Easy Vegan Potato Salad With Fresh Pesto

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If you're looking for a fresh twist on traditional potato salad, this easy vegan potato salad is one recipe you'll want to make all summer long. Instead of a heavy mayonnaise dressing, tender potatoes are tossed in a homemade basil and cilantro (or parsley) pesto that is bursting with robust flavor.

Summertime And The Living and Cooking is Easy!

I absolutely love the old 1934 song Summertime 🎵🎵 (written by George Gershwin and performed in the musical Porgy and Bess)—it perfectly captures the easygoing vibe of the season. 

There's something about summer that makes everything feel a bit more relaxed: simple dinners out on the deck, lighter meals, golden sunlight stretching well into the evening, leisurely evening walks, and casual get-togethers with friends, and even a lazy afternoon nap. 

see easy summertime recipes at end of post.

Kitchen Wisdom- Reduce Sprouting In Potatoes

What's an apple doing in the potato basket? 

Does it help reduce sprouting? Our grandmothers may not have had all of our modern technology, but they knew some basic kitchen wisdom that worked for them. 

Farmer's Market Potato Salad- Vegan and Oil-Free

It's potato season in Pennsylvania, and I'm making a lot of potato recipes. 

The little red and yellow tender potatoes are my favorites to use to make a delicious summer potato salad with green beans, baby kale, red onion, herbs, and spices.

Continue to get the recipe

Spring Potato Salad -no mayo

Looking to eat more vegetables? Spring is almost here, and so is the desire for lighter eating. Spring potato salad makes a great side dish for any meal or get-together with friends or family. It's healthy, low fat, and delicious. 

Herbed Potato Salad - no mayo

Are you in the mood for a creamy bowl of potato salad? 

This is a simple herbed potato salad recipe that I tossed with a parsley, dill, and scallion dressing. It contains no mayonnaise or oil, yet it is moist and tasty.

My mother used to always make homemade potato salad. 
In fact, when I was very young, my parents owned a corner grocery store and deli for about 5 years in Bristol, Pa. 

In those days (1950's), neighborhoods had little corner grocery markets prior to the arrival of large supermarkets in the 1960's. In fact, many of our groceries such as eggs, cottage cheese, milk, and produce were delivered to our door by the  historic "egg man" or "milk man"- of course it was after we sold the deli.

All of the salads were homemade in our deli. My mother made her signature homemade potato salad every day which meant she needed to peel and cook 20 pounds of potatoes daily. My mother and her recipe are long gone, but she always sold out, so her potato salad must have been exceptionally good.

For this recipe, I usually make about 2 pounds of potatoes and we eat it over two or three days. Potato salad is such an easy side dish and is delicious and filling. 

This herbed recipe is particularly flavorful, colorful, and low in fat. 

Use baby red or white potatoes which seem to taste best. 

Of course it's always the dressing which gives the potato salad its flavor. This dressing is made using fresh herbs and seasonings such as parsley, dill, scallions, mustard, lemon juice, and acquafaba. 

If you are not familiar with aquafaba, it is simply the water in the can of chickpeas or the water from when you make your own chickpeas. If has a slightly thickening quality and adds a very nice taste. I use it instead of the oil.

Ingredients: 

2 pounds of baby red and or white potatoes, cleaned, quartered, and steamed or boiled and drained.

Dressing: 

1/4 cup of Dijon Mustard

1/2 cup of chopped parsely

1/4 cup of scallions, chopped 

1/4 cup of dill, chopped

1/4 cup of lemon juice 

1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon of garlic powder 

1/4 cup of aquafaba

Optional: 1/2 cup of celery chopped small

Directions for the Dressing

Add the mustard, parsley, scallions, dill, lemon juice, vinegar, and garlic powder to a food processor. Whiz until well blended carefully adding small amounts of aquafaba from the chute as needed. Remove from food processor and toss the dressing over warm potatoes. Add chopped celery if desired and mix well. 

Notes: 

1. This recipe is vegan, gluten-free, oil-free, kosher parve

2. I think the recipe tastes best at room temperature.

Peek at My Week -

Remember when you were in elementary school and you had to write a book report?  I feel like I'm still doing it when I write these posts about what I'm reading. 

