Warm Potato Salad with Arugula

Chillin on the bus at 5 Point Film Fest

April has been a pretty quiet month for us.  We had my sister Chelsea visit early in the month, but otherwise we have just been enjoying the last month of skiing and dusting off the bikes for the change in seasons.  The mountain is officially closed, and thanks to a weekend with highs near 70 degrees the slopes are looking quite sad.  The trails are muddy, but the warm weather has lifted spirits.  Last weekend we ventured down valley to Carbondale and the annual 5 Point Film Festival, which was wonderful beyond expectation.

I created this salad after glancing at a post from the Sarah at The Yellow House.  The dressings differ, but the idea is all Sarah.  I have made this a few times, and got rave reviews at a Sunday BBQ.  

Warm Potato Salad with Arugula

Inspired by The Yellow House

• 1.5-2 pounds new potatoes
• 4 cups baby arugula
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon stone ground mustard
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• Salt and black pepper to taste

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Salt generously and add potatoes.  Cook until fork tender (about 30 minute depending on size).
2. Meanwhile combine olive oil, red wine vinegar, mustard, coriander, a pinch of salt and a little fresh ground pepper in a small bowl.  Whisk to combine. 
3. When the potatoes are finished slice into 1 inch cubes with skin intact and place in a large bowl.  Sprinkle paprika over potatoes.
4. Add arugula to potatoes and drizzle the dressing over.  Toss well.
5. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

Some April Shots:

Highlands Bowl, Pyramid Peak, Maroon Bells

Sisters in Denver

Springtime Freshies in he Bowl

Highlands Closing Party on top of the Bowl

Mini Road Trip to Fruita for the first MTB of the season 

Potato Leek Soup

Weekend of Camping and Biking in Crested Butte

I am slightly obsessed with September and the beginning of fall.  The aspen trees are bright gold, the nights are cool enough to put away the fan, pie pumpkins have graced the shelf, and I don't overheat my house if I make soup.  Last year I acquired a beautiful copy of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  I often use it as a reference for technique, but I rarely follow recipes, and this is no exception to the rule.  There is one recipe in the book that I can't tear myself away from: Potato Leek Soup.  The soup is velvety, light, and filling all at the same time.  The recipe is simple, but the soup is better than the sum of its parts.  I have made a few substitutions, but the overall recipe is Julia.  The butter at the end is genius, use olive oil to make this vegan.  Serve with crusty homemade bread.

Potato Leek Soup
Adapted from Julia Child

• 1.5 pounds yukon gold or russet potatoes, peeled and sliced or diced
• 1.5 pounds leeks, chopped and including tender green
• 2 quarts vegetable stock, homemade preferred, no sodium
• 1 quart water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper, or to taste
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
• 2 tablespoons minced parsley

1. Add vegetables, stock and water to a large saucepan or stock pot and simmer partially covered for 40-50 minutes until potatoes are soft.*

Mt Crested Butte, from our campsite

2. Add salt and pepper after simmering has started and stir.
3. Using a hand blender, blend until smooth.  Alternatively you can just mash the vegetables with a fork.  Other alternatives include a food mill or traditional blender in batches.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the butter by spoonfuls.
5. Serve garnished with fresh parsley.

*Expect this to take ~25% longer at altitude.

Roasted Potatoes and African Mountains

Lovely day of hiking at Monk's Cowl

After landing in Johannesburg, camping out in the car rental office for 4 hours, greeting our dear friends Matt and Mackenzie, and loading up our much too small Nissan Micra, we headed south for Lesotho and the Drakensberg Mountains.

Lesotho provided some annoyances ($25 fee for somehow missing the entrance stamp, threat to go to jail, cold room with no light in the bathroom, horrible roads), but was also home to jaw-dropping views and a taste of a relatively unspoiled culture.  We spent our short time there enjoying the beautiful scenery in one of the National Parks with a short hike and blessed coffee on the deck of the luxury lodge (out of our budget of course).



After leaving Lesotho we stopped in the Dutch-influenced Clarens for lunch, and then drove to the Champagne Valley where we would spend the next 3 nights at Tranquility Farm in a cottage.  We spent our days hiking, and our evenings cooking our own meals, sharing wine, and laughing.  To my joy, just outside our cottage were flourishing rosemary and thyme bushes.  While Matt and Steven used the braai (barbeque), I made one of my all time favorites: roasted potatoes with onions.  I ended up making these many times sometimes in an oven, but often wrapped in foil and thrown right into the braai coals.


Roasted Potatoes with Onions, Rosemary and Thyme

• 6 medium red potatoes, diced to 1-inch cubes
• 1 medium yellow onion, cut into half-moons
• 3-5 sprigs of rosemary, stalks removed to yield about 2 tablespoons of leaves
• 3-5 sprigs of thyme, stalks removed to yield about 2 tablespoons of leaves
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and black pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 425.
2.  Combine potatoes, onion, rosemary, thyme and olive oil in a large roasting pan and stir to coat all ingredients with oil (I think your hands work best for this).
3. Lightly season with salt and pepper.
4. Roast 45 minutes, checking for softness of the potatoes and caramelization.
5. Remove and season with more salt and pepper to taste.

6. To do in the braai coals: Wrap all ingredients aluminum foil.  Cover with another layer of foil. Nestle into the coals and allow to cook for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft.

Lesotho Sunrise

Rondavels and Frost in Lesotho

Hike to the Black Hole

First hike in South Africa: Monk's Cowl

Cathkin Peak

Our Cottage

Morning Goose Parade at the farm

Tugela Gorge

Ladder climb on the Amphitheater/ Tugela Gorge Hike

Squinty eyes with the Amphitheater in the background. (photo: Mackenzie)

The Amphitheater (photo: Mackenzie)