairly basic at first glance—I remember lettuce, tomato, avocado, feta and dressing. Then I took a bite and forgot about chocolate for a minute. That dressing!
I immediately tracked down the owner of the place to ask about it. He said it was a “honey-Dijon vinaigrette with yogurt base” and I vowed to recreate it at home. Mind you, this dressing is quite different from a classic vinaigrette.
I started with the honey-mustard vinaigrette that I made for my cookbook, which I love as written. I reduced the oil and added plain Greek yogurt until it tasted like the dressing at Sibu.
This dressing is essentially a creamy honey-mustard dressing made with Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise. It offers a more luxurious texture than any other honey-mustard dressing I’ve tried. I’m usually skeptical of using yogurt in place of mayonnaise or sour cream (mayo and sour cream have their place), but this salad dressing wouldn’t be the same without it.
Healthy Honey-Mustard Dressing
The only problem with this dressing is that “honey-Dijon vinaigrette with yogurt base” doesn’t do it justice. “Healthy honey-mustard dressing” sounds bland, and “creamy honey-mustard dressing” doesn’t quite capture the tangy deliciousness of the yogurt.
I dubbed it “Sunshine Salad Dressing” since it brightens up my salads so well. I couldn’t keep it to myself any longer, so I’m sharing it today for all of your side salad needs. The recipe yields a lot (almost 1 1/2 cups). I don’t think you’ll have any trouble finishing it off. It makes a stellar dip for vegetables, too!
I’ve been keeping a big jar of it in my fridge for the past couple of weeks, and it goes with just about everything. Try this honey-mustard dressing with any of the following:
- Fresh greens of any kind
- Avocado
- Broccoli
- Brussels sprouts
- Cabbage
- Kale
- Carrots
- Apples
- Bell peppers
- Goat cheese, feta or cheddar cheese
- Sunflower seeds, pecans, or almonds
Don’t miss my sunshine slaw with quinoa or my roasted and raw carrot salad with avocado,which both call for this dressing. I have more salads over here.
Please let me know how you like this honey-mustard dressing in the comments! I hope you love it as much as I do.
Watch How to Make Sunshine Dressing
Sunshine Salad Dressing
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- Author: Cookie and Kate
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 ½ cups 1x
- Category: Salad Dressing
- Method: Whisked
- Cuisine: American
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star
4.9 from 429 reviews
This creamy honey-mustard salad dressing recipe is lightened up with Greek yogurt. No mayo here! It’s so easy to whisk this dressing together. Recipe yields almost 1 ½ cups and keeps well for 10 to 14 days.
Scale
Ingredients
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt (any % fat will do)
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup Dijon mustard
- 3 to 4 tablespoons honey, to taste
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or more lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a 2-cup liquid measuring cup or bowl, combine all of the ingredients as listed. Whisk until blended. Taste, and season with additional pepper if necessary.
- This dressing is intentionally bold, but if it tastes too tart for your liking, whisk in another tablespoon of honey.
- Store leftover salad dressing in the refrigerator, covered, for 10 to 14 days.
Notes
Make it dairy free: If you have a favorite unsweetened dairy-free plain yogurt, it should work well here.
▸ Nutrition Information
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #cookieandkate.
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Ruth
I tried this absolutely delicious recipe . It tasted amazing. Thank you Cookies and Kate.
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Kate
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Ruth!
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Sienna
This is delicious! Made it today and loved it.
Thank you.Reply
Kate
Great to hear, Sienna! I appreciate your review.
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Mary
Thank you Kate for this delicious dressing. I love to eat it everyday! It does bring sunshine to my salads!!!
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Kate
That’s great to hear, Mary!
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Mari
Made this tonight and we loved it I am a huge honey mustard fan and will make this again to replace our go-to store bought brand.
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Kate
I love it! Thank you for sharing, Mari.
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Audrey
Hands down, THE BEST honey/mustard dressing we’ve ever tasted! I only had one homemade favorite, being a creamy balsamic recipe I use but now I have two favorites in my arsenal haha! Outstanding! Whole family loved it and we all went back for seconds on salad, which my guys never do so, there’s the proof haha!
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Kate
I’mm glad you loved it, Audrey!
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Michelle
Holy smokes, it’s good! I love a good sweet kale salad blend and this goes perfectly. I may even try it for my broccoli salad recipe too!
