Potato Salad with Quick Pickled Onions and Celery
August 11, 2016
Margaux says…
It’s been awhile since we’ve posted anything, and I never would have thought that I would break our silence with potato salad. But potato salad is definitely a favorite around here…we’ve posted quite a few! And this one is definitely my current favorite! I’ve made it two times in the last week, and also made a batch of just the pickled onions and celery for us to munch on with our sandwiches at lunch. And I hope I can make some time to post some of the other delicious things we’ve been eating this summer!
Potato salad with quick pickled onions and celery
adapted from Martha Stewart Living June 2016
3 lbs red new potatoes
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp celery seeds
3/4 cup packed fresh dill, chopped
4 stalks celery, cut into 1/4″ slices
1 medium sweet onion, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
In a large saucepan, cover potatoes with 2 inches of water; season with about a teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, cook until easily pierced with a knife, 12-15 minutes. Drain and let stand until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together vinegar, honey, 2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, celery seeds, and dill. Add celery and onion and toss, and set aside to sit for about 15 minutes. Quarter potatoes when completely cool and add to bowl along with olive oil. Toss and serve.
Mid-summer Potato Salad with Green Beans & Basil
July 25, 2011
Aunt Suzy says . . .
This simple potato salad was inspired by a recipe both Margaux and I made last year – and loved – that had many more ingredients, including tuna. My inspiration for this simpler version is that the green beans have been really good lately, along with the fact that I “over-bought” basil at yesterday’s farmer’s market. (I have a feeling you will be seeing a number of posts this week using basil :-)) It occurred to me that I could pare back the ingredients from the more complex salad to just potatoes, green beans and basil and use the dressing from that salad. It turned out great! We served it with a beautiful piece of salmon from Wild Run Salmon, who also sell at the farmer’s markets in the area, and a refreshing French rose wine.
The Dressing
3 tablespoons EV olive oil
juice of 1/2 to 1 lemon (depending on size and your taste)
juice from 1 large garlic clove (use a garlic press)
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped, optional
Combine and whisk all ingredients till thorougly blended and a little emulsified. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
The Salad
2-3 pounds small potatoes (red, yellow or fingerling)
1 pound greens beans, ends trimmed and snapped in half
1/2-3/4 cup basil, coarsely chopped
Place the potatoes into a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for about 15 minutes until potatoes can be pierced through with a fork. Place on a towel and let cool to room temperature. In the meantime, steam the green beans for 5-6 minutes until tender, but not overcooked. Immediately plunge into ice water to cool and then pat dry with a towel.
When both potatoes and beans are cool, combine them in a large bowl with the basil. Add the dressing and stir to thoroughly blend. Taste and add salt and black pepper if needed.
Green Bean & Potato Salad with Tuna
July 2, 2010
Aunt Suzy says
Just when I’m stuck for something good to cook, Food and Wine pushes out a recipe into my Facebook feed that says “make me!”. This one caught my eye – after all, it’s green bean season – and it is a winner! I did only a little tweaking of the amounts and method. This is definitely a recipe I will make again (and maybe again). This was delicious with a Pinot Grigio, but I have a hunch that the perfect match will be a dry French rose.
Margaux says
Yes, Yes, Yes!!! This is an instant staple in our house. I couldn’t stop eating it the night I made it, and I can’t wait until I make it again. We had it with some crusty bread and a Sauvignon Blanc. But I agree about the rose…we’ll do that next time.
Aunt Suzy says . . .
Update July 1, 2013 – this is delicious without the tuna as a side salad. I just made it and served with grilled chicken and it was outstanding. I’ve always wondered why someone would think to put orzo with potato salad, but this time I really noticed the mouth appeal of that combination and understood completely!
The Dressing
1/4 cup EV olive oil
juice of one medium lemon
1 large or two small garlic cloves, pressed through a garlic press
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried oregano)
Combine and whisk all ingredients till thorougly blended and a little emulsified. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
The Salad
1 pound green beans, trimmed and snapped in half
1 pound small new potatoes
1 cup orzo
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes
2 six-ounce cans of tuna packed in olive oil, drained
1/4 cup chopped basil
1/4 cup chopped parsley
Place green beans in a steamer, bring water to a boil and steam for 5 minutes or until tender. Drain and place in a large bowl. At the same time, place unpeeled potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes until tender. Drain and cool slightly. Slice in half or quarters depending on size. Add to the bowl with the green beans. Cook the orzo according to directions. Add to the bowl. Add 3/4 of the dressing while this mixture is still warm and gently stir to blend.
