potato salad | vegan | /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

it's been a little more than a year since my family has changed their eating habits.  it began when i was having really bad reactions to foods.  i didn't know what was wrong with me or what to do.  since i was little i knew i was sensitive to milk and other products that have dairy in them, but as i got older it seemed as though nothing was sitting well with me.  my mom had heard about a nutritionist who works with people with food sensitivities and we both made an appointment.  from that time on, i have cut out a lot of foods that were part of my every day diet.  foods such as: dairy, gluten, sugar, and certain starches.  many of the family dishes that my mom and i once prepared are now on the list of things that we don't eat.  potato salad was once one of these dishes.  the original potato salad was a dish my german great grandmother would make for her family, and my mom would make it at least once a week during the spring and summer.  a couple months ago, when my brother was visiting, he said that i should come up with a vegan potato salad using yams (since giving up potatoes we have all started substituting them with white yams).  i played around with the original ingredients my mother and great grandmother would use only substituting coconut milk for mayo, and white yams for potatoes.  the outcome tasted exactly like the original; a creamy sauce, with an added tang, and hint of mustard. 

* a note on coconut milk: i used Native Forest full fat coconut milk with great success.  I tried Thai brand coconut milk and found that the potato salad dressing comes out a little sweeter.  If you can find Native Forest i suggest using this.  my great grandmother never used measurements in this recipe, and neither did my mom.  rather, they tasted as they went along.  here i provide scant measurements that should be tasted along the way.  if you feel you need more of one ingredient then add more, if you want less of something then decrease the amount.  

| vegan | potato salad

serves 4, with leftovers

3 large white yams (or yukon potatoes), halved and quartered into 1/2 inch slices

3 tablespoons chopped onion

3-4 radishes, thinly sliced

1/2 cup unsweetened full fat coconut milk (i used Native Forest brand)

2-3 teaspoons vinegar

2-3 teaspoons good dijon mustard

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

| directions

bring a large pot of water to a boil, dd the potatoes.  let the water come back to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover.  time the potatoes for 10 minutes.  after 10 minutes, check to see if they are ready by stabbing them with a sharp knife.  if the potato does not slide off the knife, time for another few minutes.  drain the potatoes and let rest

in a large bowl, combine the coconut milk, vinegar, mustard, and onion.  whisk the mixture until combined.  adjust the mixture - depending on the day and what you feel like, you may want a bit more vinegar or mustard.  add salt and pepper to taste

add the potatoes, radishes, parsley, and dill to the mixture.  using a spatula, gently fold the ingredients together.  let the potato salad chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve

enjoy!

lemon-thyme strawberry galettes /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

making pie crust is something that is completely scary to me.  there are quite a few steps in the pie crust making process that i feel like unless the stars are aligned the whole thing could go wrong.  summer, in my childhood home would inevitably be pie season (even though i never liked or ate pie until i was in my 20s!).  for many of those years we didn't have air conditioning, and i would watch my mother pray to the pie gods that the day wouldn't be too hot or humid.  of course there were a couple occasions where it was in fact hot and humid and she made pie despite the gnarly weather.  i would watch her get frustrated, and sometimes curse the sticky dough that wouldn't come together correctly.  sometimes there would be a tear or two, and sometimes she would throw up her hands and say 'what will be, will be'.  no matter what though her pies were amazing and beautiful, and always tasted delicious.  

galettes are similar to pie, they're a free form pie if you will.  you don't need a pie dish or tart pan, just a baking sheet.  the galette i attempted here does not come anywhere close to how delicious my mother's pies are, but in the end it tasted quite good!  i would say that the one day i attempted to make some semblance of a pie, was the one day that we had a short heat wave in nyc.  the dough came together fine, and i even refrigerated it longer than usual because of the heat, but it didn't really help.  i was trying to take pictures of the dough, for this here blog, but i could tell the dough was not feeling my apartment's 86° temperature.  i quickly threw it in the oven to bake.  the result was a little flat, the taste however, was spot on.  perhaps the galette wasn't meant to be, maybe i chose the wrong day, maybe my pie-stars weren't aligned...but in the end i would like to believe that i was attempting to recreate and re-live a little memory i shared with my mother.  

lemon-thyme trawberry galettes

| makes 4 small or 1 large galette

adapted from: Gluten Free Fix

dough:

4 tablespoons coconut oil, melted

3 tablespoons honey

1 egg white

2 cups almond flour

1 tablespoon coconut flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons poppy seeds

filling:

2 pints strawberries, washed and sliced (hulled if necessary) 

