Potato Salad

This one is for my vegetarian friends out there!

Vegetables are good.  I like vegetables.  They're even better when served next to a side of delicious, delicious meat, but they're good on their own too.

My biggest problem, really, is that I don't like a lot of vegetables cooked.  I shouldn't say I don't like them.  They're fine, and I'll eat them, but 9 times out of 10 I would prefer them raw.  Even fancy applications.  I have had fancy vegetables every which way you can imagine them and, while delicious, I'm almost always thinking "this would be better if it were raw.  And if it were the middle of summer.  And if I were eating it outside.  With my hands."

Which creates a problem.  You see, one would probably categorize this as a cooking blog.  I personally would categorize it as Kate talking a bunch of nonsense blog, but I've never seen that as a category, so we'll go with the next best option: cooking blog.  In fact, I have totally used this blog as a reference to make things I made previously!  Which is good, because half the time when I make something really delicious, I can never make it again because I have no clue what I put into it...

(That's another good cooking tip, people.  Keep track of what you're putting into your food.  If it's really good, you want to be able to make it again exactly the same way so you know you can impress your friends.   If it's horrible, you want to know what you did so you can never do it again!)

So, since this is a cooking blog, I feel like my recipes should not read like this:

Go into back yard.  Pick tomato.  Eat like apple while leaning over the sink so as to not get floors dirty.  Add salt if desired.

That is, perhaps, the most delicious summer recipe I know.  I personally feel that eating it over the sink helps the taste.  It's like how eating food that is bad for you makes you feel good in a guilty way.  There is nothing more "guilty" then eating food over the sink instead of using a plate.  If you don't believe me, just keep trying it until someone walks in and catches you.  See how guilty you feel!

Anyway, perhaps a good life tip, but not really a good recipe - especially for a cooking blog.  Which is why I don't post many veggie recipes, even though we are eating a lot of veggies.  I just don't want to mess with the flavor of the vegetable.


I thought this was a good compromise.  It involved some sort of skill, but not a lot of "cooking."  It is tasty, and seems fancy, but doesn't involve a lot of work.  Plus, it's a good and different way to use up zucchini, which it is totally time for!  I cut my potatoes too big.  It was annoying.  Don't do that.


Potato Salad with Zucchini and Green Beans
(makes 6-8 side dish servings)

• 1 lb new potatoes, red or otherwise, cut into bite sized pieces (L)
• 1 medium sized zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced thin (L*)
• about 2 cups green beans, broken into bite sized pieces (L*)
• about 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (L)
• 1 tbsp fresh dill (L*)
• 2 tbsp minced garlic scapes (L)
• 2 tbsp small red onions, minced (L*)
• 3 tbsp basil chiffonade (L*)
• 1 tbsp mayo
• 1 tbsp champagne vinegar
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Place potatoes into a medium pot, and cover with water.  Salt water well.  Bring to a boil, and cook potatoes until soft, but not falling apart.  Drain, reserving the cooking water, and put potatoes in a bowl in the fridge to cool quickly.

Put the potato water back into the pot, and return to a boil.  Using a steamer basket (or, if you're short on kitchen tools like me, a mesh colander strategically placed over the pot), steam the beans until just tender - about 2 or 3 minutes.  They should still be crisp.  I like to sprinkle the beans with coarse salt while they are steaming.  Cool down beans quickly by placing them in the fridge as well.

Once potatoes and beans are cool, combine all ingredients up to mayo.  In a small bowl, whisk together mayo and vinegar.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, then add to vegetables and stir to combine.  Keep in mind you might not need as much salt, because of the cheese and because the potatoes and beans should be salty as well!

This was best on day 2, after all of the flavors have melded.  It was good on days 1, 3, and 4, but by day 5 it was done.  I may have made too much...

Picnic!

What a busy weekend!  This past weekend, my dance troupe performed and taught at Tribal Renaissance in Eau Claire, WI.  With workshops, performances, and vending (not to mention staying in a hotel!) there was little time for eating much less cooking!  I was very fortunate Friday night, and we stumbled across Hooligans Steak and Seafood Pub.  Their "Just Local Combo Plate" was exactly what I needed after a long day of driving and being stuck in completely insane traffic.  Smoked trout, deviled eggs, cheese, and summer sausage, all sourced locally.  Got it to go, and went home and ate in the hotel room!

Our tour guide, Wilson

The rest of the weekend I was happy to have leftovers in the hotel fridge from the amazing date I went on with my husband on Thursday.  The weather in Milwaukee has been terrible so far this spring, but Thursday it was finally nice for us and we went on a horse drawn carriage ride through downtown, which was absolutely beautiful.  We packed a picnic dinner and a bottle of wine (not sure that's legal... but oh well, and got a tour of our own town. 

This is a date I would highly recommend, and most larger cities have carriage rides, I think.  Yes.  The ride itself is a little pricey, but if you pack your own dinner and wine it's going to be a lot less than dinner out at a fancy restaurant.  And, in my opinion, picnics can feel incredibly fancy if done correctly.  I went with the traditional sandwiches and potato salad, but by using some less traditional ingredients I got spectacular results:


Steak Sandwiches:

• Tomato Chutney:
• 3 vine ripened tomatoes (L)
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup honey (L)
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped chives
• 1 thin, boneless steak.  I used a flat iron, but you could use flank or anything along those lines (L)
• Salt & freshly ground pepper
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (L)
• 1 tbsp minced chives (L*)
• 1 tbsp minced oregano
• 1/4 cup Olive Oil
• Mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese (L)
• 1/2 cup grated white cheddar cheese (L)
• Spinach (L)
• 2 long, crusty rolls

Chop tomatoes.

Bring vinegars, sugar, salt mustard seed, and black pepper to a boil in a medium saucepan.  Stir in tomatoes and chives, and simmer for about an hour and a half until thickened and reduced to approximately 1 1/2 cups.

Season steak with salt and pepper.

In a glass baking dish, combine garlic, chives, oregano and olive oil.  Add the steak and turn to coat.  Allow to marinate for about 30 minutes at room temperature, turning occasionally.  Grill over medium high heat until medium rare - only a few minutes on each side.  Steaks like this tend to be very tough if overcooked, so please don't.  If you don't like beef that's still pink, then replace the steak with roast beef from your local deli.  If you overcook the meat, you will not like this recipe!  Allow the meat to rest before slicing!

Slice the rolls and spread mayo on both sides.  Slice the steak on an angle, against the grain, into about 1/4 inch thick slices and layer on bottom of sandwich.  Sprinkle with cheese and lay spinach on top.  Add tomato chutney.

Cut in half and wrap in aluminum foil if you are picnicking!

Fancy Potato Salad

• 1 lb fingerling potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices (L)
• 1 cooked chicken breast, torn into bit sized pieces (L)
• 1 smoked trout fillet, chopped into bite sized pieces (L)
• 2 tbsp chopped chives (*L)
• 1 large handful sorrel leaves, torn into bite sized pieces (*L)
• 1/2 cup radish greens and young roots (*L) (I was thinning my radishes.  This seemed like a good use for what I pulled!)
• 1/4 cup mayo
• 1/4 cup sour cream

Place potatoes in a pot and cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are soft.  Drain, and refrigerate the potatoes until they are cool.

In a large bowl, combine cooked potatoes with remaining ingredients, stirring gently to combine.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.