Slice the tomatoes in half. Chop the basil and parsley. Add the tomatoes, herbs and the tuna to the bowl with the remainder of the dressing. Gently toss to coat all ingredients with the dressing and thoroughly blend. Garnish with a few small basil leaves. Serve in individual bowls on a bed of lettuce.
Spring Farmers’ Mkt Potato Salad
May 31, 2010
Aunt Suzy says
If you’re getting the impression that Margaux and I like potato salad, you are correct! As I said in my Mediterannean Potato Salad post, I enjoy concocting salads using seasonal ingredients. Right now we are at peak season for arugula, radishes and spring onions, which inspired this recipe. We are lucky to have Burning River Farm at Mill City Farmer’s Market here in the Twin Cities – they grow the best baby arugula (and many other delicious produce items)!
Fire up the grill! This recipe – no eggs, no mayo and no dairy – will go with anything you might be grilling!
The Vegetables
2 pounds small potatoes, red or white or a combo, unpeeled
6-8 radishes
2 cups sugar snap peas
4-6 spring onions
3-4 cups baby arugula
Place whole unpeeled potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until just tender. Place in a single layer on a towel and let cool.
While potatoes are cooling, prepare the other vegetables. Remove the strings from the sugar snaps and then slice into 1/4-1/2-inch segments. Thinly slice the radishes – if large, cut in half before slicing. Thinly slice the spring onions. Wash the arugula and remove any long or thick stems. If using regular vs. baby arugula, chop into smaller pieces. Wrap the arugula in a towel to dry.
When the potatoes are cool, cut into 1/2-3/4-inch pieces. Place all vegetables except the arugula in large bowl.
The Dressing
1/3 cup EV olive oil
Juice of 1 to 1-1/2 lemons, depending on how juicy
1/2-1 tsp Dijon mustard, to taste
Salt and black pepper to taste
Place all dressing ingredients into a bowl or the cup that comes along with your hand-held blender. Use the blender to emulsify the dressing, about 2 minutes. You can make this with a hand whisk, but I think the dressing works better when slightly emulsified.
Pour the dressing over the potatoes and mix to blend. I like using my hands to do this. Add the arugula and gently toss to blend in and coat with the dressing.
Aunt Suzy says
It’s potato salad season! I love exploring different kinds of potato salads and saw this one in a recent Coop flyer. I usually base the type of potato salad I cook on the season and what’s available. The nice thing about this one is that it could be made year round given the ingredients. And what’s not to like about opening a few cans for many of the ingredients?!! Of course all amounts can be varied to personal taste!
Margaux says
I didn’t help make this one at all, but it was delicious to eat! And it looked pretty easy to make. I also think this would be good served warm as a side dish in the fall or winter.
The Vegetables
2 pounds small potatoes, red or gold or a combination
3-4 cloves fresh garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound artichoke hearts (not marinated), quartered (one 14-oz can drained)
1/2 cup roasted red peppers, diced
1/2 cup kalamata or oil cured olives, cut in half
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
The Dressing
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
juice of 1/2 lemon
3 tablespoons olive oil
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Wash and scrub the potatoes and then quarter or chunk them so all pieces are roughly the same size. Place in a large mixing bowl. Process the garlic through a press or mince, then add to the potatoes along with the olive oil. Place on a baking sheet and roast in the oven till crisp on the outside and tender – approximately 30 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to partially cool.
While the potatoes are roasting, whisk together the dressing ingredients until thoroughly combined and starting to emulsify. In a large mixing bowl, combine the artichokes, red peppers, olives, oregano and parsley. Add the dressing and mix well.
Add the potatoes while still warm. Let cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Serve at room temperature.
Grandma Major’s Potato Salad
May 28, 2010
Margaux says…
This is the potato salad that I grew up with and that my mom grew up with. Actually, I can’t really say that its Grandma’s recipe, but its pretty close. My mom changed some things, and then I’ve changed some things. I’d never even seen the recipe until I asked my mom to email it to me last week so that I could submit it to food52’s “best potato salad” contest this week. I thought I’d actually take a look at the original recipe, to use as a reference for quantities and such…I pretty much wing it every time I make it. It turns out that Grandma didn’t even follow the recipe either. So I just went ahead and made it last night, and kept track of what I was putting into it. Here’s what I came up with:
Ripe Olive Potato Salad
- 3 cups new red potatoes, cut into 1 1/2″ pieces
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1/2 cup oil cured black olives, pitted and sliced
- 2 hard boiled eggs, sliced
- 2 celery stalks, sliced
- 1/2 cup cucumber, diced
- 1/4 cup pimento or roasted red pepper, diced
- 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- paprika for garnish
- Boil potatoes in salted water until just tender, about 15 minutes.
- Place cooked potatoes into a 9×13″ glass baking dish, and pour olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper over them. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, up to overnight.
- In a large bowl, combine marinated potatoes, olives, celery, cucumber, pimento, onion, and one of the eggs. Gently mix in the mayo. Top salad with the other sliced egg, and sprinkle with paprika.
Some side notes:
We usually just use canned black olives, but its really way better when you get oil-cured black olives from the olive bar at your grocery store. Also, Grandma, my mom and I have always put radishes in it, and omitted the pimento. But when I saw the original recipe, it had pimento and no radishes, so I tried that version and loved it. I thought it went really well with the olives. I also got the pimento at the olive bar instead of jarred (they’re thinly sliced roasted red peppers). My mom thinks that Grandma just didn’t like pimento, so she substituted the radishes to keep the splash of red color. I’m wondering if she also did it because radishes were always in the garden, pimento is not. But if you agree that pimento isn’t your thing, the radishes are also quite good in it.
Bean Salad – a modern take on a classic!
July 22, 2014
Aunt Suzy says . . .
We love green bean salads in the summer here at S&SK, so when I saw this recipe I knew I had to make it. Plus, it reminded me of the long forgotten 3-bean salad of my growing up. So long forgotten that I kept wracking my brain as to what the 3rd bean was. I knew it included canned green beans and canned kidney beans, but I couldn’t for the life of me remember the 3rd bean. So of course I googled it and saw that it was wax beans! So if you want this recipe to look like the classic but taste 21st century, you could make it with green and wax beans (at farmer’s markets up here right now) and kidney beans. 🙂 We served this with potato salad and grilled meats. Yum!
Margaux says . . .
We loved this recipe! I’m always looking for new ways to prepare green beans because it is a family favorite. The flavor in this salad is amazing, with the capers, herbs, shallot and lemon. I used canned cannellini beans. I served it with California burgers and corn on the cob…perfect summer weeknight meal.
BEAN SALAD adapted from Bon Appetit
INGREDIENTS
2 cups cooked beans, fresh or dried (such as cannellini, borlotti or cranberry) or 1 14-oz. can cannellini or kidney beans, rinsed
1 pound green beans (or half green and half wax beans), ends trimmed, beans snapped in two
3/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped
1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped
2 tablespoons capers, drained and chopped
zest of 1 lemon
¼ cup olive oil
juice of 1/2 or 1 whole lemon, depending on how large
1 small shallot, minced
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper or 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
Cook the dried or fresh shell beans according to directions. Drain and set aside to cool. Alternatively, open the can, rinse and drain. Cook the green beans (and wax beans if using). Place in steamer, bring water to a boil and steam for 5-6 minutes. Alternatively, cover in water, bring to a boil and simmer for 5-6 minutes. Either way, drain, place back in the pan, cover with cold water and ice to cool down and stop the cooking. Once cool, drain and dry with paper towels.
Place both types of beans in a large bowl. Add the parsley, chives, capers and lemon zest. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, the shallot, the red pepper and salt/black pepper to taste. Pour the dressing over the bean mixture and mix thoroughly, best done with your hands.
Black-Eyed Pea Salad
June 4, 2013
Margaux says…
I’m kind of a salad fanatic, and it’s one of the reasons I’m so excited about having warm weather finally! So far I’ve made this pasta salad, several quinoa salads, including this one and this (which is one of my favorites), and I can’t wait to make potato salads, especially this one. Platter salads are another favorite for us, and we’ve already had my favorite Cobb salad, even when it wasn’t that warm yet. I couldn’t wait.
This is a salad that has become kind of a summer standard here over the past few years. When my son was an infant and I was stuck to the couch for hours on end either nursing him or “napping” with him, I would watch endless amounts of TV, a lot of that being the Food Network. I’ve always liked cooking, but I think that’s when I really got my love of cooking, and I would try out tons of the recipes I saw on TV. This was one of them, on “The Neely’s” (a show I didn’t often watch, by the way, but I’m glad I caught this episode). I don’t really ever watch Food Network anymore, but I’m glad I did because a lot of my standard recipes came from that year of watching.
Black-Eyed Pea Salad
Ingredients
1 large tomato, diced
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 jalapeno, finely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup unseasoned rice wine vinegar (I have also used white wine vinegar)
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 (15-ounce) cans black-eyed peas, drained (or 4 cups soaked dried beans…I think that’s about a cup and a half of dried)
Directions
Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl.
