A good potato salad is something of an essential for the backyard cookout or grilling session. It can be made ahead, and adds that substantial heft to a burger or hot dog plate. And a homemade potato salad is so much better than a bag of cheap chips. Served next to a steak, it’s downright elegant. A very good cook I know, with, let’s say a few more years of wisdom than … [Read more...] about Garlic Goddess Potato Salad
Soup and Salads
Purple Hull Salad With Bacon Vinaigrette
Field peas are one of my favorite summer time treats. Though I spend enough time in summer portioning little bags and stashing them in the freezer that I can enjoy them all year round now. And I’ll be honest; I don’t veer too much off my standard method of cooking them. Peas, water, a piece of pork of some variety, maybe onion or garlic and hot sauce. When the farmers … [Read more...] about Purple Hull Salad With Bacon Vinaigrette
Mexican Corn Salad
My favorite summer treat is definitely fresh corn, straight off the cob. I eat more corn in summer than I ought to admit. Usually just straight up, with a little butter and salt. When corn starts appearing in the farmers market, I buy bushels of it to put up for the winter. I ration out those little frozen bags of golden jewels like they really are precious gems. And when I … [Read more...] about Mexican Corn Salad
Crispy Picnic Slaw
Years ago, during my event planning days, I helped a client plan a lovely riverside party, with a good old-fashioned fish fry. This client was very particular. About everything. But particularly about slaw. He insisted on vinegar-based slaw, not mayonnaise dressed. The caterer took copious notes on his slaw pronouncements and produced what I (and everyone else who ate it) … [Read more...] about Crispy Picnic Slaw
Vichysquash: Cold Crookneck and Buttermilk Soup
Vichysquash, or Squashyssoise? Yep, this all started because of the name. I saw a recipe for Vichysquash years ago, and loved the silly name, but it called for canned creamed soup, which has never appealed to me. The idea stuck though, and when I see the glut of yellow crookneck squash piling up at the farmers market, I always think of this soup. I’ve tinkered … [Read more...] about Vichysquash: Cold Crookneck and Buttermilk Soup
