Illinois Food Love

So it's been a year since I used this blog, and it may be a year until I come back to it; that's all right. I've moved to Illinois for grad school and I'll be cooking for one more often than not, which means that I need some kind of external motivation to actually cook nice things. Taking pictures of my meals and discussing them on the internet fulfills this purpose for me. So here's my first real meal in IL, inspired by the purchase of about a half pound of new potatoes from the mid-week farmers' market here in Champaign.

Mustard Vinaigrette Potato Salad

1/2 lb. new red potatoes

1/4 onion, thinly sliced

heaping tbsp. chopped capers

1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

white vinegar

olive oil

grainy deli mustard

honey

salt & pepper

Leaving the skins on, cut potatoes into bite-sized chunks. Boil them in heavily salted water (it should have the salinity of sea water) until al-dente. Combine with onions, capers and parsley. Make a simple vinaigrette with equal parts olive oil and white wine vinegar, a nice dollop of mustard, a teaspoon or so of honey, and plenty of salt and pepper. Whisk to emulsify and adjust for taste. Stir into potatoes and allow to sit for a few minutes before serving, so the potatoes absorb the vinaigrette. Also, add more salt and pepper to the salad to taste.

Fresh Fruit Salsa

1/4 cup melon, diced (I like green melons such as honeydew, galia or haogen)

1/4 cup cucumber, diced

1/4 cup blueberries, cut in half

1/8 onion, finely diced

small handful cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds

olive oil

lime juice

salt and pepper

Combine fruit, vegetables and cilantro. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and lime juice, add salt and pepper, and adjust these four seasonings to taste. Add the almonds when you serve this fresh salsa, because if you leave them in there, they will absorb the juices of the fruits and veggies and become soggy.

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I like to serve salads like these with mixed greens or chiffonaded lettuce (greens are always more appealing when you cut them up small, in my opinion).

This would be great with a glass of white wine (what isn't?). I'm a big advocate of vinho verde, as I hate sweet white wines, and vinho is bubbly and dry. If you need more protein, just add some pieces of pan-fried or roasted chicken, or shrimp that has been sauteed or grilled. You can tell I revel in chopping up veggies and making vinaigrettes but don't care much about meat.

Until next time...will it be another year?