In a separate small bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, canola oil, sugar, and salt and pepper.
Toss all together and let marinate for at up to 8 hours in the refrigerator before serving.
Kale and Potato Soup with Roasted Tomatoes
September 30, 2012
Aunt Suzy says . . .
The calendar says soup, but the weather says salad. Nonetheless, the kale is so fabulous at the farmer’s markets that I decided to make a kale-based soup today. We went for a walk today in the Big Woods State Park south of Minneapolis, and I thought it would be great to come home to an already prepared meal. If it were actually cold out, I would pair this with a hearty sour rye or multi-grain bread, but baguette seemed perfect given the warm weather. A light red Cotes-du-Rhone is a nice match for the flavors in this soup.
Makes 8-10 servings, depending on appetites
2-3 tablespoons EV olive oil
1 carrot, small dice (about 3/4 cup)
1-2 celery ribs, small dice (about 1/2 cup)
1 onion, small dice
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary, or 2 teaspoons dried
4-5 garlic cloves, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
2-3 chicken chorizo sausages, like Amylu brand, optional
1 1/2 cups diced roasted tomatoes, homemade or small can fire-roasted
1 cup dry white wine
10 cups liquid, chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
5 leafy sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
1 1/2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, 1-inch chunks (about 5 cups)
15 packed cups kale, in 2-inch pieces (roughly one bunch)
salt and pepper to taste
Heat a soup pot of at least 6 quarts capacity over medium-high heat. Coat the bottom of the pot with olive oil and heat to shimmering. Add the carrots, celery, onion and rosemary to the pot. Turn down the heat to medium and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and chorizo and saute for another 4-5 minutes until the vegetables are soft and starting to brown a little.
Add the tomatoes and cook for a couple of minutes. Next add the wine and simmer for a few minutes to burn off the alcohol. Add the liquid of your choice (I used chicken stock) and the thyme sprigs; stir to blend. Bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the thyme sprigs, taking care that the leaves remain in the soup.
Add the potatoes and simmer for 10 minutes. If you like a thicker soup, you can simmer for up to an hour to break down the potatoes. We like a brothier soup and “just done” potatoes, hence the shorter cooking time.
Add the kale and simmer for 15 minutes more, making sure not to overcook the kale. Taste and then add salt and pepper. I did not put in additional S&P since the oven roasted tomatoes had plenty as well as the homemade chicken stock. We added a tiny amount of each at the table.
NOTES ON INGREDIENTS: Either fully cooked Andouille or Chorizo sausages, pork or chicken, would be great in this dish. If you do not add the sausages, I recommend 2 teaspoons smoked paprika added with the tomatoes. I used “regular” green kale, but Lacinato would be excellent also. I did not peel the potatoes out of personal preference. If you want to thicken the soup a little, I recommend peeled russet potatoes over the Yukons.
And it was a beautiful day for a walk!
Easy 1-hour Roasted Chicken and Potatoes
November 8, 2011
Margaux says…
I think my mom got this recipe from a chef friend-of-a-friend several years ago…I’m kind of cloudy on the details of where it came from. But what I do remember is that we tried it right away (mainly out of curiosity-it sounded to easy to be true), and it was fabulous. I have since made it many, many times. I make it for company, for regular week-day meals, and for weekend “special” meals. It only takes an hour (well, an hour and five minutes, for the prep time of cutting potatoes), and it’s only 3 ingredients. The only down-side is that your house will get smoky, the fire alarm may go off, and you will need to clean your oven. I always make it when my oven is already pretty dirty, and ready for me to run the self-clean cycle.
As many times as I’ve made this, I’ve never altered or added anything. It turns out perfectly every time, so what’s to mess with? I’ve used all three citrus fruit options, and there really isn’t a difference in the flavor of the chicken, in my opinion. I usually serve it with a vegetable, like steamed green beans or sauteed spinach, but tonight I made this quinoa salad with it and it was great!
Roasted Chicken and Potatoes
1 whole roasting chicken
1 lime, lemon or orange, halved
1-2 lbs. red potatoes, halved
1 metal roasting pan
Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Rinse and pat-dry chicken, and place breast-side up in the pan. Place citrus fruit into cavity of chicken, and tie legs together with kitchen twine. Place potatoes around the chicken in the pan, as close to the chicken as you can get them. Roast for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and allow to sit for about 15 minutes before carving.
Sweet & Savory Kitchens 