Classic Summer Salad Recipes

Certain foods just seem better in summer, like certain foods just seem better in winter. Below are three recipes for salads which I associate with summer. All three of them need to be kept cool until time to serve, and all three of them taste better if made hours before, or even the day before.

As a cook, I am all for foods that can be made ahead of time. I like to spend my time with my guests, and any dish that can be completed ahead of time and then brought out to serve makes my company time more special.

American Style Potato Salad with Mayonnaise, to which you can add eggs or not, is the first. A lot of people have gotten used to the goo that comes in a tub from supermarkets. You'll find you like potato salad much more when you can control the quality. Make sure you don't overcook the potatoes. Cooking is like many other arts.... it takes practice to get it perfect.

Three Bean Salad was featured in many lady's magazines when I was growing up, and so we had it at many church and family socials. It's pretty and flavorful... and looks pretty and different when made with another kind of bean. You can't skip the sugar. It's hard to imagine making salad with sugar, I know, but my friend who is a nutritionist says that for not-diabetics this is still a very nutritious choice. The beans have a variety of nutriments, the salad itself is filling, and a little sugar isn't so bad.

The cucumber salad is creamy and almost comforting. Unfortunately, the sour cream and mayonnaise are not too good for you, but it does seem the better something tastes the worse it is for your health. As a side dish this is truly wonderful, and since we're not going to avoid cholesterol all together, we might as well eat it in recipes with outstanding taste.

American Style Potato Salad with Mayonnaise and Optional Eggs

Time:

5 minutes to get the stuff together, the potatoes will need to boil for 20 minutes and then cool another 10 to 20, so you'll have plenty of time to get the ingredients chopped. It will take less then 10 minutes to finish from that point.

Ingredients:

6 medium size Russet potatoes
8 Tablespoons Kosher Relish (unless you feel like finely chopping that much pickle)
4 Tablespoons of Kosher Dill Pickle juice from the pickle jar.
3/4 cup chopped red onion
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 chopped scallions
1/3 cup chopped parsley
3 hard cooked eggs, chopped (optional)
3/4 cup mayonnaise
4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Kosher salt
Black pepper, of course freshly ground is better, but store ground.

Method:

1 Boil the potatoes (skins on, it's easier to peel them once they're cooked) at a slow simmer until cooked, about 20 minutes. When they're cool enough to handle remove the skins. Cube the potatoes into bite size pieces and put them in a big bowl..

2 Add the juice from the Kosher Dill pickles and the relish. Add onions, celery, scallions and parsley. If you want to, now add the hard cooked egg.

3 In a separate small bowl, mix mayonnaise, mustard and salt and pepper to taste. Mix in the dressing with the potato mixture.

3 Bean Salad, with Your Choice of Beans!

Time:

5 minutes to get the stuff together and 10 minutes to chop and mix it all together. This will taste infinitely better, however, if give hours to sit in the fridge after you make it.

Ingredients:

1 15 oz can of green beans, drained OR
1 15-oz can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-oz can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

½ cup parsley, chopped up (about ½ the package they generally sell in supermarkets. You can use the whole sprig, you don't need to waste the stems. By the way, parsley is a good source of Vitamin A.)
3 center-of-the-celery stalks, chopped fine
1 small red onion, chopped fine
1 Tbsp fresh finely chopped rosemary OR
½ Tsp dried rosemary from the spice jar section
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
Kosher salt
Black pepper, of course freshly ground is better, but store ground if you don't have it.

Method:

1 In a large bowl, mix together the beans, celery, onion, parsley and rosemary.

2 In a separate small bowl, mix together the vinegar, sugar, olive oil, and salt, and pepper to taste. Add the dressing to the beans, then stir it around to coat it well.

3 I write this as a separate step, even though you don't really have to do anything. It needs to sit around in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours, and it's better if you make it the night before.

Creamy Cucumber Salad

Time:

10 minutes all together, because there isn't much chopping or cutting. However, this is another recipe where letting it chill in the fridge makes a great difference in the taste, so if you can make it the night before that's great.

Ingredients:

3 cucumbers, not too big.
1 small sweet onion. Vidalias are good if you can get them.
2/3 cup of sour cream
1/3 cup of Mayonnaise
3 Tbsp Lemon Juice
2 Tsp Sugar
1 Tsp Kosher Salt or Sea Salt
½ Tsp Dried Dill or 3 Tbsp Chopped Fresh Dill
Ground Pepper

Method:

1. Wash and peel the cucumbers, then slice and cut into bite size pieces. Some people just slice them, and it looks pretty that way, but I cut my slices in ¼ s because it's easier to eat that way. Slice and cut the onion into eatable pieces too, though the slices should be pretty thin before you make the cuts.

2. In another bowl mix together the sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, sugar, salt, and dill. When its all mixed pretty well, taste a little and then pepper to taste. Mix it again, making sure it's well mixed.

3. Pour the dressing over the cucumbers and onions and stir until it's all well coated.

4. I write this as a separate step, even though you don't really have to do anything. It needs to sit around in the refrigerator, overnight is best, to really get a good flavor.