fortification fridays -- swings both ways potato carrot salad

Some people are color blind. I am potato salad blind. I don't care for mayonnaise, I'll confess, and I'm not a big fan of boiled potatoes (or any mushy, bland food). My husband couldn't be different, so he is my guide to whether a potato salad is good. I've been trying for years to make a decent potato salad. My favorites are the vinegar-based ones -- I love the German-style potato salad with hot, waxy potatoes in a warm, sweet and sour vinegar-based dressing studded with pieces of bacon -- but I keep trying to make a "normal" American-style cold potato salad that we both like.

The other day, I was faced with a sudden need for a potluck dish, and my larder held only potatoes and a bunch of beautifully fresh, small, sweet, reddish carrots from the farmer's market. I thought about making a classic French carottes rapées salad, grated carrots with a vinegar and oil dressing, but I was afraid it would be too small an offering for the crowd. After finding this delicious, unorthodox recipe for carottes rapées from the stellar food blog Chocolate and Zucchini, I realized I could add potatoes to a grated carrot salad, and furthermore, I could create a potato salad that would be flexible with regards to the mayo. It could hold its own as an acid-dressing (in this case, lemon) salad, and it could be sweetened and thickened up with mayonnaise, as well. You could even make two versions at once, one with and one without mayo! The grated carrots make this salad a pretty color, and they even add some nutrition value, as they replace some of the potatoes. The best thing? Mr. Reluctant gave this his potato salad stamp of approval. It was a big hit at the potluck, too.

Swings Both Ways Potato Carrot Salad

Serves: 8-10 as a side dish
Kitchen Needs: Range or one burner to boil water

4 large red-skinned potatoes
6 medium-sized fresh carrots (the best quality you can find, preferably homegrown, farmer's market, and/or organic)
1 lemon
a few green onions
big handful of parsley, chopped
1/4 medium red onion, thinly sliced and chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 T dijon mustard
up to 1/2 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper

Peel potatoes and place immediately in pot of cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and cook until pierced easily with a knife. When cooked through, remove and cube into 2-inch sized chunks, then add to the following.

While potatoes are cooking, peel and grate carrots (ok to use food processor attachment). Add juice of one lemon (can add zest, too, if you're feeling inspired), chopped green onions and parsley, chopped onion, red pepper, and mustard. Season with salt and pepper. You may adjust the tanginess by adding more lemon or white wine vinegar, if necessary. Add some or all of the mayonnaise. Chill for at least an hour. This salad improves after several hours.

Variation: for a Middle Eastern spicy version, add some harissa, ajvar, and/or hot sauce.