Even in this intense heat Nikki is cooking up delicious fare for her family. Check out the latest Notes from Nikki:
Grilled Potato Salad
I did it again. I stood next to a hot, hot grill in the 100 degree heat last night, this time roasting potatoes, lemons, and sweet onions over the fire. For some reason, it just feels better to do that, even in this wretched heat, than to stand in the kitchen over a hot stove. Anyway, the inspiration for this recipe came from my dear friend, Heidi Swanson (101cookbooks.com). Here is the original: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/grilled-potato-salad-recipe.html
Makes another wonderful summer meal. Stay cool!
Ingredients
Approximately 2 lbs Red Gold potatoes (or other new potatoes), thick sliced or halved if they're really little
1 sweet onion, thick sliced
1 red onion, thick sliced
1 lemon, thick sliced
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 glugs extra virgin olive oil
1-2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Handful fresh basil, chopped or sliced into ribbons
Sea Salt
Fresh ground pepper
Instructions
Toss the potatoes with 1 glug of olive oil and the minced garlic. Using your fingers, rub a bit of this oil/garlic mixture on the sliced onions and lemons as well.
Using a grill basket so you don't loose any of the potatoes, roast the potatoes, onion, and lemon over a medium-hot grill turning as necessary to avoid severe charring, until softened and marked to perfection. The onions and lemons will finish faster than the potatoes. Just pull stuff off as it finishes, setting it aside on a nearby pan.
Once everything is grilled, toss the whole lot of it, plus another glug of olive oil, the balsamic vinegar, the basil, the sea salt, and the pepper, until well combined. Fish out the lemon skins, and taste and adjust to your liking.
Serve and enjoy!
Good Old-Fashioned Coleslaw
Man, is it toasty outside! Whew! I was going to stir-fry the cabbage from this week's share, but decided I didn't want to stand over a hot skillet. The heat has given the cabbage a bit of a bite too, so I thought, why not sweeten it up. My grandmother used to make a simple version of coleslaw that I loved. She dressed the shredded cabbage with a mixture of vinegar, sugar, heavy cream, and salt. She also added shredded carrots and raisins to the shredded cabbage. I decided to leave out the raisins, and ADORN the big bowl of cabbage with those lovely little baby carrots from this week's share, instead of shredding them. I changed up the dressing just a bit too, using sour cream instead of heavy cream. It turned out beautifully and paired nicely with the barbecued chicken we grilled up to go along with it (so instead of standing over a hot stove, I stood next to a hot grill ;-)). A perfect summer meal! I hope you enjoy it.
Ingredients
2 small heads of cabbage, cored and shredded
1 C sour cream
1/4 C mayonaise (optional, this serves to thicken things up a bit and can certainly be left out, you could also try using whole milk, greek yogurt)
3-4 Tbsp apple cider vinegar (white wine vinegar would also work or you could try unseasoned rice vinegar for a more mild vinegar flavor)
3-4 tsp sugar (agave would work too, although the sugar gives rise to that good, old-fashioned flavor)
Sea salt
Fresh ground pepper
Baby carrots for garnishing (they could also be shredded and mixed in, my grandmother would be thrilled)
Handful of raisins (if you want to please my grandmother ;-))
Instructions
Mix together the sour cream, mayo (or yogurt, if using either), vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Taste and adjust according to your liking.
Pour the mixture over the cabbage and toss to coat. (Mix in the carrots and raisons if you decide to go that route.)
Garnish with the carrots and serve.
Enjoy!
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