I have harvested my first little mound of potatoes - Yukon Gold, my favorite. I've grown this type for many years, finding them very buttery, crisp, and flavorful. They are excellent mashed, but also make a wonderful potato for a salad, which I've done here.
Since I didn't have any mayonnaise, I substituted with a little ranch dressing mixed with mustard, pickle relish, onion, olive, celery and a little yogurt. I put the potatoes on a bed of salad greens, a mixture from my garden. Green onions, carrots, kale, celery, oregano, and parsley.
I spent a few hours today preparing dishes for a barbecue, using some vegetables my friend Nancy brought over from one of her catering events. She gave me a huge bag of fresh whole mushrooms, which I sauteed with onions and garlic, then added to my rice-red wheat blend.
I put foil over this rice-wheat-mushroom mixture, and kept it warm in the oven until the barbecue was ready. Nancy gave me a big bag of sweet bell peppers, whole garlic, roasted potatoes and carrots, and some eggplant, and I combined these with some onions and pineapple that I had left over from the weekend.
I put all of the vegetables onto long metal skewers, capping them off with a firm 'rainbow carrot' from my garden. This last item helps hold all the vegetables onto the skewer so they won't slide off.I grilled our chicken first, putting three large chicken breasts into a grilling basket this time, so that I can better control the grilling height over the charcoal.
Our meal was ready in about an hour. I got out my big braiser, and put the chicken and vegetables into it, sliding everything off the skewers. It stayed warm in the oven at a low holding temperature until George came home for dinner.It was a wonderful afternoon for grilling - finally we have some hot weather, and cooking outside was so relaxing out in my patio. My little grill sits on the cement, so I sit there too, in the shade, tending my fire just like when we camp out. Our cat Pandora sits under one of the patio chairs. She knows I'll give her a little bit of the chicken when it is finished, and she watches me with the utmost eagerness.
