REAL FOOD IS DISGUSTING (Plus, 3 Tips on Making Healthy Eating and Cooking Less Painful.)

Recipe: Eric’s Mom’s Homemade Asian Greens

As many of you know, I’ve been promising a guest post from Eric Wang over at healthdemystified for a few weeks now. Eric, who is studying to be a pharmacist, decided to take a stand against so much of the disempowerment that is perpetuated in the healthcare system. In his words, “Health Demystified started with the belief that it’s time for us to stop blaming others and to start taking responsibility for our own health. Taking responsibility for our lives is the key to success.” Needless to say, we speak the same language! He’s real, he’s got an amazing heart, and he can work that sarcasm to make a point about anything! Without further ado–here’s Eric!

REAL FOOD IS DISGUSTING

Real food goes bad. It decomposes and goes rancid. And, food that’s not laced with preservatives just has a terrible smell of rot after a while. Ughhh… Nasty. My nose is in deep need of recalibration after getting a whiff of that 4-day old lasagna. Yeecch!

And, why are there so many flies flying around here?

Thank goodness for preservatives and chemical additives. And for industrial-grade food, conveniently processed for longer shelf-life and minimal spoilage.

Take a McDonald’s hamburger for instance. It simply doesn’t go bad. Apparently, a McDonald’s hamburger is just as fresh in 6 months as it is when it’s first prepared (Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/upshot/mcdonald-happy-meal-resists-decomposition-six-months.html). You don’t need to refrigerate it or do all sorts of random nonsense. You can literally pick up the hamburger at 6 months, and just eat it off the table. No preparation required! Although I do suggest that you microwave it – it tastes better warmed.

Real food – on the other hand. It’s so much WORK!

You have to wash it and peel it or chop it or core it or dice it. There’s always some effort required.

And, sometimes you even have to COOK it (although some raw foodists would disagree).

Let’s talk cooking. The people on the Food Network make it look entirely too easily. Seriously, cooking is way easier said than done.

First, you have to turn on the stove. Then you have to get a pot or pan. Then you have to put some ingredients in the pot or pan. And, then you have to watch the stove to make sure your food doesn’t burn.

And just when you thought you were finished, there’s yet another step required: you have to turn off the stove or else your house might go down in flames.

And the marinating process. Who the heck has TIME for that. We’re busy people. We don’t have time to cook or eat healthy or do other things that are good for us. Geez, people, I haven’t even… I haven’t even gone on Facebook for 2 days! 2 whole DAYS. Geez, my family is probably wondering if I’m still alive.

And, it’s not only the cooking process that’s strenuous. Let’s backtrack a little bit. Let me remind you that, in order to cook, you had to first individually pick out each ingredient. It’s not like Lean Cuisine, people. You had to individually pick out each and every carrot, onion, red pepper, broccoli, parsley, etc – painstakingly inspecting each one for flaws, getting a bag, bagging the produce, and putting it in your shopping cart or basket. And, by the way, when you’re shopping, you quickly realize another problem with real food. It’s full of flaws – insect bites, mushed corners, little brown smudges.

Anyway, after you’re done the arduous task of going to the grocery store, and picking up a shopping cart or basket, and inspecting the groceries, and bagging them, and putting them in the cart or basket, and purchasing them, and putting them in the trunk, and closing the trunk, and returning the shopping cart/basket, and driving back home, and putting what you don’t need away, and then washing, and peeling, and dicing, and marinating, and turning on the stove, and sautéing, and watching, and waiting, and stirring, and simmering, and turning off the stove, and plating, and serving, and eating, YOU ARE NOT DONE. Not yet.

Because another problem with real food is that you have to refrigerate it after you cook it. Otherwise, it goes bad. Life is a bitch.

And, then you have to clean up the scraps and mess that you’ve made while cooking. Seriously. I’m hungry! I just want to eat some food, people!

–

I dare say the reason why many of us are struggling with weight loss is because unhealthy stuff like McDonalds, Burger King and Hungry Man TV dinners are convenient, easy, and even fun. Cooking and eating healthy on the other hand is, well, inconvenient, hard, and NOT fun.

If we somehow made this whole process of eating healthier less painful and more fun, we’d be more successful at our efforts to lose weight.

So, how can we make eating healthy and cooking fun and enjoyable?

