There are many foods and dishes that immediately make one think of summer — corn, fresh berries, watermelon, barbecued anything — and potato salad is right up there on the top of the list. When I was growing up, almost all our summer family gatherings included a side dish of potato salad and I remember it clearly because it often seemed more like a mayonnaise salad with potatoes instead of the other way round. I’ve since learned that you can do away with the mayo altogether and still end up with wonderful, picnic-worthy potato salad.
Mayonnaise falls under the category (unless homemade, of course) known as “fake food,” which is also known appropriately as “phood.” Recently, I heard that Hellmann’s Mayonnaise has re-formulated their recipe to remove unpronounceable ingredients, which is good news. However, if you want to avoid genetically modified canola, soybean oil, preservatives and additives, then you need to avoid most commercially made mayonnaise products.
As you likely know by now, I’m a “real food” advocate. If you dropped by my condo right now and looked in my fridge, you would find no items with ingredients you can’t pronounce. In fact, you would find very little food in packages at all. If your fridge tells a different story, don’t feel guilty, just start making small simple changes today. Here suggestions on how to go from being a phood eater to real food eater.
- Buy food that has a best before date of less than two weeks. Products with long shelf lives (dried spices, pasta and rice aside), are likely heavy in preservatives so they can maintain freshness for months, even years at a time.
- To get the most nutrient-dense fresh foods, shop at farmers’ markets during the spring, summer and fall. The food hasn’t travelled far, is often picked fresh the day you purchase it and the fresh taste is second to none.
- Don’t buy food with more than three or four ingredients or ones you don’t recognize or can’t pronounce or spell.
- Avoid foods that have outrageous health claims. Real food doesn’t need a health claim.
- Buy foods that are brightly coloured as that indicates their high level of antioxidants (apples, kale, carrots, spinach) as opposed to foods that are brightly coloured indicating their high level of chemicals (Lucky Charms, Cheetos, Kool-Aid).
I made this salad for a get-together on the weekend and it was an absolute hit and even impressed my foodie friends who don’t necessarily cook for health reasons, but mostly for taste reasons. This salad provides both.
If you are worried about eating potatoes because of their bad reputation in previous years that they make you fat, worry no more! Eating potatoes with the skin on, ensures you are getting minerals that help to balance your blood sugar, including chromium. Balanced blood sugar ensures that you don’t store excess glucose in the bloodstream as fat.
Ingredients
15-20 baby red potatoes, washed, skins left on
3/4 cup chopped celery
2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 shallot finely chopped
A handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
Sea salt, pepper, garlic powder
Dressing
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 tbsp balsamic or apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp honey
Wash and chop potatoes into bite-sized pieces. If they are small enough, you can leave them as is. Boil for 20 minutes until fork tender or roast in your oven for 45 minutes at 350F checking the tenderness often. Make sure you don’t overcook them, otherwise they will fall apart when you add them into the salad. Once cooked and cooled, combine the potatoes with the remaining ingredients. Prepare dressing by combining all three ingredients above and pour over salad. Add sea salt, pepper and garlic powder at the end. Taste test your salad and add more dressing if necessary.
If your family picnics normally include mayo-drenched potato salads, why not make this heart healthy recipe a new tradition.
EnJOY!
Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy.
Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first step to achieving joyous health. REASONS TO HIRE A HOLISTIC NUTRITIONIST.
