Wonderfully Addictive French Potato Salad

I have never been a huge fan of classic American potato salad, where the potatoes are swimming in gobs of mayo with little clumps of egg hanging on to the smushy potatoes (ok, maybe it's not always this bad....).

But this potato salad is a horse of a different color. The white wine, olive oil and lemon juice dressing soaks into the warm potatoes, and the green onions add texture as well as flavor. This salad is at once fancy enough to serve at a dinner party and easily casual enough to pack along on a picnic. It is delicious whether it is served hot or cold, and can be made in large amounts or small ones.

Whenever my mom makes this, I literally can't stop eating it---it's so good. I asked her to teach me to make it. We bought some gorgeous little potatoes at the farmers market and picked some fresh basil from the garden.

As always with my mother, it was nearly impossible to figure out amounts of things as she doesn't measure. Here are some estimates.

7-8 potatoes, cut into chunks (but really, as many as you want to make--leftovers are always good!)

1/2 c olive oil**
1/4 c lemon juice
1/4 c white wine
1 tsp mustard
salt and pepper
chopped basil (optional)

**these amounts are really to taste---vary as you like!

Cut up potatoes into potato-salad sized chunks (not too big, not to small) and steam. While the potatoes are still warm, pour the dressing over them and allow it to sit and soak in. Potatoes should be nicely coated but not drowning in dressing. Garnish with the green onions and basil and serve.

Raspberry Blackberry Coconut Macaroons

As I thought about what to make for Passover this year, I came upon SmittenKitchen's Raspberry Coconut Macaroons.

As usual, I stumbled upon the recipe at 10 pm at night. I looked in the closet--I had an almost full 14 oz bag of coconut. I'll just halve the recipe, I thought. I was pretty sure I had some frozen berries, so I began to throw ingredients in the blender.

After putting in the three egg whites, I realized that I hadn't actually halved the recipe.  Oops!  I didn't have any fresh berries, so ignoring the advice not to use frozen berries, I threw in a small handful of frozen blackberries and raspberries (filling the palm of my hand, but not much more than that). I also used vanilla extract instead of almond. I didn't marble them as Deb suggested (another--"oops, too late!" moment so familiar to the impatient cook), but the pinkish-purple color was pretty anyway.

They took five minutes to make (plus another 30 in the oven), and were so delicious that they begged the question "Why the hell don't I make these more often?!"

The raspberries and blackberries gave a delicious tangy flavor that didn't let the coconut overwhelm the flavor of the macaroon.

I made them again the next day, after going to the grocery store to grab two more bags of coconut. I doubled the recipe and then drizzled chocolate on top.

Here's my version (adapted very slightly) of her recipe:

• 14 oz sweetened, flaked coconut
• 2/3 c sugar
• 3 egg whites (I added an extra half egg white when I doubled the recipe)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt
• slight dash almond extract (optional--I did it without the first time and they were delicious!)
• small handful frozen raspberries and blackberries (I would say maybe 10-12 berries total?)

Pulse the coconut in the Cuisinart for a minute or so.  Add the sugar and pulse again until mixed together. Pour in the egg whites, vanilla extract, almond extract (if using), and salt. Pulse again, and then lastly add the berries.  Mix together; the batter will be pretty wet, but it holds together! Bake at 325º for 25-30 minutes, until the tops are tinged with golden brown and look a bit drier.

Drizzle with melted semisweet chocolate chips--this makes the macaroons look almost like fancy truffles!

Almond Macaroon Torte with Chocolate Frosting

        This, like many of the desserts I've been making, is a SmittenKitchen adaptation. My birthday is on Monday, and I celebrated it tonight with my family. I desperately wanted the almond and raspberry layer cake with chocolate frosting, but with a dairy allergy in the family the buttercream frosting was a no-go.