HOW I MAKE COOKING FUN AND AS PAINLESS AS POSSIBLE.

1. Music. Grab my stereo and put on a little Hall and Oates or some John Mayer. Sometimes, when I’m feeling adventurous, I put on a little Kanye, and, dare I say, Nicki Minaj
2. Grab a partner. My girlfriend and I love cooking together. Find someone you love cooking together with. It might be the start of a “healthy” relationship. Get it? Ok, fine – don’t laugh. Jerk.
3. Just relax and take in the experience. I remind myself I deserve to not worry about things 24/7. Cooking is my “me time.” Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh says that when we do the dishes, we should think only of doing the dishes. Similarly, when I’m cooking, I’m not thinking of anything else but the experience of cooking. I am mindful of every sensation from chopping the carrots to smelling the fragrance of the herbs and spices. Cooking is a really sensual process. And, you don’t even have to be Giada.
4. Invite people over and entertain. The more the merrier.
5. INSERT YOUR TIP HERE. Got a question for you: How do YOU make cooking and eating healthy “fun”?

[BRY note] True to form, Eric has served up a recipe for BeReal. With only a handful of ingredients, this healthy recipe can be a triumph for culinary neophytes everywhere! Eric’s Mom says so!

Mom’s Homemade Asian Greens

Ingredients: Vegan Oyster sauce, Sesame oil, some type of greens (spinach,

Yu choy, etc)

-Boil water

-Add greens. Don’t overcook. In fact it’s better to undercook.

-Drain.

-Plate it. Drizzle about 3 tablespoons of oyster sauce and 1.5

tablespoons of sesame oil on top. Serve warm!

-Eric

It’s been a long day.

Recipe: Three Cs Salad

Sometimes cooking is the only thing that will do it for me. Cooking, creating, it’s all the same. I come home, and if the day has been long (especially if it’s been long!), I cannot wait to get my hands in the kitchen! I just get in the zone, and before you know it, I have three or four things on the go at once! I mean if the oven’s on anyway for those cookies, may as well roast some almonds for some almond butter! Or if the food processor is already dirty, what the heck—let’s make hummus! It doesn’t matter. My kitchen is where I ground myself. It’s where I mellow out, dabble, explore, create. If I’m sad, anxious, or restless, it is here where I just let go. It’s an act of pure flow. I’m not thinking, I’m not worrying, I’m focused. As you can see, I’ve been busy:

3 Cs: comfort meets colour meets crisp!

This cornbread bows to nobody’s jam!

This could be yours (if you own a ridiculous oversized donut mould!)!

So I’m just curious – where is it that you find your flow? What is your way of release or unwinding? How do you get lost in creativity? Just wondering…… Stay tuned for next week when the ever-amusing Eric Wang from healthdemystified treats us to a guest post (and recipe!)! Eric, by-the-way, recently added me to his list of Nine Rising Stars in the Health and Fitness Blogosphere. Check it out!  For now, I’ve posted my 3Cs salad recipe, pictured above. And no, this salad does not involve John Ritter. Enjoy!

3 Cs Salad

(serves 2)

2 cups red cabbage, sliced in food processor

1 cup carrots (sliced in food processor or cut thinly)

1/2 cup chickpeas (cooked and rinsed)

1/2 cup fresh dill (chopped)

1/2 cup fresh parsley (chopped)

1/2 tsp herbamare (herbed sea salt but regular sea salt will do)

juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp olive oil

Directions: Heat a small amount of water (just enough to cover the bottom of the pan) over medium high heat. Add cabbage and cover for two minutes. Add carrots, and cover for 1-2 minutes more. Still want some crisp left in those Cs. Turn off heat, stir in chickpeas, herbs, salt and lemon juice. Drizzle with olive oil and serve. Simple but marvellous!

Trying times

Recipe: Pleasing Tomato Pesto Pasta

Do you say yes when you want to say no?

Do you invest more in people than you get in return (and then keep investing in those people)?

Do you over-identify with other people’s feelings, and take it upon yourself to look after them?

If you answered “yes” to two or more of the above questions, you might be a people pleaser—a phenomenon that involves a constant de-selfing process whereby we fail to vocalize our own needs for fear of hurting another person’s feelings and not being liked. But fear not, oh weary pleaser—there is help: YOU!!!

