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Now that you've made the decision to include a salad course at virtually every family dinner -- you have, haven't you? -- it's time to discuss how to flavor up those fresh, vitamin-filled, roughage-replete veggies.

While we all need more fresh vegetables and fruits in our diets, none of us really needs flavoring agents for those vegetables and fruits that we can't pronounce and that would stump even the brightest kid participating in the national spelling bee.

Check any bottled salad dressing or herb salad dressing mix at the grocery, even the so-called "lite" ones, and you'll see what I mean. Even those little spritzer dressings seem to have more ingredients than seems warranted for their flavoring effects.

If you make your own salad dressings, you'll have more control of what goes into -- or rather, what doesn't go into -- your family members' built-in "food processors."

That holds true whether or not the dressing you make happens to be a bit high on the caloric charts. You'll still be ahead of the game, both in terms of additives and, of course, cost.

Ergo, today's exercise is about you, the family chef, whipping up homemade salad dressings. Simple, flavorful

In most of Europe, the salad course comes after the main course. It is a simple concoction, simply dressed. More of a palate cleanser before dessert than the complicated assemblages we tend to toss together on this side of the pond.

And just a little something else to keep in mind: All those fresh vegetables -- especially the ones that are locally grown -- taste best when they're treated to a minimum of dressing, not drowned in it.

Indeed, among the very best ways to dress your salads is to put some excellent vinegar (red wine or balsamic, or both) into one cute little cruet and some olive oil into another and have at it.

A petite sprinkle of each, a smidge of pepper and salt and you're done. You'll want to go easy on the salt, of course, but with a basic dressing, a little salt can provide a lot of flavor balance.

A rule of thumb is to use 2/3 oil to 1/3 vinegar and/or lemon juice. I like more vinegar or lemon juice for a tarter result.

And some of us like to use all vinegar and a few sprinkles of a salt-free herbal mix. This simple approach is also very good on cooked leftover veggies such as spinach, asparagus, broccoli, green beans and other greens.

That said, here are some suggestions for going beyond the basic salad dressing. You can make most of these up ahead and store them in jars in the fridge.

Buttermilk dressing

Buttermilk-based dressings are popular with the young'uns, so if you're appealing to their palates, give this a try. You have to do some cooking for this one, so plan ahead. In this one, cornstarch and eggs help thicken the mix.

The dressing works well on just fresh greens or multi -- veggie put-togethers with greens, cukes, bell peppers, onions, zucchini slices, shredded carrots, even tomatoes (if you dare).

You can flavor this up with fresh herbs if you like. Use about 1 teaspoon minced herbs per half-cup or so of dressing. Stir in after you've cooked the dressing. Add a bit at a time and keep tasting.

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard (regular or English "hot")

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups low-fat buttermilk (shake well before measuring), divided

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

In a small, heavy saucepan, over medium heat, whisk together cornstarch, mustard, sugar, salt and 1/4 cup of the buttermilk until smooth. Add remaining buttermilk and eggs and whisk until smooth. Cook,, whisking constantly, until mixture comes to a simmer. Then simmer, also whisking constantly, until mixture is thickened and custard-like, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in lemon juice and olive oil. Taste for seasonings.

...Pour dressing into a bowl, cool slightly, then chill, covered with wax paper, about 1 hour. If not using that day, cover with plastic wrap, after it's cool, and chill until serving time. Makes about 2 cups. Serving size should be about 2 tablespoons.

Yogurt dressing

The thickener in this tangy mixture is heavy cream. Not to worry. At least you know what heavy cream is, as opposed to what's listed on some of the bottled dressing labels.

And besides, you're not going to put too much dressing on your salad anyway, are you?

1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

About 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh herbs, e.g. tarragon, dill, oregano, basil, marjoram, etc.

In medium bowl, whisk together yogurt, cream, lemon juice, mustard. Add herbs. Taste for salt and pepper.

Remember, this will be chilled and will go on chilled greens, so you'll want quite a bit of flavor.

Blue dressing

We've lightened this favorite "adult" dressing a bit with the use of reduced-fat cottage cheese -- which also helps to thicken it -- in place of some of the blue cheese. We also provide textural interest by adding capers.

1 cup reduced-fat sour cream

About 6 ounces (you can add a smidge more if you like) crumbled blue cheese (or use gorgonzola or Roquefort), divided

1/2 cup small curd, low-fat cottage cheese, well drained

1 teaspoon white wine Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce, e.g. Tabasco brand

Generous 1/3 cup small capers, drained

Use an electric mixer to beat together the sour cream, half the blue cheese, cottage cheese, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder and hot pepper sauce. Remove to a bowl.

Stir in remaining blue cheese and capers. Taste for flavor balances. Makes about 2 cups.

Nutty vinaigrette

This one uses honey as a sweetener, and toasted pecans for crunch. Great on a main-dish salad featuring all your favorite greens, plus fried chicken fingers.

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup white wine vinegar (or more)

1/3 cup honey

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 cup toasted pecan pieces, divided

Pepper, and salt if needed

In processor, combine olive oil, vegetable oil, vinegar, honey, parsley and 1/2 cup toasted pecan pieces. Use some -- remember, less is enough -- to toss with your salad base of mesclun, some sliced red onion, the remaining pecans and the fried chicken.

Add some shredded cheese if you like. Makes about 1 3/4 cups.

Limey dressing

Not Brit at all. Use to dress a cool, soothing salad made with cantaloupe, honeydew, grapes, fresh pineapple, papaya, even blueberries.

Prepare fruit, toss with some dressing and let stand 15 minutes before serving.

1 cup plain, reduced-fat yogurt

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1/2 cup honey

2 teaspoons grated lime peel

Combine ingredients in a bowl, using a whisk. Cover and chill. Makes about 2 cups dressing.

Strawberry dressing

Some of the strawberries go into the dressing, some into the salad. At serving time combine the dressing with the rest of the berries (sliced if large), mesclun, feta cheese, sliced sweet onion and toasted almond slices.

1 pint strawberries, divided

1/2 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

Pepper, and salt if using

Hull and slice 1/4 to 1/3 of the berries. Use a fork to thoroughly mash berries.

In a medium bowl, whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar and sugar, then whisk in mashed berries. Taste for balance, adding pepper and salt, if needed.

Toss some with salad ingredients mentioned above. Makes about 1 cup dressing.

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