Sneaky-Delicious Potato Salad
It feels like it's been ages since I did a proper vegan post, and I really want to get back into the weekly habit. The cookbook projects I've mentioned over the past several months are still very much on the list of things I'm excited about, and I also want to start cooking and baking more out of the cookbooks that are already on my shelf. Last month I baked my first two batches of cupcakes out of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World for a holiday party, and they turned out splendidly. I'll blog about that soon.But for now, here's a shot of the shhh-they'll-never-know-it's-not-"real"-mayo potato salad I made for Christmas Eve dinner using the recipe my mom suggested. 
Once the secret was out (I mean, yeah, I was eating this stuff by the bucketful), my cousin half-jokingly started in on that whole "soy gives men boobs" argument (if we can even call it an "argument"), and I triumphantly replied that I'd used soy-free Earth Balance olive oil mayo. Sure, it's not the healthiest thing on your plate o' Christmas feast—or at least it shouldn't be!—but it's still a very satisfying take on a classic comfort food.Here's my vegan version of the original Taste of Home recipe:
1.5 lb. red potatoes1.5 lb. purple potatoes (they add visual interest!)1 medium onion, finely processed3 pickle spears, finely chopped3 ribs of celery, finely chopped1 tsp. celery seed1 tsp. salt (or to taste)1/2 tsp. pepper (or to taste)1/4 cup pickle juice (from the jar)1 1/2 cups Earth Balance vegan mayo (made with olive oil)1/4 cup mustard (I used Dijon)
Boil potatoes for 20-30 minutes until tender, then transfer to a bowl of cold water. Prepare the onion, celery, and pickle and drop in a large mixing bowl, then chop the potatoes into cubes and add them in. I opted to whisk the mayo, pickle juice, mustard, and seasonings separately first. Add the dressing to the pile of vegetables, mix well, and leave to chill in the fridge.If you click on the original recipe, you'll see I used much more mustard than the original recipe calls for—the pickles and pickle juice add to the punch, but the mustard really is the most necessary flavor.
My sis ordered me @sharon_gannon's new cookbook, packages stolen off her doorstep, so here's what I got instead. Ha. pic.twitter.com/o3YlmnyRLm— Camille DeAngelis (@cometparty) December 25, 2014