Buffalo Turkey Ranch with California Avocado Ranch

Inspired by so many famous sandwiches from across the country, this recipe packs some serious flavor. A must-make for anyone who loves buffalo wings.

Here’s how it stacks up:

• Bottom brioche bun
• Chopped turkey dressing in buffalo sauce
• Pepper Jack cheese
• Tomato
• Pickles
• Bacon
• Lettuce
• Avocado Ranch
• Top brioche bun

When the club first debuted as a special at a local San Diego deli, it was made with an avocado ranch. Since then, it’s moved from the specials board to the main menu and is now made with just regular ranch. I personally loved the avocado ranch, so that’s what sparked my inspiration and motivation to recreate here.

The base of this ranch is made with ripe California Avocados and tangy buttermilk. The avocado is a healthier substitute for mayo (normally found in ranch recipes), and provides a green, grassy flavor that works well the herbs and aromatics in the dressing.

  
I like to prepare small batch dressings like this one in the mini food processor attachment of my stick blender, but feel free to use any blender or food processor. Start by blending up cubed avocado, buttermilk, garlic, scallion, lemon juice, honey, chives, dill and parsley until smooth. Then season to taste with salt, pepper and additional lemon juice. That’s it!

The finished dressing should be smooth and a little on the thicker side. The honey helps to balance some of the bitterness of the greens while the lemon and buttermilk add that classic ranch tang. This dressing also goes well with salad greens and raw veggies.

 
The recipe below is for just 1 sandwich, but you will have plenty of extra avocado ranch leftover. It will last for several weeks in the fridge. You can easily scale up the other ingredients to make more sandwiches.

Buffalo Turkey Ranch with California Avocado Ranch Recipe

Ingredients

For the avocado ranch:
1 ripe California Avocado, peel and pitted, cubed
1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 garlic clove, grated or minced
1 scallion, chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped dill
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon honey
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

For the sandwich:
4 tablespoons Frank’s Hot Sauce
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 ounces high-quality turkey slices, diced

Fixings:  Brioche bun*, tomato, lettuce, dill pickle slices, crispy bacon, Pepper Jack cheese

Instructions

To make the ranch, place avocado, buttermilk, garlic, scallion, chives, dill, parsley, lemon and honey in a small food processor with a couple pinches of salt and a 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Blend until smooth. Season to taste with kosher salt, black pepper and lemon (I added juice of another 1/2 lemon). Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

To make the sandwich, warm hot sauce and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until fully incorporated. Take the pan off the heat and let cool to room temperature. Toss turkey in the buffalo sauce.

Stack up as follows between a brioche bun:  buffalo turkey, Pepper Jack, tomato, pickles, bacon, lettuce, avocado ranch. Enjoy immediately!

* A brioche bun work well here, but feel free to use your favorite sandwich bread.