Roasted Potato Salad

Yeah, I realize there's been a lot of potato action on this blog lately; funny how that happens sometimes, innit? Anyway, this one came about because it's finally, actually summer: fish are jumpin', the cotton is high, and people are eating potato salad. When I was growing up, potato salad meant boiled spuds swimming in a bath of mayonnaise along with chopped onions, parsley, salt, pepper and (wait for it) sliced, hard-boiled eggs. It appeared on the dinner table pretty often during the dog days, but I never liked it: the raw onions upset my stomach, and the eggs--an aversion long before I officially "stopped" eating them--made me want to gag. I suppose it's a pretty classic all-American recipe; my mom still makes it that way for family cookouts, etc., and lots of people love it, so who am I to argue, right?

Well, I'll tell you who I am: I'm the pesky vegan at your barbecue, that's who, and I have completely different ideas about what should and should not be in a potato salad! One thing I'm sure we can all agree on, though, is that it should definitely, absolutely include potatoes. But what sort of potatoes, hmmm? Well, I was musing about what to contribute to a recent potluck when it occurred to me that roasting them instead of boiling couldn't possibly be a bad thing. Think about it: brown, crispy, and beautiful vs. white, pasty and mushy...what sounds better to you? So I roasted up a whole mess of those cute little fingerling potatoes, along with some red bell pepper and onions and kind of winged it from there: a little of this, a little of that, a little more of this, etc. The result was really good, and I'll certainly make it again as the summer progresses. If you decide to try it, bear in mind that this recipe makes enough for a party, so if it's just your own little family you might want to halve it. Then again, it gets better as it stands, so you could just make the whole thing and feed off it for a few days!


The Vegetables
~ 4 lbs. fingerling potatoes, cut into 1" slices (or other potatoes cut into 1" chunks)
~ 2 red bell peppers, cut into about 1" dice
~ 1 large onion, thinly sliced
~ 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
~ 1 tsp. kosher salt
~ Black pepper

~ Preheat oven to 450 degrees fahrenheit.
~ Spray 2 large baking sheets with cooking spray. Spread the potatoes on one, the peppers and onion on the other.
~ Divide the olive oil, salt and pepper between the two pans, and coat the vegetables well.
~ Roast for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until everything is browned and beauteous (the peppers and onions will probably be done before the potatoes, so keep an eye on them).
~ Remove from the oven and set aside to cool to room temperature.
~ When cool, transfer potatoes and vegetables to a large bowl.

The Dressing
~ 1 tbsp. roasted garlic (I used the kind from a jar)
~ 1/3-1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise, like Vegenaise
~ 1/3-1/2 cup vinaigrette, prepared or homemade
~ 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
~ 1 tsp. each: salt, thyme, tarragon, smoked paprika
~ 1/2 tsp. hot sauce; more to taste
~ Black pepper to taste
~ 1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
~ 1/2 cup celery, chopped
~ 1 carrot, grated
~ 4 scallions, thinly sliced

~ In a bowl or beaker, whisk together everything up until the parsley. Use more or less mayo and/or vinaigrette depending on how "saucy" you like your potato salad.
~ Pour over the potato mixture, add the parsley, celery, carrot and scallions. Stir to combine, and chill thoroughly for at least an hour before serving.