We typically fall into the people pleaser role when we fear not being liked and require the approval of others. But here’s something else I’ve noticed about us food-stuffers. Many of us are incredibly sensitive people. We are empathic and we often feel in ourselves what others are feeling around us (hence our ability to take such care in our dealings with others-—a lovely quality, by the way); it’s this heightened sensitivity in combination with our own insecurity that can create in us a misplaced sense of responsibility for a feeling we are experiencing/aware of that isn’t actually our own! We are not responsible for how others feel!

Awareness is key, so check in with yourself. It’s one thing to demonstrate caring and respect for others. It’s another thing if doing so is at the expense of your own inner truth and needs. As well, if there is a lack of reciprocation or you are not being met with respect, than it’s probably time to re-evaluate the dynamic of the relationship (and the relationship itself!). That means finding a balance between looking after your own needs and knowing what belongs to you, and what belongs to the other. You are absolutely worth showing up for! So keep showing up for yourself and hold out for those who authentically show up for you too. And just remember—you can’t please everyone! So just please you!

So I’ve been doing some cooking. Some baking. You know, stuff. One thing I made recently that I really enjoyed was a sundried and roasted tomato pesto zucchini pasta dish inspired by the pesto recipes of both Dreena Burton’s and Angela Liddon. The pesto is rather substantial, so I wanted to pair it with a veggie pasta (spiralized zucchini) to lighten it up a bit. I broiled up some broccoli and BAM – dish delish! 

Pleasing Tomato Pesto Pasta

4 tomatoes (roma or other) halved, drizzled with olive oil and roasted face down on baking tray for 1 hour at 400F

3/4 cup sundried tomatoes in oil

2 cloves garlic

1/2 cup toasted almonds

2-3 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 tsp agave nectar

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

pepper

1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup fresh basil (I tried a version without it, and it was still nice)

For the pasta:

2 zucchinis, either peeled into stripped with a veggie peeler, or put through the spiralizer

1 head of broccoli

juice of half a lemon

1/2 tsp red chili flakes

Prepare the pesto by first putting the almonds through the food processor until crumbly and setting aside. Process the rest of the ingredients until smooth, then add the almonds in and pulse until mixed.

In a bowl, toss the broccoli with some olive oil, salt, and chili flakes. Broil for 5-7 minutes until slightly charred (watch carefully so they don’t burn!). Remove from oven and toss with lemon juice. Toss with desired amount of pesto and zucchini noodles. Voila!

Feelings: A Survivor’s Tale

Recipe: Bonzai Spelt Pilaf

A mentor of mine always says to “lean to into your learning” and I always feel like this wisdom can also be applied to our feelings: “breathe into your feelings.” Whatever is there, the breath will take you into a deeper, richer experience – it will take you to a place of surrender, to the flow of your feelings, and ultimately, to your learning.

I like to think of the experience of our feelings much the like sediment at the bottom of a river: Rapids can stir it up and sometimes we have to allow ourselves to be swirled about. Once we move through the rough current (Breathe deep!), our feelings start to settle; clarity arrives, and we can once again see our way to the surface and make sense of what just happened to us. But we have to trust we will be okay (aka SURVIVE!), be present, and breathe our way through.

Now, a little piece of advice from a survivor of a recent emotional pummeling: to be clear, this “feeling our feelings” business is certainly not an enjoyable process. Satisfying and triumphant at the end, yes. Enjoyable? That’s a stretch– I hated every grueling and unpleasant moment of it! But hating the experience was also part of the experience; I gave myself permission to hate feeling my feelings. I acknowledged that I hated it, then proceeded to hate every second! It’s when we resist our experiences that we get caught up in the snags and start creating side stories about what’s going on – instead of just having a really uncomfortable feeling, we start to attached a story to it (I’m fat, I ate too much X so I’m a bad person vs. I have a really uncomfortable feeling right now and it really sucks!). If hating your feelings happens to be part of your experience, live it out honestly. Validate it for yourself, and I assure you that you’ll move through it with a lot more grace than you ever knew you had! Whatever way you find to be present for yourself and your emotions, breathe through. It won’t last forever. It will pass. Go spend time with the discomfort: breathe into your feelings and you will survive!

Unfortunately, not all of us live to tell a survivor’s tale….poor almonds….

