The kids and I stopped by Grandma and Grandpa’s house for lunch on Tuesday. They had picked up three packs of fresh tamales from the Tucson Tamale Company:
Boise – (Vegan) Sweet potatoes roasted and blended with sun dried tomatoes and all wrapped in a Yam Masa.
Santa Fe – Pork Loin, Green Chile Sauce (Green Chile, Tomato, Onion) and Cheese
Austin – (Vegan) Spinach, Mushrooms, Spices (with Sesame Seeds)
They were all delicious! I think my favorite of the bunch was the Austin. If you haven’t tried their tamales, you need to stop by one of their locations and pick some up.
When we walked into G&G’s house, we were greeted by the amazing smell of roasted tomatoes and garlic. They blended them up with some fresh basil and sent us home with a pot of roasted tomato soup. I planned to serve it for dinner but wanted to make a salad to go with it. Many times it becomes a challenge to use all of our fresh vegetables from our Bountiful Basket by the end of the week. So I wanted to include as many of them as possible in this salad. I had seen a recipe for grilled red potatoes in my Penzeys catalog and thought they might taste good on a cold crisp salad. So here is what I came up with (get the recipe after the jump):
Preheat your grill or grill pan.
Wash red potatoes and cut in half. Toss with olive oil and seasoning. The Penzey’s recipe called for their Greek Seasoning which I didn’t have on hand. I used my new Ratatouille Seasoning from my trip to The Spice House in Chicago. You can use any seasoning blend you like. Place potatoes in a microwave-safe bowl.
Cook potatoes in the microwave for 3 minutes on high. This helps to speed up the cooking process so they will be cooked all the way through without getting too dark on the grill.
Transfer potatoes into a grill basket. If you don’t have a grill basket, you can use foil to make your own basket. Grill for 15-20 minutes turning once. Meanwhile, it’s time to start preparing the rest of the salad.
Put a pot of water on the stove to boil (this will be used to blanch the green beans).
Look how much water came off of my lettuce!
Wash and prep your green beans. Get rid of any beans that are brown and dry (like the one in the top of the photo). Snap off the end with the stem. There is no need to snap off the other end.
Toss the green beans into the boiling water. Cover and cook for 3 minutes.
While the beans are cooking, prepare a bowl with ice water. After 3 minutes, transfer the green beans directly into the ice water to stop the cooking process.
Leave the green beans in the ice water for about 5 minutes.
We blanch the beans so that they are still bright green and crisp but not raw.
Slice the yellow bell pepper, tomato and green beans.
Grab your grilled red potatoes (don’t forget to use hot pads!)
Put your salad together and sprinkle some of your favorite dressing on top.
My choice was Balsamic Vinaigrette from Trader Joe’s. I like their dressings because they only have a few ingredients. You could also make your own dressing or just sprinkle your salad with olive oil and vinegar. This salad is very versatile. You can use any vegetables that you have on hand. You could also add some protein like beans or chicken if you like.
If you make this salad, let me know!
