Hi guys!
Yikes! I feel likes its been forever since I last spilled my guts to cyberspace. I’m just about settled into my new apartment and have been having the time of my life playing around in the big bad city! My new job kicks butt – I spent the entire day yesterday in a photo shoot for these awesome DIY juices, and the entire last week helping recipe write and photograph the cutest little appetizers. And as if tasting, experimenting, and photographing food all day isn’t enough, my apartment is dead center in restaurant heaven….So I’ve been eating out likes its my second job :) My skinny jeans can confirm this.
Being super touristy and I don’t even care! At the bean in Millennium Park :)
Last pic! First of us girls to take the plunge.. one of my best girlfriend’s bachelorette last weekend
But maybe even more exciting than my first few weeks in Chicago…is that I’m leaving this Saturday on a family vacay to Banff (right by British Columbia), for a full blown week of hiking, biking, and all things outdoors in Canada!
Which will be hil-ar-ious. The last time I camped was with Indian Princesses (do any of you know what I’m talking about??) at Yogi Bear Park. With cartoon animals. And nothing higher on the food chain than a squirrel. So in the land of no cell phone signals or washing machines we’re either going to get lost or die of suffocation from sweaty clothes (throwing you under the bus little bro…). Ha! Ok but on a serious note I’m SO pumped! I love this kind of stuff and absolutely cannot wait to hike around – it looks stunning and cannot wait to share pics! Wild bears have nothing on my 5”4′ frame…
So now to the good stuff – my Summer Vegetable Potato Salad! I am OBSESSED with the vinaigrette dressing on this stuff. Its so so yummy. Whisk together a little olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, dijon, minced shallots, and a little salt and pepper – delish! A note on the white balsamic – if you do not have any, or do not want to go out and buy some, you can swap in regular balsamic or white wine vinegar. I just really prefer white balsamic because its a bit milder than dark balsamic and is clear so it does not stain your pretty pretty potato salad a darker color! Worth the splurge for a party.
You can mess around with whatever seasonal vegetables you find at the farmers market – I used zucchini, corn, tomatoes, and potatoes. Have fun with it! This is such a easy side dish to play with. Plus its a health-ified potato salad you can feel good about serving.
Hope you all have great weekends!! Summer’s officially here when you indulge in some potato salad!
Summer Vegetable Potato Salad
Yields 6 servings
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons minced shallots
- 2 1/4 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
- 3/4 tablespoon Dijon mustard* (check for GF)
- 1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 1/4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup fresh corn (about 2 ears)
- 1 1/2 lbs baby red potatoes
- 8 oz. mixed baby heirloom tomatoes (or whatever tomatoes you can find), quartered
- 1 cup diced zucchini
- 1/4 cup julienned fresh basil (sliced thin)
Preparation:
- Combine, shallots, white balsamic vinegar, dijon, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to combine. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking constantly, until fully emulsified. Set aside.
- Place potatoes in a medium pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, cook 11 minutes or until tender. Drain and chill.
- Coat a medium skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add diced zucchini and cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned.
- In a large bowl, combine cooled potatoes, corn, zucchini, and tomatoes. Drizzle with vinaigrette and toss to combine. Sprinkle with basil and again, toss to combine.
Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine