The potato salad was so delicious I wanted to make it all the time. Often on the way home from work, I needed to check the ingredients to see if I needed to pick anything up from the store. I could google “f*¢k!ng potato salad” and get it because at first, I couldn’t remember the name of their blog. After a while, Google decided to ignore curse words, so I had to remember them.

This potato salad has simple ingredients and easy assembly. Perfect for your next picnic.

I shared the recipe, I brought it to every picnic and cookout, and I read about them. Turns out they’re a couple of white people in California, and they’re Vegans. Which is funny because here is the [expletive deleted] description of their potato salad:

You can’t have a legit BBQ without a badass potato salad. But don’t be a d!¢k and buy that nasty sh!t at the store. Make this instead; it is cheap as f*¢k and super easy. You can even leave it in the sun for a minute and it won’t get all gross like that potatomayo nonsense they try to pass off as a salad. People don’t deserve that basic, bland sh!t.

badmanners.com

It was normal, everyday language that made me smile, even if I can’t relate to anything else. I couldn’t find their site for a little while. As it turns out, they rebranded from Thug Kitchen to “Bad Manners”. They have a few recipe books, if you’re into that Vegan thing; I’m sure you’ll like it. The potato salad recipe language remains the same, which is nice.

Just boil the potatoes while you cut up your onions, carrots and garlic. Combine your dressing while the potatoes cool, and then mix!

Here is the recipe without trucker mouth:

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Fresh Herb Potato Salad (Thug Kitchen)

A healthy, no-mayo potato salad that actually tastes refreshing.

Course Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Chill Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 258kcal

Cost $8

Ingredients

• 1.5 lbs small red potatoes
• 1 t Dijon mustard
• 3 T white wine vinegar
• 2 T lemon juice
• ¼ c olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• ¼ c chives or green onion
• ¼ c fresh dill
• salt
• pepper

Instructions

• Cut potatoes into bite size pieces and boil in salted water for 10 – 15 minutes or until tender.
• Dice the garlic and mix with mustard, vinegar, lemon juice and oil.
• Drain the potatoes and toss with dressing in a large bowl. Add carrots, fresh herbs and salt and pepper to taste.
• Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. If the potatoes look dry before serving, toss with a little more vinegar and olive oil.

Notes

The post Fresh Herb Potato Salad (Thug Kitchen) appeared first on Food Love Affair.

The main recipe comes from my Hamilton Beach Slow Cooker recipe book and it is practically perfect. This makes 3 quarts, but you can easily make 4 quarts with a total of 32 oz V-8, 1 Tbsp garlic, ½ c chopped onion, 2 bags of vegetables, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar and 3 cups of water.

I usually search for mixed vegetables at the back of the freezer, whichever type of mix I have, like soup vegetables or mixed vegetables. The goal is to get a good mix of green beans, peas, carrots, corn and maybe some potatoes and extra onions.

Easy makes it fun – chunk it up with extra fresh veggies, or spice it up as you like.

Try to avoid using a broth with salt or additives, or make your own homemade vegetable base. This already has sodium, so skip the salt wherever you can. You don’t want too much salt or sugar, especially if you’re going to add crackers. And, who doesn’t add crackers?

Ingredients

• V-8
• tomato paste
• chopped garlic
• diced onion
• bag of mixed vegetables
• vegetable broth
• Italian seasoning
• salt
• sugar
• water

Typically, I’ll have a bag of mixed vegetables in the freezer with Organic Carrots, Organic Corn, Organic Peas and Organic Green Beans.

Sometimes I like to add fresh potato or celery, but here are some other ideas for veggies to add to your soup:

• diced tomatoes
• lima beans
• zucchini
• cabbage
• peppers (bell)
• cauliflower
• kale
• leeks

Vegetable Soup Instructions

• Combine all ingredients, stir, cover and cook on Low for 6 hours.

Easy, right?!

Make it a hearty meal with some class grilled cheese, or garlic bread on the side. It can be a filling dinner later in the week. This makes plenty for leftovers or ‘seconds’.

Seasoning Ideas

Italian seasoning mixes usually contain things like Marjoram, Rosemary, Basil, Thyme, Savory, Oregano and Sage, but you can make your own flavor profile as you like:

• paprika
• pepper
• parsley
• lemon juice

More stir-in ideas

Many of the canned or bagged version of vegetable soups & mixes will contain other fillers. If you use potato in your soup, you should definitely skip these. But, I’ve made it with some alphabet noodles (just like Campbell’s) and that made it fun while keeping the dish light. Just remember you don’t want over-saturated, soggy noodles, so just add them in the last few minutes (they only take about ten minutes to cook).

• rice (try brown rice)
• barley
• noodles (shell noodles, spiral noodles, egg noodles)
• lentils

If you like barley, mix it in during the last 30 minutes.

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Vegetarian Vegetable Soup

A slow-cooked vegetable soup will warm you, heart and soul, during the cold, dark winter.

