August 18, 2015 by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

warm fingerling potatoes w/ garlic-turmeric sauce | dolly and oatmeal

raise your hand if there are certain food items that you don't gel with. for a long time i had a strong aversion to cilantro, which i partly blame on a bad guacamole experience when i was younger. however, fast forward a couple years when my husband and i went to costa rica for our honeymoon; we were served cilantro in just about everything, causing me a mild amount of anxiety about whether i wanted to eat most the food there. but after tasting various preparations using different spices and techniques, i was converted forever and now cilantro is one of my favorite herbs.

i mention this because i've had a random week of eating cabbage for almost every evening meal. this is random because i never ever eat cabbage, the taste and smell is something that's never been appealing to me, and many of the cabbage dishes i grew up with were covered in massive amounts of mayo. my distaste for it aside, i decided to pick up 2 baby cabbages at the market the other week, partly because i thought i would experiment with them, but mostly because they were super cute and tiny. they sat in my crisper for the better part of a week before we went out to eat at frank's fave restaurant, hometown, which virtually has zero vegetables on the menu. so naturally, i chose the cabbage slaw. turns out i loved its subtle cabbage-y flavor and the punchiness from what i can only imagine was vinegar. then we made sara's grilled halibut sandwich es and topped them with a good amount of her cabbage and jalepeno slaw, which was maybe the best thing i've eaten in a while!

with 2 very positive cabbage experiences i felt confident enough in my fondness for it. i began conceptualizing this potato dish and thought that their vibrant purple color would play beautifully off the muted fingerlings, plus i was thinking that this dish needed a subtle crunch that the cabbage could surely lend. and that it did. i would confidently say that this is one of my favorite combinations, along with the garlicky turmeric sauce which is punchy, and earthy, and perfectly creamy. i suppose the moral of the story is to never shelf a specific food item; that something can be prepared one way and totally not your thing, while if it's prepared a different way can yield a completely different experience.

happy mid-august, all! xo

warm fingerling potatoes w/ garlic-turmeric sauce (v + gf)

any small potato will work beautifully here, however be sure to adjust the cook time if the potatoes are smaller than your pinkie. the garlic-turmeric sauce gives the potatoes and cabbage a nice creaminess, kind of like a light potato salad. but if that's not your thing, i would suggest maybe using it for dipping.

| serves 4 as a side |

garlic-turmeric sauce

1/2 cup dairy-free cultured coconut yogurt (i use this one)
2 teaspoons tahini paste
1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 large (or 2 small) garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons grated fresh turmeric (or 1 teaspoon dried ground turmeric)
fine sea salt + freshly ground pepper

potatoes

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
1 pound fingerling potatoes, scrubbed and cut lengthwise
large grain sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1 cup shredded purple cabbage
1/4 cup chopped chives
a few pinches black or white sesame seeds

method

for the sauce

in a bowl, whisk together the yogurt, tahini, vinegar, garlic, and turmeric, season with salt and pepper. taste and adjust as necessary. place in a lidded jar and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

for the potatoes

preheat the oven to 400*F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. use a pastry brush to brush the paper liberally with olive oil, set aside.
in a bowl, toss together the potatoes and olive oil, sprinkle with large grain salt and fresh pepper. place the potatoes cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet and roast until the bottoms are lightly browned, about 20-22 minutes. use tongs to turn potatoes over and roast until potatoes are golden and tender, about 10 minutes. remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. then toss together with shredded cabbage and chives.
remove sauce from refrigerator and give it a good stir; drizzle potatoes with the sauce and toss together. serve potatoes warm with more turmeric sauce if desired.

enjoy!

more potato recipes

roasted potato salad w/ romesco + herby black quinoa

twice baked sweet potatoes w/ pumpkin seed dukkah

mellow melon salad / August 12, 2015 by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

we celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary a couple of weeks ago, not with some blowout dinner or glasses of bubbly, but in a sea-breezy field on a couple of adirondack chairs with 2 crisp beers, just me and frank, and our pup, Quint. we had kind of intended to do nothing since we're planning to take a celebratory trip later on in the year, but going back to where we got married, where this whole lindsey and frank thing started turned out to be the best way to ring in the occasion. we stopped by the farm on long island where we got married , had lunch at our favorite spot, and then took Quint for his first (and very apprehensive) swim in the ocean!

it was great reliving that day with similar sights and smells, but with my life partner and all that has come to mean in the past 2 years. it was almost like looking back on that day and thinking about how long ago it felt, how much we were babies then, but also feeling that nothing has really changed. they say the first year of marriage is roses and cupcakes. however, year 2 felt a bit more like that as our first year married was a lot of figuring out some of the dynamics of what being married meant to us as individuals, and finding compromise and balance within that.

