Who made the potato salad? We welcome you around the table for a meal and a discussion about how we can embrace what's beautiful even during the hardships. We get inspiration from a dish that revered across communities and made from ingredients that are all within arms reach. And with this meal, we pay an homage to the feminine spirit of peace and harmony as we approach Mother's Day.
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Feed Your Fire Podcast Episode Transcript:
Hello, and welcome to Feed Your Fire. I'm your host, Kim Baker. After a few false starts, spring has finally arrived.
It's the season of promise, and yet the world is fraught. So we straddle these two ideas, working our way up the mountain while trying to take in the scenery. Today, we're going to prepare something of real substance, a delicious recipe that came together from ingredients that were all within arm's reach.
It's the kind of dish that's been around for centuries, but there's always a fresh take, a new way of looking at it. And sometimes, fresh perspective is exactly what we need.
I've often had this very irrational desire for things to feel settled, for just like one minute to feel some sense of steadiness. And yet, in all of my adult years, that has never panned out. And I bet if you thought through your experiences, you might say the same.
There always seems to be some mountains, some valley, some hill to climb. And then I realized, why would I expect anything else when the ground beneath our feet is literally in constant motion, beneath us are these tectonic plates, puzzle pieces along the earth's surface, that move and shift while our planet spins. So when you think about it, the events in our life are just following course.
The other day, I was having coffee with a friend, and she was asking me about my son, who's about to turn 17, and how it felt to be approaching this stage of life. And the only way I can answer that question is relative to the journey. For years, it felt like we had been climbing a mountain in a hailstorm.
So not only are we at the top of that hill, but the weather's cleared, and I can see things that I've never seen before. And when I told my friend how I was feeling, she started to tear up, not because of my experience, but because she was climbing her own hill. And I started to think about these landforms that we all collectively climb.
They're both part of the earth's terrain and the fabric of our lives. And yet, it seems there's more to it. In Tibet, there's a mountain that's considered so sacred that it's forbidden to be climbed.
People take pilgrimages to stand at the base just to be in its proximity. And I'm reminded of these trips that my sister and I would take when we were processing grief, one of which was after my mother's passing. We went to Sedona to climb the red rocks, the burning sun literally singeing our eyeballs.
But we went to be close to a spiritual essence, allowing our bodies to take in this invisible promise. And every time we went on one of these trips, we would take from it different things. The terrain was the same, but our perspective was different.
One of the things that I've come to know is that we have everything we need to overcome. Our life experiences are a training ground, and each of the obstacles have been part of that curriculum. We have to tap into it like it's a latent talent, laying dormant until it's discovered.
And sometimes we have to be the community providing provisions and reinforcement to someone else. And that's our vantage point today. We're going to prepare a potato salad, a dish that originated hundreds of years ago, that's taken on deeply personal adaptations.
In some communities, it's almost sacred. There are endless ways to interpret this dish. And today, we're looking at it with fresh eyes.
Now, the first thing I did was a quick pickle on some red onions. I combined about a cup of white vinegar with a cup of water. Then I mixed in about two teaspoons of salt and a tablespoon and a half of sugar.
I added in about a half of a red onion, thinly sliced, and popped it into the refrigerator while I prepared everything else. Then I grabbed a large pot, and I filled it about halfway with cold water. I had a bag of these baby gold potatoes.
There were about a pound and a half. I sliced the potatoes in half, and then added them to the pot of water. You want the potatoes fully submerged with about an inch of water on top.
I generously salted the water and then popped it on to the stove at about medium high heat, until it reached a boil. Then I brought the temperature down just a bit to let the potatoes cook through. It took maybe 15-20 minutes.
Once they were fork tender, I drained them from the water, and I put them back in the pot over low heat just for a minute to let any water on the potatoes evaporate. Then I transferred them to a bowl to cool in the refrigerator. While the potatoes were cooling, I made an aioli, which is essentially a fancy mayonnaise.
In a small bowl, we're going to add the yolk of an egg. You can save the white for another use. Then add a little squeeze of lemon juice and a smidge of Dijon mustard.
Whisk that together as you slowly drizzle in olive oil. Using olive oil is what sort of makes it different from a mayonnaise. We're also not going to use as much oil, keeping the mixture more fluid.
I probably used about a quarter cup. And we're going to grab a garlic clove and essentially smash it to smithereens. Once you peel it, chop it really fine, and then scrape the side of your blade against the garlic on the cutting board.
This will create a garlic paste. Add that garlic paste to your aioli and season everything with salt and pepper. Then grab your potatoes and coat them with about half of that aioli.
You can reserve the rest for sandwiches during the week Then we're going to add in a ton of chopped parsley and chopped dill, along with the zest of one lemon. Then toss all of that up and season it with salt and pepper.
Wanted to add in some chopped walnuts, but I didn't have any, so I used cashews instead. Feel free to use whatever you prefer or have on hand. Then add in a few slices of that pickled onion.
It'll add this beautiful color, and it'll bring a little bit of this briny element to the dish. Toss it all up and bring it to the next gathering with your friends and family. When they ask who made the potato salad, you can proudly claim it.
This is an interpretation that combines the freshness of herbs and lemon with real substance. It brings together the lightness of spring with something that's timeless and universal. And as we round the corner to Mother's Day, many of you will be planning family meals and looking for inspiration.
Over the weekend, I had made this potato salad. My boyfriend and I had our first alfresco lunch out on the patio. A true testament of spring.
A beautiful moment, even as we straddle some really difficult life events. When my sister and I would go hiking in Sedona, we spent most of our time in Boynton Canyon, where one of the famous of all sites is called the Kachina Woman. Kachinas are believed to be ancestral spirits.
And in this particular location, there's a reverence to feminine energy that connects us to the earth beneath our feet. And it was here that we went to find peace as we climbed. And I hope each of you can tap into that same source, even if it's just in your own backyard.
And with this recipe, you certainly have the right provisions.
Until our next episode, we say so long. Feed Your Fire, where food nourishes growth.