1-2 teaspoons lemon-thyme leaves (depending on how much you like)

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon coconut flour

glaze for fruit:

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted

 

 

| directions

in a large bowl, combine the coconut oil, honey, and egg white

in a smaller bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut flour, salt, baking soda, and poppy seeds.  mix the dry ingredients into the wet - mix until combined

turn the dough out onto a piece of parchment paper; shape the dough into flat disk and cut into 4 equal pieces. (if you are making a large galette do not cut.) place the pieces onto a plate or platter, cover with parchment paper, and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes

in a large bowl carefully mix the strawberries, coconut flour, lemon juice, and lemon-thyme.  let the mixture sit for about 30 minutes

in a small bowl, combine the coconut oil and honey for the glaze

pre heat the oven to 325°

remove the dough from the refrigerator.  roll out the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper to a 6-7 inch round.  arrange the strawberries leaving a 1-inch border. using a pastry brush glaze the strawberries (be careful not to use too much, you don't want to saturate the dough) using the back of a spatula, fold up the sides of the dough, pinch together any dough that overlaps.  if your dough cracks, like mine did, don't worry, just pinch it back together

bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown

cool slightly, and serve

 

roasted radish + garlic salad with coconut milk dressing /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

salad is one of those go-to dinners that doesn't take much preparation, or sometimes even much thought.  and for someone without a dishwasher, salads prove to (for the most part) be an easy cleanup.  salad night, is also known as one-bowl-to-clean-night.  creating salads is somewhat of a way for me to clean less, and to have more time at night to get stuff done, like wedding planning.  we're a little under two months away and much of the larger items are taken care of.  we have definitely procrastinated on the smaller things like place cards, table numbers, favors, even our wedding cake and wedding bands.  i have titled myself the most non-bride ever.  my mom calls me "zen bride", i'm not sure how much of that is true, but i'll take it.  frank however gets to see another side of me: the one that wakes up in the middle of the night or at the crack of dawn with a laundry list of things to get done.  he calms me and assures me it will all get done, but when i say!? and then it works itself out.  kind of like this salad.  it kind of just worked itself out; it didn't come from a recipe book, nor was it adapted from another blog.  it was a culmination of what was looking cute at the farmer's market and my dream of a creamy vegan dressing.   

the dressing can be molded and shaped by what you like. don't care for garlic? cut it out and add more shallot.  like a lot of garlic? add more than a couple cloves.  adjust the seasoning to your liking as well as the amount of lemon juice.  next time i would even add a handful of herbs into the mixture, maybe some lemon thyme, or parsley.  

roasted radish + garlic salad with coconut milk dressing

 

| serves 2 for dinner, and 4 as a side dish

for the dressing i used full fat canned coconut milk, i'm sure the 'light' coconut milk would work here too.  however, i'm not sure how the boxed coconut milk (So Delicious) would be.  if you use it, please let me know how it turns out.  before i opened the can i shook it well; sometimes the coconut fat and liquid separate.  as for the salad, if you're using fresh young garlic - as i did here - you can use more cloves that with store bought or more mature garlic.  the young garlic is more subtle, and therefore you can use and tolerate more of it.

3.5 ounces radishes (about 2 handfuls) cleaned and sliced lengthwise

1 small head of garlic, peeled and separated (reserve 2 small roasted cloves for the dressing)

2 large handfuls pea shoots, mache, or sprouts, washed and dried

3.5 ounces mixed baby greens, washed and dried

2 small carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks

1/4 cup cashews, toasted

| for the dressing

1/2 cup full fat coconut milk

2 small garlic cloves, roasted

1 tablespoon shallot, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

 

 

| directions

pre heat the oven to 425°

in a medium bowl, coat the cut radishes and garlic with olive oil and sprinkle with large grain sea salt.  place in oven and cook for 12-15 minutes, rotating halfway through.  let cool.  lower the heat to 350° and toast cashews for 5-6 minutes, until lightly brown and fragrant.  let cool

while radishes are roasting, wash and dry your greens, and cut the carrots

in a large bowl, toss mixed greens, pea shoots, carrots, cooled radishes and garlic.  add dressing and mix.  break up the cashews between your fingers and top the salad with them.  serve and enjoy

| dressing directions

in a miniature food processor, add the coconut milk, olive oil, roasted garlic, shallot, and lemon juice.  puree until smooth.  add salt and pepper to taste (if you don't have a small processor, mince the shallot and garlic by hand and whisk the ingredients until combined.)  let the dressing rest in the refrigerator until ready to use