Summer Picnic Vol. 1

Today was a beautiful Summer Sunday, and after sitting on my roof in my new beach chair, I got to cooking my lunches for the week. I had picked up a variety of different potatoes from the farmers' market at McCarren Park, so I decided to make a tangy potato salad with my leftover dill.

TANGY POTATO SALAD

6 potatoes chopped small (preferably 2 each of three different types with varying colors and flavors, or you could just use medium sized red potatoes; I got the opportunity to pick from about 20 different types of potatoes at McCarren Park's farmers' market)

1/2 red onion diced

1/4 cup sliced scallion

1/4 chopped dill

Boil the potatoes (after chopping) for about ten minutes, until slightly soft. Sautee the onions until caramelized (I like my onions slightly burnt). Combine all the above ingredients in a casserole dish and bake for 25 minutes at 400˚F.

For the potato salad dressing, combine...

4 tbs. low-fat mayonnaise

1 tbs. dijon mustard

1 tbs. sour cream

1 tsp. creamy horseradish

Once the potatoes are done roasting, toss in a cup of cooked, drained and rinsed black beans (I started with a 1/3 a cup of fresh [is that the word?] beans which I had soaked for an hour then boiled for an hour to soften / fill with water / whatever black beans do to be like the ones in the cans minus the slimy goop around them), splash of balsamic vinegar and the juice of 1 lemon and lime. Chill for 20 minutes before folding in the dressing.

I had also picked up some sweet italian turkey sausage at the farmers' market so, of course, I was going to make some burgers.

BLUE CHEESE SPICY TURKEY BURGERS

3/4 lb. sweet italian turkey sausage

dash cayenne pepper

1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

If your meat doesn't already have fennel seed in it, I would highly suggest adding that. I had forgotten to add fennel seed, but then found that it was already in the meat, lucky me. Combine the above ingredients and divide the meat into four equal lumps. Form into patties and sautee on medium heat. Each side for about 8 minutes.

TOMATO WATERMELON SALAD

1/2 watermelon cubed

1/4 cup basil julienned

1/3 cup cherry tomatoes halved

1/2 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese

It was about after I finished chopping up all of the watermelon, that I was taking the cutting board over to the sink, that my foot brushed under the cabinets, that I was repulsed to find...

Hehe.

My roommate and I found this when we came home last week...