Pommes de Terre à la Grande-Mère

+ Cafe Saint George +

German style potato salad with a careful balance of vinegar, shallot and pepper.

This dish is an old family recipe in whose details the Devil resides.  The ingredients are simple enough but the real art comes from blending these ingredients to the proper balance.  The proper balance is, of course, a matter of taste.  Accordingly, I leave the amounts unspecified.  It is essential to taste as you season. Total cooking time is 35 min. Makes 2 servings.

Ingredients:
4 small red potatoes
1-2 shallots
1 T sour cream
Pantry:
cider vinegar
olive oil
Herbs:
salt
pepper
parsley

Steps:
1) Dice potatoes.  Start the water boiling for the potatoes.
2) Boil potatoes for 10 mins.  They should still be fairly firm to the touch.

1: small dice with 8" knife

3) Strain potatoes in colander and rinse with cold water.
4) Dry potatoes on a towel, taking care not to break them or mar the edges.  Chop the shallot and test it for strength.  Adjust the amount of shallot on the basis of its strength.
4) When potatoes are cooled, add the shallot and sprinkle generously with cider vinegar.
5) Sprinkle with oil and salt and pepper and sour cream.  Overdoing the salt will only mask and overpower the other seasonings; salt never makes for a subtle and balanced dish.
6) Blend and season with additional vinegar and pepper. Garnish with chopped parsley.
7) Chill until serving.

Simple Salad

Simple Salad

The basic green salad seasoned with oil and balsamic vinegar and garnished with croûtons and Romano cheese.

The primary feature of this dish is the use of freshly made croûtons.  While such an endeavor may seem a waste of time, making croûtons is far cheaper and infinitely better than purchasing stale excuses in the salty decline of life.  Total cooking time is 15 min. Makes 2 servings.

Ingredients:
1/2 loaf of French bread
1/2 head of Boston lettuce
1/8 lb of Romano cheese
1 clove of garlic

Pantry:
olive oil
balsamic vinegar

Herbs:
pepper

1: sliced croûtons

Steps:
1) Slice 3 slices of bread and cut into cubes for croûtons.
2) Toast them until dry and slightly browned(1).  While they are toasting, wash and cut the lettuce and leave it on a towel to dry.
3) Slice the garlic clove and place into a pan with olive oil.  Heat until garlic begins to sizzle.

4: sauté until golden brown

4) Add the croûtons to the garlic and oil and sauté until golden brown.  Add more oil if necessary.  The addition of too much oil will be very noticeable when they are eaten.
5) Toss salad with balsamic vinegar and oil.  Then garnish with grated Romano cheese and fresh croûtons.
6) Serve with fresh ground pepper to taste.  Add a squeeze of lemon if desired.


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(1) Oven at 400 F for a few minutes.  Watch carefully.