Tater Salad

Fourth of July really is my favorite holiday. Besides celebrating our country, it is such a great day to get together with friends and family and have a blast--as Bart Simpson says "We're going to celebrate our country's independence by blowing up a little piece of it." 

For this year's Blair Blowout we did veggie burgers and regular burgers plus several salads, a lemon cheesecake for most and vegan cupcakes for moi. For the cupcakes I used a recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance, a cookbook based on the Post Punk Kitchen, an NYC vegan cooking show. Cupcakes were great and all who ate them said they couldn't tell they weren't regular cupcakes. So score. But the real highlight food-wise was the potato salad.

Potato Salad with Herbs and Lemon

3/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 c. chopped onion

1/4 c. finely chopped fresh basil

1/4 c. finely chopped fresh mint

2 1/4 pounds small red-skinned, potatoes (I think I had more potatoes than this)

Whisk oil, lemon juice and lemon peel in small bowl to blend. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Place 1/2 c. dressing in large bowl. Mix in green pepper, onion, basil, and mint. 

Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 25 minutes. Drain. Cool 15 min. Cut potatoes in 1/2 inch cubes. Add potatoes to bowl with dressing and toss to blend. Let stand 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, adding more dressing if desired. Serve at room temperature.