 

But this recipe? A hit! This is comfort food at its best! I cannot take credit for this recipe, but I can take credit for devouring eating it and loving every bite! It’s a hearty nourishing dish that uses whole spelt berries cooked at a very low temperature for an hour or so; it turns out as more of a pilaf or risotto with so much flavour! Plus, what’s not to love about spelt berries. They are high in protein, they can hold their own in a pot (they don’t become mush like barley or rice) and they have a lovely chewy texture. Hmmmm hmmmm.

Bonzai Spelt Pilaf

1 cup spelt, rinsed (and pre-soaked in 2 cups of water for a few hours if possible)
3/4 cup canned crushed tomatoes
2/3 cup water (more if needed)
1 small zuchini, sliced
1/2 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 can black beans
1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp rosemary
2 tbsp olive oil
pepper

Rinse spelt and add to a large pot. Heat olive oil over medium heat and brown spelt with onions, garlic and spices. Add beans and zucchini, cook and stir. Add water and tomatoes, stir, cover and simmer for 1 hour on low heat. Stir periodically and add more water if it looks dry. Bonzai!

When those cookies come a’calling

Recipe: The “Tofu Layer” for OSG’s Lasagna

“Oh yooo hoooo…..over heee-eeeere!!!”

I try not to focus too much on food behaviours on this blog, and that’s because so little of why we eat actually has to do with food! But I did think it was time for a reminder that bringing consciousness to how or what we are eating can be an important source of information about what is going on for us emotionally. I’ve had a couple of moments this last week where I came home, felt tired, and wanted a big bowl of cereal to eat or a few cookies (oh yooo hoooo!) rather than a proper dinner. It was one of those times when a bowl of cereal wasn’t just a bowl of cereal. I wanted to sit with my food and find comfort in my “fullness.” Did I know I was using food for comfort? Yep. Did I want to stop? Not ‘til that bowl of cereal was gone!

The thing about developing awareness around our food is that we kinda have to ask some questions, and the more we ask them, the harder it becomes to engage in the behaviour. Whether I ate the cereal or not was irrelevant. I knew I still needed to reflect about what was going on for me and acknowledge that something was. If you are feeling clueless about why you are reaching for food, I can say that for me in many (but not all) instances, it’s often about feeling powerless or not heard. Either I’m not validating my own feelings, or I’m not using my voice to express them. Or, I have used my voice and still don’t feel heard, and need to make an adjustment to a given relationship (which could incite avoidance, dread or other forms of resistance, and possibly another bowl of cereal!).

So what’s going on for you? It’s time to have a check-in and bring some consciousness to what you are experiencing. It’s time to go inside and listen. Ask some questions. Hold a compassionate loving space for yourself, free from judgement or pressure for things to be anything other than what they are. Are your reasons for going for the food the same as mine? If not, what is it about for you?

I could be a brat and post a cookie recipe. But instead, I’m going to write about lasagna. Or I’m going to post a yummy photo and direct you to a great recipe. Angela Liddon’s recipe surpassed my vegan lasagna expectations and will not dissappoint. While she suggests adding a layer of crumbled veggie burger, I added some crumbled tofu that I marinated overnight. So as my meager contribution to this already stand-up recipe, I offer “the tofu layer.” Behold:

Deduce, you say?

Recipe: Roasted Garlic Babaganoush

I had the pleasure of meeting someone over a month ago, whose humility and grace remains with me still. A fellow traveler on the road of self love, she asked the question “why is it that we are so quick to believe the negative things people say about us and so quick to write off the positive ones?” Like a detective looking for clues, we collect the evidence that supports our beliefs.

It got me thinking, not just about what I’m quick to believe about myself without evidence to back it up, but what I’m quick to believe about others as well. I was recently humbled when I indirectly implicated an acquaintance for something of mine that had gone missing, only to find the very object in question amongst my things minutes later. Rather than take some time, examine the evidence, and then form a conclusion, my mind instantly jumped to think the worst about that person. I felt horrible.

If we give others, as well as ourselves, the benefit of the doubt and allow for human fallibility or a simple misinterpretation of facts, we find we become much more conscious and neutral in how we approach such matters. When we can hold this space, we treat unsubstantiated beliefs with compassion. When all of the evidence eventually comes to light, this consciousness enables us to evaluate with clarity and choose our actions and our words with care.