                  The Great Alone by Kristan Hannah. 

I really enjoy this author, Kristin Hannah, and have read many of her other novels including her #1 NY Times Bestseller, The Nightingale. If you haven't read The Nightingale, I highly recommend it. 

The Great Alone takes place in the 1970's in beautiful uncharted wilderness of Alaska. The author's stunning descriptions and brilliant metaphors bring this majestic setting alive.  

The story: After returning from the Vietnam war, Ernt Allbright is a changed and more violent man. Unable to easily fit back into society and unable to keep a job, Ernt moves his family to Alaska to live in a remote area and live off the land. It is a survival story of a family in crisis and the difficulties which highlight the extremes of experiencing challenging and sometimes difficult Alaska living. We are introduced to their community who are strong group of survivalists both men and women. It is an exciting and heart wrenching story of human nature. A good read. 

What I'm Watching on Prime: 

2 documentaries- I liked them both- very interesting and informative

Shalom Bollywood - This is about the film industry in India and why so many stars came from the Indian Jewish community. I wasn't aware of the large Jewish community in India. " The unlikely story of the 2000- year-old Indian Jewish community and its formative place in shaping the world's  .".

In My Mother's Garden-

A selected group of women of color are interviewed to talk about their lives and their relationships with their mothers and grandmothers and how it impacted their lives. These interesting women share about the wisdom passed down to them regarding love, spirituality, sexism, family, food, and racism. 

I also just started a new series on Netflix called, " BlackSpace". It's an exciting detective series that will keep you on the edge of your seat . A murder takes place in a local high school in front of the entire assembly of 12th graders. Four students are shot- Were these four students targeted or were they shot randomly??  Could be your next series to watch!! It takes place in Israel and my version was dubbed.

I also recently saw the Vincent Van Gogh exhibit( link to my post about it) which was FABULOUS.. This exhibit is traveling all over the US and the world. I saw it in Miami, friends saw it in Toronto, in Israel, etc. 

What I'm cooking: Instant Pot Potato Salad

This is a mayo free French type potato salad made with lemon and oil ( recently I have begun to make it oil-free too) 

trailer for Black Space 

men from across the globe unlock stories of their mothers to redefine holistic lives rooted 

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 Linking to Sunday Salon

A Peek At My Week 7/26

This has been a really hot week with temperatures rising to the mid-high 90's all week. I haven't felt much like cooking, so I've been making salads. 
We are still sheltering at home and my routine is pretty much the same: walking in the morning, reading, blogging, watching Netflix, and cooking, and having my older son and his family for dinner on the deck on Friday nights!  The hydrangeas are definitely thriving in this weather!

What I'm Watching:

Hamilton: On Disney+ through July 
They are showing an actual live performance  of the Broadway Play- Hamilton filmed in New York City prior to Covid. It is excellent and so worth taking the opportunity to watch it if you have Disney+: It's through July. 



Also Watching a Netflix Series:   

Quantico

Quantico is a fast moving action packed series about a woman training to work for the FBI. She finds herself victimized by a terrorist group. It is fascinating to see the way she works her way out of the mess and the long tangled story of her life before she joins the FBI. I thought it was a new series, until my son told me her watched it on television at least 6 years ago. Regardless, I'm enjoying it and recommend it!

What I'm Cooking: 
Corn, Cucumber and Olive Salad (Recipe Here)
This is a really different and tasty summer salad made with freshly cut off the cob raw crunchy kernels of corn, whole pitted black olives, red onion, celery, cucumber and spices. Summer corn is in full season here in Pennsylvania now.

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Red Cabbage Potato Salad  (Recipe Link)

This photo was taken before I mixed the salad

Another very tasty salad that is made with potatoes, red onion, red cabbage, and parsley. This hearty salad is vegan so there is no mayonaise, but it is dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. It's kind of like two sides in one- the starchy potato and the raw salad veggies.


