Creamy Potato Salad

Potato salad is the obvious side for a barbecue. Sure you can buy a tub at the market, but it’s really not difficult to make at home. This recipe comes out thick and creamy. Red and green onions add color and flavor, and dill mellows out the mix.

It’s also a pretty fast recipe. The potatoes are peeled and cubed before simmering, so they cook in less than 7 minutes. It’s also great to make in advance, as the longer it sits refrigerated, the more the potatoes absorb the flavor.

Try it out. Then when your friends and neighbors come over to your next barbecue and say, “Yum! This potato salad is wonderful! Where did you buy it?”, you can smile proudly and say, “I made it myself, thank you very much!”

Creamy Potato Salad – serves 4 – 6

6 – 7 medium golden potatoes
3/4 C mayonnaise
2 t apple cider vinegar
1/2 C red onion, diced
3 T green onion, finely chopped
1 T dried dill
1 t sugar
salt to taste

Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes, about 1/2 inches wide. Drop into salted, boiling water, lower heat to and allow to simmer for 5 – 7 minutes. Take one out, allow it to cool and test to make sure the potato is cooked. They should be just soft enough for a knife to come out easily, but not smooshy. Drain in a colander and rinse with cold water. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes until cool.

Meanwhile, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, onions, dill and sugar in a large bowl. Add potatoes. Mix gently to avoid crushing the potatoes.

Transfer to a serving dish, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Twice-Cooked Mashed Potatoes

There are hundreds of ways to make mashed potatoes. Skin on, skin off, simply boiled and mashed, butter added, cream added, garlic added, etc. There are as many variations as their are cooks and deciding which route really depends on your personal preference and what you’re serving it with.

I came by the technique of double-cooking mashed potatoes accidentally when I was re-heating leftovers once. We don’t use a microwave so everything gets reheated traditionally – either on the stove top or in the oven. In doing this, I found that leftover mashed potatoes are fantastic when reheated in the oven.

Whatever fat – butter, cream, sour cream, cream cheese, etc. – that had been added when the potatoes were originally mashed, melts down into the starch, causing the potatoes to become fluffy, the same way pastry dough becomes flaky as the butter or lard melts. I like to use whipped cream cheese because it adds a little tang and it’s easier to blend than regular cream cheese. A few pats of butter added to the top before baking forms a decadent crust.

And I’m thinking nutritionally, this recipe is not all that bad in the grand scheme of things. You’re only injecting anywhere from 65 – 130 calories and 3.5 – 7 grams of fat per serving in addition to the milk, which really, I don’t count as a bad thing at all.

Twice-Cooked Mashed Potatoes - serves 2 – 4

2 lb (6) medium golden potatoes, peeled and quartered
3 T whipped cream cheese
2 T butter
1/3 C milk (2% or higher)
salt to taste

Fill a large stockpot halfway with lightly salted water and bring to a boil. Add potatoes, cover and simmer 20 minutes until fork tender.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain in a colander and transfer potatoes to a medium casserole dish. Mash with a potato masher. Stir in milk, cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of the butter and salt. Slice the other tablespoon of butter into thing pats and top the potatoes.

Bake for 30 minutes until a golden crust forms on the top.

Ingredient origins: Potatoes – California, Whipped cream cheese – Vermont; Butter – Maine; Milk – Vermont; Salt – Maine

Winter Vegetable and Chorizo Medley

A good nutritional rule of thumb is to try to have at least one serving of fruit or vegetable from each color of the rainbow every day. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet. White? I guess potatoes get the shaft in this scenario. Either way, this dish covers two of the six – or three if white counts. Beets and cabbage are both nutritional superstars. Chorizo is really just along for the ride, because I like to think that any meal loaded with vegetable based vitamins and minerals deserves a muse.

The potatoes and beets are roasted in separate dishes with a little bit of olive oil, giving the pieces a delicate skin. The potatoes end up with a buttery softness. The cabbage takes on a hearty flavor from steaming in the pan with the browned chorizo, and the beets’ sweetness plays well with the spice of the chorizo. You may want to double this recipe, because everyone will want seconds. Another great thing about this recipe is that it’s not necessary to use salt. The chorizo and beets pack a lot of flavor on their own.

Winter Vegetable and Chorizo Medley – serves 2 – 4

4 new potatoes, or 2 medium boiling potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 medium beets, peeled and chopped
1/2 head of green cabbage, chopped
1 t+1 t+1 T olive oil
2 chorizo sausages, sliced

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees

Place beets and potatoes in separate baking dishes. Drizzle each with one tablespoon of olive oil and toss to coat. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, until fork tender.

Heat one tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet on medium. Add chorizo and brown. Add cabbage, cover and allow cabbage to steam for 10 minutes over medium heat. Remove lid and cook and additional 5 – 10 minutes, allowing some of the liquid to cook off.

Pour cabbage and sausage mixture into a serving plate or shallow bowl, add potatoes and toss. Scatter beets on top of the mixture. Serve hot and definitely try a bite with each ingredient combined because it’s a great flavor combo.

Ingredient origins: Potatoes, beets, cabbage – Massachusetts, Chorizo – New Hampshire, Olive oil – Spain

Spice-Rubbed Boneless Country Ribs with Dill Buttered Fingerling Potatoes

This is a good dinner to make if you don’t have a lot of time or energy for prep-work. A few minutes in the kitchen and then you’re free as a little bird while the meat slow-cooks in the oven. Slow-cooking is great for tough cuts of meat because it gives the connective tissue a chance to melt, turning the meat buttery and soft.

Steamed fingerlings are easy too. No chopping or peeling, just steam them whole, toss with butter and their done. Serve with a simple green salad to round out the meal.

Spice-Rubbed Boneless Country Ribs - serves 2

1 lb boneless country ribs
1/2 t turmeric
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t chili powder
1/2 t granulated garlic or garlic powder
1/2 t smoked paprika
1 t paprika
1 dash of ginger
1 dash of cayenne pepper
1 dash of cinammon

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Combine spices in a small bowl or ramekin. Dry the meat and coat with the spice. Heat a cast iron or oven-safe pot on high heat. Add the meat and quickly sear all sides. This is not to cook the meat, it’s just to caramelize it and seal it up so that it doesn’t loose too much moisture in the cooking process.

Cover and move to the oven for 20 minutes. Remove lid and cook uncovered for 1 1/2 – 2 hours, until well softened.

Dill Buttered Fingerlings – Serves 2-4

10-12 fingerling potatoes
1 T fresh dill, finely chopped
3-4 T butter
Salt to taste

Steam the potatoes for 20 minutes, until a fork inserted falls out easily. Meanwhile, in a small bowl cream the butter with the dill.

In a large bowl, lightly smash the potatoes – this will help them carry the butter. Add the dill butter and toss until well coated.

Ingredient Origins: Country Ribs – New Hampshire, Spices – mostly purchased in bulk so not usually labeled; Organic fingerling potatoes – Massachusetts, Organic dill – Massachusetts, Butter – Maine.