What assumptions are you making, both about yourself and of others? Are you collecting objective facts, or are you jumping to a belief and looking for the evidence that supports that belief? Take time to consider where your mind wants to go and open it up for other truths to present themselves.

I like hummus, this is true. But give me babaganoush and the scale is instantly tipped! We had the ingenious idea to have a Mediterranean night, and so I of course got busy on this creation, which was voted “the best babaganoush of my life” by those seated ’round the table!

Roasted Garlic Babaganoush

2 medium eggplants

1 head of garlic

1/2 cup tahini

juice of two lemons

2 tsp sea salt

2 tbsp olive oil + drizzle for garlic

dash of chili powder

dash of cumin

1. Poke holes in your eggplants with a fork and roast for 1 hour at 350 degrees, until collapsed. At the same time, slice off the top of the head of garlic, place it over foil, and drizzle with olive oil.  Wrap foil around garlic and roast with the eggplant (about an hour).

2. Once done, allow garlic to cool, then squeeze out the goods. In a food processor, add the eggplant (I like mine skin and all, but you could just scoop out the pulp) and garlic, and blend together with the rest of the ingredients. Do not add more than a pinch of cumin, or its flavour will dominate. Remove and refrigerate until serving. Adjust salt to taste, but babaganoush should be on the saltier side.

The Boundary Blowback

Recipe: Beet, Buckwheat, and Parsley Raw Pizza Crust(ish)

Many of us know the importance of setting boundaries: boundaries are how we take care of ourselves and communicate that our needs are important. We are entitled to assert boundaries without qualification or justification. Boundary setting gets easier the more we do it; we are often surprised by how receptive and respectful people are in response to them. Unfortunately, this is not always the case! The people with whom we set them with may not always like our boundaries, and that’s fine and normal. But sometimes we are met with raw anger, guilting, sulking, or a stream of emotionally charged reactions. This is what I call (cue the music) a ‘boundary blowback.’

If you are like me, these types of reactions might cause you to question your position or the validity of your needs, as the focus shifts from your needs/boundaries to the reaction of the person you are communicating with. A wise friend explained this as “de-selfing,” which happens when another person, via anger, guilt or other wounded behaviours, insinuates that our feelings are not important and that our position is negotiable. We start to wonder if the other person is right. Was I too harsh? Should I say yes instead? Maybe I could do x,y,z, just this once…..

The challenge in the face of blowback is to stand your ground. Acknowledge the feelings of the other, and then lock down on your boundary. You can even ask yourself “did I communicate with respect and sincerity? Did I make my position and my needs clear?” If you can answer yes to both of these questions, then you’ve done your groundwork; the reactions of others belong to them, not to us.

Setting boundaries takes courage. But what takes even more courage is holding firmly to your truth in the face of boundary blowback. Your needs ARE important, and are NOT negotiable. This is what looking after you is all about!

Beet, Buckwheat, and Parsley Raw Pizza Crust (ish)

What is negotiable, however, are the toppings you choose to put on this delectable raw pizza crust made from beets and buckwheat. Haha, I know what you’re thinking – “beets and buckwheat”? It doesn’t exactly call one home like “apple pie” – but this crust is a perfect and subtle base from some more poignant pizza toppings like pesto, sundried tomatoes sauce and cashew “cheese.” Think of this crust as the podium, and let the toppings do the talking, I say! This recipe is still in need of some fine tuning, but it was inspired by some raw pizza I had on a recent trip.

Go Small or Go Home

Recipe: Zucchini Medley Salad

If things are feeling finite and you are feeling unfulfilled, limited or “serious” – maybe it’s time to think a little smaller – that’s right, smaller. Rather than asking yourself the big questions (why am I here, who am I?) and feeling frustrated if you don’t know the answers or if the answers don’t line up with where you are in your life at this very moment, take it down a notch and start thinking about the small, subtle ways you show up in your life and the lives of others.

Us “all or nothingers” tend to be pretty hard on ourselves. You mean you AREN’T on the UN Peace Council yet? You AREN’T running your own wellness center? You AREN’T doing what you love to do FULL TIME? You DON’T have this food thing sorted out yet? The part of us that sets those unrealistically high expectations that have to happen NOW will tell us we may as well just pack our bags and go home. However, sometimes we need to think small to think big.