Course Lunch, Soup

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 6 hours hours

Servings 12

Calories 41kcal

Cost $7

Equipment

• crock pot

Ingredients

• 3 c vegetable juice V-8
• 6 oz tomato paste
• 1 tsp chopped garlic
• ¼ c onion, diced
• 16 oz frozen mixed vegetables
• 14 oz vegetable broth
• 1 ½ c water
• ½ t salt
• ½ t sugar

Instructions

• Toss all ingredients into crock pot. Stir. Cook on low for 6 hours.

Notes

The post Vegetarian Vegetable Soup appeared first on Food Love Affair.

All you need is Zucchini, Carrots, Onion, salt & pepper for seasoning & olive oil for stir-frying.

It makes a complementary side dish to our Pan-seared sirloin steak.

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Zucchini-Carrot Medley

Easy, healthy side dish with fresh vegetables

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Mediterranean

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Total Time 17 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 152kcal

Cost $2

Ingredients

• 3 zucchini peeled
• 2 carrots peeled
• ½ onion peeled
• ¼ t salt
• ¼ t pepper
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 T butter optional
• 1 t parsley optional

Instructions

• Slice the carrots & zucchini into thin medallions or coins. (Not too thin, remember the thicker they are the longer they'll take to cook. Ensure they're evenly sized.) Quarter the onion (or slice to your liking).
• Stir-fry the carrots in the olive oil over medium heat for 2-4 minutes, until they become crisp-tender.
• Add the onion and stir occasionally for 4 minutes, until onions become translucent.
• Add the zucchini, butter and seasonings and stir-fry 4 minutes, or until the zucchini is to your preferred firmness (I like mine translucent, but not soggy and not too crisp).
• Serve while hot.

Notes

% Daily Value*
Total Fat 13g	17%
Saturated Fat 4.7g	24%
Cholesterol 15mg	5%
Sodium 224mg	10%
Total Carbohydrate 9.2g	3%
Dietary Fiber 2.7g	10%
Total Sugars 4.6g
Protein 2.2g
Vitamin D 4mcg	20%
Calcium 37mg	3%
Iron 1mg	4%
Potassium 504mg	11%

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I love tomatoes. I love fresh tomato salsa.

I love tomato sandwiches. My mother hates tomatoes. Isn’t that weird? So, if she never really ate them, how did I fall in love with this plump, juicy fruit? We didn’t have a garden, but when I went to my friends house, she invited me to pick a tomato and bite right into it. You know what I’m talking about.

It’s funny how at some Mexican restaurants, they will call it “chunky salsa”, or “medium salsa”, when we all know it’s “Pico”! Pico de gallo is fresh tomato salsa (vs. a traditional, mild, blended salsa, or a chile-based salsa).

The rules are simple:

1. chop some tomatoes and onions into bite-size pieces (so you can get as many pieces on your tortilla chip as possible)
2. dice some jalapenos or Serrano peppers
3. obliterate some cilantro leaves
4. squeeze a lime into the mix
5. top with salt
6. mix
7. taste-test

Alterations

For less hotness, you should seed the peppers first, and cut them into larger pieces, so you can see them and maneuver your chip around them, if you’re afraid.

If they don’t scare you, leave the seeds in and dice them really small, so the hot juices blend more into your salsa bowl. Or, use Serrano peppers instead of jalapeno. Serrano peppers rank between 5,000 – 15,000 Scoville units, whereas the mild jalapeno ranks between 2 – 5K.

Some say leave the tomato seeds in, some say to seed the tomatoes. I think it depends on the season of the tomato: if they’re fresh and firm, you can seed the tomatoes, or just seed half of them to reduce the tomato juice that pools at the bottom of your salsa bowl. If they’re extra ripe and juicy, you might opt to leave much of that juice out. You don’t want a sloppy, sloshy salsa, you want it crisp, chunky and fresh.

First, I learned from Ree Drummond, and while I can no longer find her pico de gallo post, I think that her friend seeded the tomatoes but didn’t seed the jalapenos.

But then, my lovely friend bought me the book “Eat Mexico” for my birthday, and I felt empowered – no more trying to copycat the Mexican restaurant when I have an excellent and accurate source for “authentic” Mexican cuisine.

Try this on Taco night with my taco seasoning, or use any leftovers (as if) in a Southwest Veggie Wrap.

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Pico De Gallo (Fresh Tomato Salsa)

Authentic Mexican Salsa

Course Appetizer, Sauce, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine Mexican

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 4 cups

Calories 28kcal

Cost $8

Ingredients

• 2 lbs roma tomatoes diced
• ½ white onion coarsely chopped
• 10 stems cilantro chopped
• 3 jalapenos or serrano peppers cut into half-moons, with seeds
• ½ lime juice
• salt to taste

Instructions

• Put tomatoes, onion, cilantro and chiles in a bowl.
• Squeeze the juice from ½ a lime into the bowl and mix well. Season with salt to taste.

Notes

% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0.3g	0%
Saturated Fat 0g	0%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 26mg	1%
Total Carbohydrate 6.2g	2%
Dietary Fiber 1.9g	7%
Total Sugars 3.8g
Protein 1.3g
Vitamin D 0mcg	0%
Calcium 16mg	1%
Iron 0mg	2%
Potassium 318mg	7%

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