Sharing this post on Sunday Salon 

A Peek At My Week 5/30

This magnificent rainbow, which was visible right outside my condo balcony, was the highlight of my week. I'm not sure that I've ever seen one as bold and striking. It wrapped from one side of the horizon to the other and was bright and clear. I was sure there was a pot of gold at the end of it! This week I'm sharing a book review, a Netflix review, 2 gluten-free/ vegan recipes, and some photos of a walk in the park in Florida.

French Potato Salad

Want to try something a little different?  I learned this stunning recipe from my husband's family based on his grandmother's recipe who was originally from Livorno, Italy, and then lived in France. 

We really love this potato salad.
It is made with red potatoes, olive oil, and freshly squeezed lemon juice instead of mayonnaise. How does it taste? Amazing!!

The original family recipe
Although our original family recipe calls for chopped hard-boiled eggs, I found I when I omit the eggs to make this recipe vegan, and it is still absolutely delicious.

You can also add raw vegetables to the basic recipe to make individual variations. Add chopped red onion, scallions, or black olives. If you like more veggies in your potato salad, you may want to try my hearty healthy Red Cabbage Potato Salad that is also vegan.

Whether you decide to make the basic recipe or add extras, for the best flavor, this potato salad tastes best served at room temperature.

Be sure that you have a good sharp vegetable peeler, which can make all the difference. A sharp peeler will zip the skin right off a potato, butternut squash, or even eggplant. A good peeler is worth the investment. 

I use this vegetable peeler:  OXO Good Grips Y Peeler (affiliate link)

It is a simple recipe, but extremely flavorful and easy to make.
In addition, you won't have to worry about the mayo spoiling if you serve it at a picnic or BBQ. It is a great crowd-pleaser. For those who celebrate Passover and obtain from eating bread for 8 days, this potato salad is a great recipe to pin!!

What is Resistant Starch and Why Should You Care?? 
As we know, potatoes contain starch and carbohydrates. There is a theory that when potatoes are cooked, refrigerated, and then consumed, the starch is digested differently and not as starchy- perhaps reducing the impact on insulin resistance. I'm not an expert so
 I found a detailed explanation on the Internet ( I have no affiliation and am just sharing what I found for educational purposes. ) Resistant starch explained. The gist is that when you boil a potato and then cool it in the refrigerator, the starch in the potato changes and forms a type of starch that is helpful in insulin resistance, digestion, etc.

I usually make this potato salad in advance, I refrigerate, and then take it out to serve it at room temperature.

My husband is one of five children. This family recipe had to feed a family of seven. If you are a smaller family, reduce the number of potatoes and eggs that you use. Perhaps 2 pounds of potatoes and 2 eggs. Or if you are vegan, remember that this recipe is great when you omit the eggs too!

Ingredients
4-5 pounds of red potatoes, peeled, boiled and cubed.
3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped (optional-omit if vegan)
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped fine
1/4 cup olive oil
Juice of  three fresh lemons or limes
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup red onion or scallion chopped fine (optional)

Directions:
First make a dressing by mixing together the olive oil, fresh lemon, chopped parsley, salt,
and pepper- then set aside.
Boil potatoes, peel, and cube ( I like to peel mine after boiling)
Boil eggs, peel, and chop (omit if vegan)
Place potatoes and eggs in a large bowl while they are still hot.
Pour dressing over hot potatoes and eggs and mix well.
Taste and adjust seasonings if needed ( a little more oil, lemon, salt?)
Add chopped red onion, chopped scallion, or chopped black olives if desired.

Pictured Steps

Assemble Ingredients and Boil Potatoes and Eggs

Mix olive oil, fresh lemon juice, parsley, salt, and pepper to make a dressing and set aside

Notes: 
1. After I purchased an Instant Pot (which I now use to cook EVERYTHING), I converted this recipe. Here is the link if you would like to make this recipe using your IP.
Instant Pot Potato Salad

2. This is a great recipe for Passover -especially for those who are observant and abstain from eating bread and leavened products for 8 days! We make a batch on Day 1 and eat it for lunch for days! It will keep in the refrigerator for about a good 5 days!

Vegan Potato Salad Made In the Instant Pot