excited for year 3? heck yes! for i feel as though these past couple of years, through the arguments and good times, we continue to accept differences, learn each other's language a bit better, and be fiercely in love with one another - flaws and all!

and now i'm going to awkwardly shift gears to this salad! there's a great deal of flavor and texture highlighted in this salad, all while keeping it super light on preparation time. the corn is lightly charred for a bit of smoky flavor, while the squash is peeled into noodles giving the salad some movement and texture. this is a cool and soothing salad, with a sweet and savory flavor, perfect for hot summer days!

big hugs!

mellow melon salad (v + gf)

while i use melon wedges here cantaloupe would be just as delicious, as would watermelon. the leopard melon indicated in the ingredients list is not so easily accessible, and can be substituted for cucumber, as it has a similar taste and texture. this is great served as a side to any meal, or as a hydrating snack during the day.

| serves 4-6 |

dressing

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon thyme leaves
3 teaspoons maple syrup
1 small shallot
salt + pepper

salad

half of 1 leopard melon (or 1 small cucumber)
2 medium summer squash
2 ears of corn, shucked
2/3 cup grape or cherry heirloom tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon chopped mint
1/2 teaspoon chopped lemon thyme
salt + pepper
half of 1 cantaloupe or honeydew melon, cut into wedges
a small handful of mint flowers

green cantaloupe + snow leopard melon | dolly and oatmeal

method

place dressing ingredients in a mini food processor and blend until emulsified. taste and adjust seasoning. store dressing in a lidded jar in the refrigerator until ready to use.
prepare an ice bath and set aside. peel the skin from the melon (or cucumber) and cut in half lengthwise. using a mandolin, shave each half of the melon and place the pieces in the prepared ice bath to crisp, about 10-15 minutes. drain the melon and place on dishtowel to dry.
using a julienne peeler (or a mandolin) peel each side of the summer squash until you reach the seedy center. place strands in a large serving bowl and set aside.
over a gas top stove, light a burner to a low flame. one at a time char the corn cobs rotating with tongs to evenly cook the corn. set aside and allow corn to cool. once cool enough to handle, stand the corn upright; use a large knife to cut the kernels from the cob. repeat with other ear of corn and place kernels in the bowl with the squash.
to the bowl, add the tomatoes, leopard melon, parsley, mint, and thyme; season with salt and pepper. remove the dressing from the refrigerator and give it a good shake. drizzle a few spoonfuls over the squash noodles, then taste and adjust, adding more dressing if needed.
slice the cantaloupe or honeydew melon into even wedges, then cut the flesh from the skin. plate wedges and top with the summer squash noodles and mint flowers.

enjoy!

more summer recipes

raw veggie + ginger rice bowl w/ sriracha tahini

pickled corn succotash salad — pickled corn succotash salad

sunday suppers - a gathering / July 28, 2015 by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

sunday suppers - a gathering | dolly and oatmeal

this past weekend my husband and i had the pleasure of hosting a light taqueria feast on martha's vineyard in celebration of karen mordechai's sunday suppers cookbook. i've been a fan of karen's work for years; from the charming gatherings she hosts in her brooklyn studio, to the array of stunning recipes and photos on her blog, and as of last year her sunday suppers cookbook. the compilation of gatherings and recipes in her book are not just beautifully organized but inspiring; nudging you - ever so gently - to take the plunge and host a gathering of your own. her recipes are breezy, but not in the sense that they're just thrown together, rather they're simple, refreshing, and delicious. karen's aesthetic is more than appealing, so when she asked if i wanted to host a gathering i jumped at the opportunity.

since i was up on martha's vienyard i thought that hosting the gathering there be a great opportunity to utilize some of the island's vibrant vegetables and fresh fish. the day of gathering started early as my husband and i drove to the other side of the island to purchase our fish from our favorite market, larsen's, where we picked up that morning's catch: halibut. next, it was on to beetlebung farm for my favorite herbs and greens, then a quick stop at the west tisbury farmers market for tabor house farm's red and white onions; our morning concluded at the morning glory farm in edgartown to purchase some of the most tender and sweet tomatoes, a handful of organic avocados, and a bunch of freshly plucked radishes. the rest of the afternoon was spent prepping, figuring out how to cook in the kitchen of our rental house, and setting the table for our guests.

we enjoyed an early supper as the sun started to set and the day became cool again. we talked and laughed and swapped stories about our day, and importantly shared a good meal with sun-kissed faces and happy smiles.