Recipe: Celery adds crunch; mint lends an herbal note
This potato salad has no mayonnaise -- it gets plenty of flavor from the lemon-mint dressing. Kathy Morrison
Potatoes deserve better than to be drowned in mayonnaise salad dressing. This recipe brightens potato salad with a lively combination of lemon zest, mint, scallions, celery and just a touch of dried pepper flakes.
The combination is perfect for any spring occasion. It works especially well for a picnic or potluck -- no worries about the mayo spoiling!
For best flavor, let the salad rest in the refrigerator or a cool kitchen for a few hours before serving, or chill overnight before bringing it to room temperature. Change up the herbs if you don't like mint -- try parsley or tarragon, for example. Also, the celery is there for crunch, but chopped nuts would work equally well (pistachios would be excellent). The lemon vinaigrette is about the only "must use."
Note: Be sure to add that vinaigrette to the potatoes while they're hot, for best absorption.
Potato salad with lemon and mint
Adapted from a New York Times Cooking recipe
Serves 8
Ingredients:
2 pounds small waxy yellow or white potatoes, all about the same size (I used Yukon Golds)
Zest of 1 large lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus a bit more for serving
1-3/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided, plus more as needed
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup sliced scallions (green onions) or spring onions or a combination, white and light green parts only
3 or 4 stalks fresh green celery, trimmed and thinly sliced
1/4 cup roughly torn fresh mint leaves, plus more for garnish
1/4 teaspoon Aleppo (Turkish) pepper flakes
Instructions:
Put the whole unpeeled potatoes into a large pot. Add enough cold water to cover them by an inch; sprinkle in 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook the potatoes until just tender, not mushy, 15 to 25 minutes (depends on size).
While the potatoes are cooking, make the dressing: Whisk together the lemon juice, about three-fourths of the zest, the remaining 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, the Dijon, some freshly ground pepper, and the olive oil. Set aside.
Drain the potatoes and, while they're hot, cut into 1-1/2 inch chunks. (Be careful with this! I dumped them into the bowl from the colander, and used a knife to cut them in the bowl, touching the potatoes as little as possible.)
Transfer the potato chunks to a bowl if you haven't already done so. Toss with most of the dressing, plus the sliced scallions, celery, mint, and Aleppo pepper flakes.
Let the salad cool to room temperature, or refrigerate for several hours. Add a little more vinaigrette if the salad seems too dry.
Just before serving, sprinkle on the rest of the zest, a little more lemon juice, some mint leaves and, if desired, more Aleppo pepper flakes.
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Food in My Back Yard Series
SUMMER
July 15: Does this plant need water?
July 8: Tear out that sad plant or baby it? Midsummer decisions
July 1: How to grow summer salad greens
June 24: Weird stuff that's perfectly normal
SPRING
June 17: Help pollinators help your garden
June 10: Battling early-season tomato pests
June 3: Make your own compost
May 27: Where are the bees when you need them?
May 20: How to help tomatoes thrive on hot days
May 13: Your plants can tell you more than any calendar can
May 6: Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success
April 29: What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?
April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)
April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers
April 8: When to plant summer vegetables
April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths
March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth
WINTER
March 18: Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space
March 11: Ways to win the fight against weeds
March 4: Potatoes from the garden
Feb. 25: Plant a fruit tree now -- for later
Feb. 18: How to squeeze more food into less space
Feb. 11: When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants
Feb. 4: Starting in seed starting
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Garden checklist for week of July 13
Put off big chores and planting until later in the week when the weather is cooler. In the meantime, remember to stay hydrated – advice for both you and your garden.
* Keep your vegetable garden watered, mulched and weeded. Water before 8 a.m. to reduce the chance of fungal infection and to conserve moisture.
* Water, then fertilize vegetables and blooming annuals, perennials and shrubs to give them a boost. Feeding flowering plants every other week will extend their bloom.
* Give vegetable plants bone meal or other fertilizers high in phosphate to stimulate more blooms and fruiting.
* Add some summer color. Plant petunias, snapdragons, zinnias and marigolds.
* From seed, plant corn, pumpkins, radishes, winter squash and sunflowers. Plant Halloween pumpkins now.
* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushy plants and more flowers in September.
* Remove spent flowers from roses, daylilies and other bloomers as they finish flowering.
* Pinch off blooms from basil so the plant will grow more leaves.
* Cut back lavender after flowering to promote a second bloom.
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