Summertime Potato Salad

I have made this potato salad three or four times already this summer with intentions of taking a photo and posting....but, something has always prohibited the plan. The original recipe came from a Better Home & Garden Cookbook, but I have spiced it up a little over time....and I add a secret ingredient!


6 medium potatoes
6 eggs
celery
onion
1 c. mayo (add more if necessary)
1 big squirt of mustard (I guess about a tablespoon)
Lots of salt and pepper
Secret ingredient: 1 heaping tsp. of Creamy Horseradish
Paprika

Wash and chop potatoes into cubes. Dump potatoes and eggs into large pot and boil until potatoes are soft. Eggs will be done too--and this saves time and dishes!

In the meantime, chop celery and onion. I use enough for about 3/4 cup of each, but you can use less or more. I think the original recipe called for 1/3 c. celery and 1/2 c. onion. Set aside.

Drain the potatoes and eggs. At this point, you can either peel the potatoes because the skins are soft and come right off, or you can leave them on. We leave them on--that's where the vitamins/minerals are. Peel the eggs. Place together in large mixing bowl and chop eggs and potatoes together.

Combine celery and onion with potatoes and eggs and mix together. Give the bowl a good salt and pepperin'. I use a lot of salt.

In another bowl, combine the mayo, mustard, and horseradish. Pour over vegetables and mix together. I usually add a little more salt at this point. I garnish with paprika sprinkled over the top. Place in fridge at least 2 hours before serving, but it is ALWAYS better the next day, so I try to make it ahead of time.

I always get lots of compliments on this dish. It is perfect for cookouts or with a pork roast...but summertime is key! Enjoy!

Cream Puffs

Find the recipe for these yummy cream puffs here.

Taco Salad with Tomato-Avocado Salsa

1lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts

3Tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2tsp salt
2 -7in. tortillas, each cut into 8 wedges

21/4 cups canned black beans, drained and rinsed

2/3 cup minced scallions

3/4tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp ground cumin

11/4 lbs plum tomatoes, (about 5) diced

3/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

3Tbsp chopped fresh basil

3Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 diced avocado

Lettuce leaves, coarsely torn

1. Preheat broiler, sprinkle chicken with 1&1/2Tbsp lime juice and the salt. Broil about 4 minutes each side, or until cooked through. Transfer to cutting board, and cut into thin diagonal slices. (or use and leftover chicken, grilled, roasted, anything you may have on hand.

2. Turn oven to 375, spread tortilla wedges in single layer and bake 5 minutes, or until crisp. Set aside to cool. ( can use store bought tortillas)

3. In a small bowl, combine the black beans, scallions, oregano, cumin, and remaining 1&1/2Tbsp lime juice. In a seperate bowl combine the tomatoes, red onion, basil, and vinegar. Toss to combine, then gently stir in the avocado. (This step can be done a day ahead to let the flavors combine)

4. Place the lettuce on 4 plates and arrange chicken slices on top. Place a mound of the black beans and mound of tomato-avocado salsa on each plate and serve with toasted tortilla chips.

If you are feeling frisky, add some rasberry sorbet for dessert. YUM!

Another Jax Food Blog

Have you ever heard of Taste Memory? It's a food blog I discovered a while back but haven't had a chance to scour until recently. I'm glad I rediscovered it and wanted to share it with you. It's quite a smorgasbord of a blog, with restaurant reviews, smatterings of personal history, interesting recipes, delicious pictures, and links to other fantastic food blogs.

The best part of this blog is that there is a link to a collection of TM Girl's favorite restaurants in Jacksonville. She is quite the foodie, and you might appreciate her persnickety taste. Now that I've had a chance to read through some of these reviews I must say I'm excited for our next dinner out!

A Great Way to Eat Vegetables

This is a good dish to get all the goodness of vegetables you can't stand the taste of. The sauce masks the taste of the bell peppers, which I don't like but are so good for you.

Asian Coleslaw

6 T Rice Wine Vinegar
6 T Vegetable Oil
3-5 T Creamy Peanut Butter (depending on how much you like peanut butter)
3 T Soy Sauce
3 T Brown Sugar
2 T powdered Ginger
1 ½ T powdered Garlic

Mix sauce and then add to:

1 bag Coleslaw from the store
2 Red Bell Peppers (may substitute any combination of colors of peppers)
2 Carrots (shredded)
6 Green Onions
½ c. Cilantro
and any other vegetables you can think of

Let sit for 15-20 minutes, it gets better as it sits.

Love Affair With Pietro

Ryan introduced me to Pietro.  It was love at first taste.  I admit I was hesitant, eating pasta on top of lettuce, topped with this foreign dressing, but reluctance gave way to indulgence. Honestly, an addiction will form if you try this.  You can also just serve it as a regular salad dressing, but, somehow, I love it the way I was first introduced to it.  We had a constant source in Dallas (Central Market), but haven't been able to find it here in Jacksonville...until now.  I'm sorry I don't have an exact address for the place, it's a new little Japanese grocery store that just opened up in a strip mall on Beach Blvd, on the south side of the street called Japanese Circle.  Served here, I used whole wheat pasta, cooled before serving on a bed of romaine lettuce.  Even the kids love it.  What more can I say?

p.s. the Shoyu flavor is the best, but please don't create a shortage, 

or I'll have no choice but to stop sharing my favorite discoveries!

Picnic Pretzels

I got this recipe from a food storage recipe book I have. They turned out great and it was a fun, quick and easy activity to do with Kylie - Ashlyn just liked playing with the flour.


1 T. dry yeast
1 1/2 T. sugar
1 1/2 c. warm water
1 t. salt
4-5 c. flour
1 egg, beaten
coarse salt

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in warm water; let sit about 5 min. Stir in the salt and 2-3 c. of flour to make a soft batter. Knead in enough flour to make a stiff flour to roll out.
2. Take a lump of dough about the size of a peach and roll in between to make a 8-12 inch rope about as thick as your finger.
3. Twist the rope into a pretzel shape, place on a greased cookie sheet, bruch with beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse salt.
4. Repeat the last two steps until dough is used up.
5. Bake at 425 for 12-15 minutes, until the pretzels are golden brown. Remove from sheet and cool.
6. If you want to add flavor, add 1/2 t. caraway seeds, very coarsely ground.