Frugal Foodie Mama: Summer Harvest Potato Salad

The freshest locally grown potatoes & veggies come together perfectly with a super simple 3 ingredient fresh basil dressing in this Summer Harvest Potato Salad...

As you all may recall from the recipe I shared for my Farmers Market Frittata last month, I am on a mission this outdoor farmers market season to show you all how you can create a delicious recipe purchasing only locally grown & raised produce and meats at your local farmers market this summer. Each month I will be sharing a recipe here to the blog inspired by and featuring some of my own personal favorite fresh & local finds from my local market.

For the month of July, I am sharing a fresh & lightened up potato salad recipe with you all. I am all about homemade potato salads for backyard BBQ's and summer picnics. But we all know that traditional potato salad recipes usually tend to be heavy and loaded with mayonnaise (which is big no-no when the hot summer sun is pounding down on your picnic table). For this Summer Harvest Potato Salad, I combined the freshest in-season locally grown potatoes & veggies with a super simple 3 ingredient fresh basil dressing.

You can really use any variety of smaller new potatoes in this salad. I like to mix it up and purchase potatoes in hues of purple, red, & golden yellow from one of my favorite farmers at my local market to use in this recipe. Using a variety of potatoes adds layers of flavor as well as a pop of color to your potato salad.

And feel free to change up this potato salad recipe by adding in your favorite summer fresh veggies. I think that sweet local corn or roasted garlic would also be a great addition to this salad.

This salad already packs in tons of flavor from the roasted summer squash & zucchini, the perfectly boiled potatoes, and the crisp green beans, so I went super simple for the dressing for this potato salad. Just fresh basil leaves, a good quality extra virgin olive oil, a little richness from some balsamic vinegar, and salt & pepper to taste- that's it! No need for a heavy, mayo based dressing here, folks. ;)

Summer Harvest Potato Salad

by Frugal Foodie Mama

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients (Serves 6-8)

2 lbs of small or fingerling potatoes, scrubbed & cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 medium summer squash, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb fresh green beans, stringed & cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
12-14 fresh basil leaves, torn
Salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

Heat your oven to 450 degrees.

Place the potatoes into a large saucepan & cover them with water. Bring to a boil and continue to cook the potatoes until they are almost fork tender. Remove from the heat, drain in a colander, and set aside.

While the potatoes are boiling, combine the cut up zucchini & summer squash in a medium sized bowl. Pour 1 tbsp olive oil over them and toss well to coat. Spread them out in a single layer on a baking sheet & roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Let cool for at least 10 minutes.

Now for a quick blanch on the green beans. Bring salted water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Boil the green beans for 3 minutes. Quickly drain in a colander and then plunge into an ice bath. This can be done in a large bowl or sink filled with cold water and ice.

Combine the potatoes, squash, zucchini, and green beans in a large bowl.

Add the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil, vinegar, and torn basil leaves into a food processor. Pulse until well mixed. Add the basil mixture to the veggies in the bowl and then mix well. Season with salt & pepper, to taste.

Serve immediately at room temperature or chill & serve cold later. Keep any leftover potato salad wrapped tightly in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Enjoy!

Which summer BBQ or get-together will you be bringing this potato salad to next? ;)

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