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Kate
Great to hear, Michelle! I appreciate your review.
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Laura
So delicious, didn’t use the oil, used less mustard as our UK one is much stronger, and used erythritol instead of the sweetener. My kids all loved it too and are asking me to make it again. Will be a regular in our house, thanks for a great recipe!
Kate
You’re welcome, Laura! I appreciate your review.
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Marsha
This recipe rocks! I hate naked food but love dry food with a dressing. This is my new go to for everything! Dressing, dip, sauce – this makes everything better. I make it twice a week. I use it on everything. I switched to Mediterranean diet a few weeks ago to be healthier and lose some weight. I could not do it without this recipe! THANK YOU! You changed my life.
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Kate
I’m glad you love it, Marsha! Thank you for sharing. This dressing does go with so much!
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alma
so good
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Kate
I’m glad you love it, Alma!
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Troy
This dressing is delicious and a very healthy way of eating salad. I followed the recipe exactly and it was amazing ❤️
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Kate
I’m glad you loved it, Troy!
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Kim R.
Fantastic! I did add 1/4 tsp of dried mustard. This is spoonable!
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Kate
I’m glad you love it, Kim! Thank you for your review.
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Mo
So delicious. It’s a definite keeper as it goes with almost anything. Thank you for creating it.
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Kate
You’re welcome, Mo! I appreciate your review.
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Tracey
Hi lovely sunshine salad dressing…I don’t think there will be any problems of any been thrown away.
It’s delicious.
Can you tell me how many calories in a teaspoon or table spoon please…
Thank you for this recipe and I have subscribed to u.
Thank you
Tracey…xReply
Kate
Hi! The nutritional information is below the notes section of the recipe.
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ian
Excellent recipe. Nicely balanced and not too tangy. We didn’t have yogurt so we subbed in sour cream and used it on a broccoli and bacon salad. 10/10 will make again.
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Kate
Thank you, Ian! I’m glad you loved it.
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Amy Martin
This dressing was absolutely delicious – fresh and bright and tangy! It made my salad sing! Thank you for sharing :)
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Kate
You’re welcome, Amy!
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Rita Gorra
This is wonderful. I grow my own lettuce and mini lettuces and this dressing compliments their delicate leaves and taste. Much more than a sum of its parts. Synergetic
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Kay
I added some fresh basil from the garden, creamy goodness.
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Kate
Thank you for sharing, Kay! I appreciate your review.
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Sue Porter
Sunshine salad dressing is fantastic, it does brighten up every salad you make.
YummyReply
Sheila
I made it exactly as instructed, except I only had whole grain Dijon. Still delicious and rather pretty with the whole mustard seeds.
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Little Bold Lady
Have always preferred homemade salad dressings, but your recipe has become my “go-to” because not only is it delish, but I can count on having these staples in my pantry.
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Phyllis I Paetznick
So creamy and delicious!
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Holly
I absolutely love this recipe! I never put oil in it and you can’t tell it’s missing! It’s so much healthier to have this on hand than store bought. – not to mention a bottle of Hellman’s Dijon was $5.99 on sale in Calgary.
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Jayne-Marie Dale
This recipe is to die for! Absolutely amazing and such a combination of healthy ingredients. Thank you so much.
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Kate
I’m happy you loved it, Jayne!
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Donna
Iv just made this it is gorgeous can’t stop putting my spoon in the jar, can I ask what is the calorie content per tablespoon
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Lucy
This might be my new favourite dressing! No recipe adjustments needed. Super tasty with just the right amount of tart and sweet.
Thank you!Reply
Kate
You’re welcome, Lucy! Thank you for your review.
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Debbie
I always have a jar of this delicious dressing in my fridge. Everyone that has ever tried it wants the recipe so I am forever sharing your link. Sometimes I just pass the fridge and can’t resist dunking a mushroom in there. I love it. Thank you very much.
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Kate
You’re welcome, Debbie!
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Claudia Vaglica
Delicious! I drizzled it over pecan-crusted chicken breasts and it was delightful! Definitely going to try the sunshine slaw with quinoa next! This is a keeper for sure.
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Kate
That’s great to hear, Claudia! I appreciate your review.
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Deanne Gowsmith
I made your sunshine recipe and I have NEVER tasted such a delicious salad dressing.. I have been hunting fo a yummy health dressing .. this is it.. it will make me eat more salad just to get this dressing.. I even wanted to lick the benchtop where some spilled LOL ( but I didn’t)
Thankyou this is amazingReply
Kate
Thank you, Deanne!