I guarantee you that you are important to someone, somewhere. And that there are things you do throughout the course of your day that impart meaning to the lives of those you come into contact with. Is it the smile you exchanged with the clerk at the coffee shop? Or that you held the door open for the little old lady in your building? Or that you phoned your friend to let her know you care? These things may seem like small things, but they have the power to extend beyond you and vibrate grace on a scale you likely cannot fathom. So, if you are feeling restless and impatient, start where you are. And as always, be gentle with yourself.

In my (recipe) book, summer equals simple. Simple and fresh. So what follows may seem a bit boring and underwhelming, but, like with the above post, it’s one of those seemingly innocuous things that really has the power to hit summer home.

The Great UnGrounding

Sundried Tomato and Dill Hummus Stuffed Peppers

Sometimes it’s really easy to lose our footing, and not because we intended to. It’s more something that occurs gradually and cumulatively. The more off our game we are, the more off our game we become. We aren’t grounded enough to make healthy decisions for ourselves, so we keep creating chaos by functioning from shaky ground. And then, exhausted, anxious, stressed and frantic, and again, unable to make healthy decisions – we’ve created the perfect scene for a binge (cue the ominous music). This is when we are most susceptible to engaging in old, comfortable ways of coping and it’s a slippery slope indeed.

If we have slid down the slope (you know the one) and lost our center, we need to know how to get ourselves up and out. It’s like bring swept up in a river, and grabbing a tree branch in the strong current. You need to grab onto your centre for dear life, and use it to get back onto solid ground. That means remembering who you are and not letting your behaviour activate those voices that tell you otherwise – and if they do get activated, don’t entertain them. Compassion is that tree branch; it’s your “shift” mechanism. When you are out of sorts, that’s usually when you need to be extra kind and extra gentle with yourself. Ride it out. Keep holding on and don’t lose sight of what solid ground looks and feels like. Create safety for yourself. Give yourself space to get back on track. And a little word of advice: don’t make decisions until you are!

We all get shaken off our path now and again – so ground down and get back on it. Remember what is real and go there.

If you’re like me, you likely don’t enjoy rockin’ up to a BBQ with your faux meat patty only to have it grilled on animal grease. I’ve come up with the perfect solution to the BYOB (bring your own BBQ) problem – one that I wish I’d thought of many a BBQ ago. The answer? Tin Foil. That’s right my friends, and in this case a stuffed red pepper wrapped in tin foil. No grill contact. Delicious dinner. Fun with friends. No awkwardness ‘round the grill. Problem solved. The stuffing is a sundried tomato and dill hummus, and the leftovers are fabulous to dip your favourite crackers in for days to come.

I’ll take some Nothing, please!

Recipe: Dilly Potato Salad

What are you asking for? Some of the best advice I received last week is “when you ask for nothing, you get nothing.” What we ask for and accept into our lives is (of course) a direct reflection about how we feel about ourselves on the inside. Do we love ourselves enough to go big? To demand healthy, respectful relationships in our lives? To carve out time for us (just us!) in our busy schedules? To speak up and use our voices to assert boundaries that protect our needs?

When you ask for nothing, you get nothing. On the surface, we may have an idea of how we would like our lives to look, a little glimpse or vision of where we’d like to be. But do we feel we are worthy of that vision? Are we willing to do what it takes to get ourselves there? And if you are asking for nothing, why is that?

Asking ourselves these questions keeps us accountable to the life we are choosing to live. If you aren’t happy with your present circumstances or find yourself wondering why the same thing keeps happening to you over and over, it’s time to dig a little deeper and find out what you are asking for both consciously, as part of your daily mantra, and sub-consciously, as a product of your underlying beliefs. The self-worth stuff can go deep, and just when think we have it figured out in one area of our lives, it rears its head in another area. Keep asking yourself questions.,And most importantly, keep cultivating a loving relationship with yourself by asking for what you really want in your life. Go big – you ARE deserving.

So while I was busy passing the potato salad last week and bypassing my emotions, I came up with a potato salad recipe sure to hit the right spots that we’ve come to expect from our potato salads: the tangy dill spot, the crunch, the creaminess. What more do you really want from a potato salad? And for the record, I cannot take all the credit. The dressing is a sauce recipe I use for a lot of other things, and it’s a particular favourite in the summer when I suddenly start to crave dill like a pickle! It’s from the Veganomican and makes a fantastic dip for veggies or drizzle on just about anything. I’ve made some modifications.