This torte looked just as beautiful and complicated---and it was surprisingly easy! I followed her idea to use bittersweet chocolate, but didn't read the amount right and so only bought 1 bar of Scharffenberger 70% instead of two. I ended up mixing semi-sweet chocolate chips and bittersweet chocolate--this worked just fine, but the sweetness of the chocolate overpowered the macaroon a little. If When I make this again, I will use all 70% chocolate and add some raspberry jam and more slivered almonds between the layers in addition to the frosting! Again, the following recipe is adapted from Deb at SmittenKitchen (very slightly...most of the directions are hers):

Almond macaroons

• 2 1/2 cups (10.5 ounces or 300 grams) slivered almonds (or an equivalent weight of blanched, sliced or already ground almonds)

• 1 c plus 3 tbs sugar

• 2 large pinches kosher salt

• 2 tsp vanilla extract 
• 
6 large egg whites

Frosting and assembly


• 1/2 c water
• 
1/2 c sugar

• 1/2 tsp orange oil or extract
• 20 ounces bittersweet chocolate (70-72%), chopped 
• 1 c sliced almonds, toasted (at 350 degrees for 7 to 9 minutes on a tray, stirring once or twice)

First, make the macaroons: 
        Position an oven rack in the top and lower third of oven and preheat oven to 325°F. Draw two 12 x 4-inch rectangles, spacing 2 inches apart (I like Deb, have a smallish oven--I used the 3 3/4 x 11-inch rectangles!) on a piece of parchment paper, then two more of the same size on a second sheet. In total, you’ll use 2 sheets of parchment paper and draw 4 rectangles. Turn each sheet of parchment over (so your ink or pencil lines don’t seep into the macaroon). There is no need to spray with oil, though if you are really worried about sticking you can (I used a flat metal spatula to help lift mine off after it was cool--I had no problems there!)
        Place almonds, 1 cup sugar and coarse salt in a food processor and blend until finely ground.
        Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in large, dry bowl with clean beaters (or a whisk attachment) until soft peaks form. Drizzle in vanilla extract, then slowly add remaining 3 tablespoons sugar. Beat until stiff but not dry. Fold nut mixture into egg whites. Spread 1/4 of macaroon batter evenly within each rectangle, filling completely.
        Bake macaroon layers until golden and almost firm to the touch in the center, reversing sheets halfway through — this took a total of 23 minutes in my oven as well as Deb's; the original recipe (from Bon Appetit) says it can take up to 40. 
Cool macaroons on their sheets on a cooling rack.


Make the frosting as the macaroons are cooling: 
        Simmer 1/2 cup of water and sugar in a medium saucepan until sugar dissolves. Measure 10 tablespoons from this and save it for another use (I ran out of frosting as I spread mine too thick so I used this to make more!). Put the 10 tablespoons syrup back in the saucepan and add the orange extract (or other extract of your choice). Bring the syrup back to a boil and add chocolate to the saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate until smooth. This should yield a medium-thick frosting, good for spreading. If yours is on the thin side, you can let it cool for 5 or 10 minutes until it is a good spreading consistency.

Assemble torte: 
        Trim your macaroon layers back to their intended rectangular sizes — for me, a sharp knife worked just fine. 
        Place one macaroon layer on a long platter. (Slip little pieces of parchment or waxed paper under the edges will help keep your platter clean; pull them out when you’re done frosting the torte.) Spread some frosting evenly over (my suggestion: after adding the frosting, spread a thin later or raspberry jam, and more sliced almonds). Top with another macaroon layer. Spread more frosting evenly over, and repeat process one more time. I had extra edges that were enough to make a 5th layer, but I also trimmed my macaroons to 9" in length rather than their original 11" so that they would fit on my pretty new platter! Top with the last macaroon layer, flat side up. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of torte. Press sliced almonds onto sides of torte.

        To make the hearts on top, cut a strip of parchment paper at least the length and width of the cake. Make a cutout of a heart (I used the same cutout so all the hearts would be the same. Crush some of the slivered almonds, and sprinkle them through the cutout. Repeat until you have the three hearts!

An extra reason to make this torte: this recipe also happens to be dairy-free, gluten-free, and kosher for Passover (my next opportunity to make it again!).