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Deanne Gowsmith
I made your sunshine recipe and I have NEVER tasted such a delicious salad dressing.. I have been hunting fo a yummy health dressing .. this is it.. it will make me eat more salad just to get this dressing.. I even wanted to lick the benchtop where some spilled LOL ( but I didn’t)
Thankyou this is amazing dressingReply
helaine
I love your recipes and make them all of the time!
I need to make this dressing dairy free so could I use some tahini instead of the yogurt?Reply
Kate
I haven’t tried it, so I’m not sure how it would taste. If you try it, let me know!
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Heather
This is my go-to dressing! I lived in Costa Rica for 3 years and had something very similar. It makes a great topping for almost everything. Thanks!!!
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Kate
You’re welcome, Heather!
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Jill
Exactly the taste I was looking to achieve! I did use mayo in place of yogurt, used about 5 tbs honey, 2 1/2 tbs lemon and only 1 tablespoon apple cider. Oh and I used stone ground mustard because I like how it looks. It is delightful! It is very light bright but creamy at the same time. I like how it is creamy without being heavy. This will be my go to honey mustard!!
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Kate
Great to hear, Jill!
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Jan
I didn’t have yogurt – substituted cottage cheese blended smooth. It was delicious!
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Karen
Honey mustard is a fave for dressing & dipping (chicken nuggets/strips)& since I make my own Greek yogurt, this is great!
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Kate
I’m glad you love this, Karen! Thank you for your review.
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Carla
This is one of the best salad dressing recipes I’ve ever tried! It has become our “go-to” recipe and goes with all kinds of salads and it’s great on roasted veggies. Love this! Thank you, Kate. You have great recipes!
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Donna
Perfectly d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s. Thanks so much!
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Anya
Wow, this is delicious! The thick consistency is so versatile, I just dip my veggies in it, too.
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Paris Nagy-Bergeron
This was the first dressing I e ever made and absolutely loved it so happy with my dinner
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Robinson
Thank you so much for this recipe.This zesty dressing really brings salads to life and is so much more than the sum of its parts. I especially like it on chicory (endive).
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Alyssa
This recipe is delicious! The name is perfect too! Thank you for sharing it along with your story behind it.
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Kate
I’m happy you enjoyed it, Alyssa!
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Kim
Soooo good! I don’t eat mayo anymore so I made this using maple syrup instead of honey to make chickpea salad sandwiches. Next time I might marinate the chickpeas in the dressing first. It was really good. Your recipes have been a blessing for my eating habits. The liberties you suggest in all of your recipes make me feel like I can add to substitute for the way I eat.
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Denise
This salad dressing is absolutely delicious. We made a small substitution and replaced the olive oil with sesame oil. It takes it to a whole other level! Thank you for the recipe, we enjoy it almost every day!
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Mireille O'Rourke
Low and behold we had run out of store bought dressing. Last minute creation ( supper was on the table) followed your recipe and VOILA. Best spinach salad! Thank you. This one is a keeper.
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Kate
Happy to hear you enjoyed it, Mireille!
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Denise
Thank you, thank you for this. I make my own Greek yogurt and find myself with an overage right now, so I came looking for yogurt salad dressings. I make my own honey-mustard dressing, but I had been thinking about how to make it with yogurt. Voilá! You’ve taken the guess work out of it for me. I see I will also be using it for my slaw recipes, as well as dips. I appreciate you greatly!
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Debbie
Just discovered your recipes and tried this dressing. OMG, so good.
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Kate
Happy to hear you loved it, Debbie!
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Rita Novello
I have been making this for over a year every few weeks and still just love it, guests love it too. Thank you.
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Kate
Great to hear, Rita!
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Melanie R
Delish! A perfect honey-mustard dressing that’s healthy. Thank you!
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Kate
You’re welcome, Melanie! Thank you for your review.
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Debbie
How long does this last in fridge?
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Kate
Store leftover salad dressing in the refrigerator, covered, for 10 to 14 days.
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Gina Bryant
It’s possible that I could drink this dressing. Put it over salmon tonight and it was amazing! I’m so excited for salad tomorrow to have it again!!
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Joseph
Thanks for the dressing recipe. Sounds great. Will try it very soon.
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