Monday, April 27, 2009

tangy, cold + tasty tubers.

yesterday was a glorious day. glorious, i tell you! actually, the whole weekend was downright divine. warm, sunshiney, breezy. FINALLY. winter in NYC this year has been a long, brutal and tricky one, teasing us with warm weather and then plunging us back into the icy depths of winter. needless to say, this past weekend was quite a treat.

honestly, i felt like i was starring in my very own feminine hygiene product commercial.


i even got to wear my flip-flops!

there's something about this weather that makes me crave cold potato salad. is there anything better than tucking into a hearty helping of chilled potato salad on a warm day? preferably having to balance a practically soggy paper plate of it on your knee as you sit on a lawn chair, bottle of beer held between your knees, bare feet in cool grass?

can i get an AMEN?

so yesterday i made some, and wowza was it ever tasty. i riffed on what i could remember from a Domino magazine recipe that my friend J introduced me to last year (note: that mag and site are now defunct, so i couldn't locate the original recipe online). no mayo, but i didn't miss it cuz i threw in a couple of chopped hard-boiled eggs for creaminess. it's tart and tangy and just a wee bit more sophisticated than what you might get at the supermarket deli (although i wouldn't turn my nose up at a vat of that glorious stuff). it's also super-simple, super-cheap and super-filling. recession-proof, you might say.

excellent alongside some grilled shrimp + vegetables, and a spinach-avocado salad (sadly not very photogenic, but very tasty! props to The Cute for manning the grill)

better than flip-flops potato salad
adapted from Domino magazine

5-6 medium-sized redskin potatoes (about 3-4 inches in diameter)
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped (spring for organic if you've already paid the rent)
1/3 cup, sweet gherkins, sliced into teensy little circles
salt and black pepper to taste

cut potatoes into 1 1/2 inch-2 1/2 inch pieces depending on how chunky you like your salad. put them in a pot and fill with cold water it just covers the potatoes.

bring to a boil. add a teaspoon of salt. boil until the potatoes are easily punctured with a fork, but not mush. you want them to maintain their firmness in the salad.

drain the potatoes in a colander. rinse with cold water.

dump into a large bowl. add mustard, white wine vinegar, chopped eggs and gherkins. toss gently until evenly distributed. the potatoes should be coated in a creamy sauce-like substance courtesy of the mustard, vinegar and egg yolks. sample it. if it's a bit dry for you, add a touch more mustard or a touch more vinegar. salt and pepper to taste. (this stuff deserves a hearty crank of the pepper mill, and if you can get your hands on five-color peppercorns, do so. your tastebuds will thank you.)

what sort of foods does the warmer weather make you crave? what are some of your favorite "summer foods" from your childhood? s'mores? lemonade? barbecue chicken? popsicles? get your hands on at least one of your favorite summer foods (make it? buy it? who cares!) and savor it.

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this is the start of a weekly blog post entitled size ate eats: love the belly, feed the belly. i've wanted to make it a regular part of the site for a while now, and i figure... why not start now? not only do i love cooking (and eating), i also think my learning to cook and nourish myself has been a huge part of my recovery, and it continues to be a huge part of my self-care. i also find it to be a hell of a lot of fun. so stick around. i promise to never speak of calories, fat grams or "good" or "bad" foods. i love spinach and butter equally. paula deen and i do share the same birthday after all.

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