What is Hygeia Salad Dressing?

Do you know what Hygeia salad dressing is? Neither did I until I saw it referenced in several salad recipes in a 1910 cookbook and went on a hunt to discover its ingredients.

Eugene and Mollie Griswold Christian

In 1910, Eugene and Mollie Griswold Christian published “250 Meatless Menus and Recipes”, one of several healthy eating books they published in the first 20 years of the 20th century. The premise of the book is “natural feeding” with the caveat that meat is “wholly unnecessary”.

Eugene and Mollie lived in Brooklyn, New York. Eugene was a Food Scientist and Mollie was a Child Specialist. The book cost $1.00 including shipping to whomever wanted one ^[1]“New Book Solves High Living Costs”, LaCrosse Tribune, January 17, 1911.

Hygeia Salad Dressing

Within the Christian’s book, a recipe for Hygeia Salad Dressing is provided as follows:

“To four or five tablespoons of olive oil add two teaspoons of lemon juice, one teaspoon of sugar and a pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly.”

Of course, this sent me on a wild goose chase for other recipes. I was able to find one in a 1906 newspaper that included heavy cream and egg whites, a far cry from the healthy version in the Christian’s book.

Another from the St. Louis Post Dispatch on June 4, 1905 calls for similar ingredients, but much simpler process.

This was a time when local menus were often printed in newspapers to entice folks to visit various eateries. Hygeia Salad Dressing – sometimes just called Hygeia Dressing – is frequently included on these menus.

“Hygeia” Everything

The term hygeia was attached to a lot of products and businesses in the late 19th and early 20th century. There was Hygeia soda, Hygeia beer, and Hygeia water. There were Hygeia clubs and even a Hygeia hotel.

Why? I got curious.

Then I remembered this was also a time when sanatoriums were popular. And there was a bit of a burgeoning health craze.

People suffering from tuberculosis, asthma and various other diseases would retreat to sanatoria to heal. We were also beginning to learn a bit more about nutrition and the impact foods have on our bodies.

Add to this the notion that Hygeia is the Greek Goddess of health, cleanliness and sanitation and you have a pretty solid explanation of where Hygeia salad dressing got its name. All of the ingredients are healthy from a nutritive standpoint, even the dairy and eggs.

Incidentally, Hygeia is also the source of the word hygiene.

The version of Hygeia dressing included in the Christian’s book is much simpler than the traditional. It also lacks the eggs and dairy, likely due to the “no meat” concept of the book. Either way, Hygeia salad dressing might be one to add to your homemade dressing arsenal.