Driving Miss Daisy was one of my favorite movies as a child. I remember watching it several times and falling in love with Jessica Tandy and Morgan Freeman and their sweet friendship. This was long before I knew or cared anything about houses, but I watched it again recently, and it was so interesting to see with all the different spaces. When they shot the movie they did not have much of a budget, so they rented houses in Atlanta and shot it all on location. The movie was based on a play written by Alfred Uhry. Alfred Uhry was born in Atlanta and graduated from Druid Hills High School. He wrote the play based on his grandmother and her driver.
Read MoreThe Best Mexican Restaurants in Atlanta
Back in college I had a fairly severe addiction to Mexican food. When hangovers were more frequent and less crippling, responsibility nonexistent, and extra weight less likely to cling on for a lifetime, my BFF and I would spend our afternoons at La Parrilla in Athens drinking mugs of Miller Lite, snacking on a bowl of bean dip (hot cheese poured over refried beans), and browsing the latest People or Us Weekly. The servers knew our names, our orders, and our propensity to say yes to another round. They knew we wanted taco salads either with or without cheese depending on whether or not we were on Weight Watchers that day.
One day, during what you could call either the high or low point of our college career, we went to La Parilla twice. Lunch and Dinner. It was that day we realized we had an actual addiction.
I've had this post rattling around in my head for a while and been avoiding writing it because people are PASSIONATE about their Mexican food. Guaranteed someone's going to get mad about my choices, but they're mine and that's that. If you would like to voice your opinion in the comment section I encourage you to do so. ;)
I grade Mexican Restaurants on the things I enjoy: overall vibe, salsa, cheese dip, guac, margs, salsa, taco salads, tacos, and fajitas. Enjoy.
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This recipe changed my life. Could it change yours?
As a Southerner, you are raised to think potato salad is full of mayo, mustard, eggs, and pickles. It's yellow and creamy and a caloric rich treat at the 4th of July. Don't get me wrong, I love that kind of potato salad, but I also didn't know there were others! About a year ago I was at a dinner party and had Greek potato salad. It was full of vinegar and so light it was like eating air. I didn't want to admit I'd never tasted it before, so I didn't ask for the recipe. I've spent the last few months looking for a similar one and finally found it.
Every year for Christmas Jimmy and my brother wander into Williams Sonoma in December 23rd looking for a salesperson. When they find one willing to help, they blurt out something like, "there is this girl who likes cooking and has a lot of stuff, what should we get her?" Last year it came up that I love salads, and the salesperson recommended the book Salad of the Day. He was a salad lover as well and thought the book was the best salad centric cookbook on the market.
Salad of the Day offers 365 salads, so one for every day of the year. I like that because you always know that what you are making is in season. Greek Potato Salad is listed on October 8th and is the perfect Fall side. It tastes exactly like that magical potato salad I had a year ago, and I could not recommend it more!
Greek Potato Salad
Serves 4-6
- 1.5 lb small red potatoes
- 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp capers, preferably salt-packed, rinsed
- 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tsp grated lemon zest
- Put the potatoes in a large saucepan with cold water and cover by 2 inches and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Reduce the heat to medium and cook until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 20-25 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes, let cool until they can be handled and cut in half.
- Transfer to a serving bowl, and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar and coriander. Add the oil in a thin stream, whisking constantly until smooth.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Pour the dressing over the warm potatoes. Scatter the capers, parsley, and lemon zest over the top.
- Using a fork, toss until the potatoes are evenly coated with dressing.
- Set aside for 20 minutes to let the flavors blend, and then serve.
Enjoy this recipe, and check out the book if you are a salad lover like me!
P.S. After the 12 Best BBQ Spots in Atlanta, post, I got the nicest email from Elliot Holden. He is a musician, and his band is playing at Smoke Ring on 11/17 after the Dead & Company show. Still trying to decide if you should go to that show, check out my post on Fare Thee Well. Please check out both the BBQ and the band! I've been listening to Elliot Holden's music while writing this post, and it's great. Check it out here!
P.P.S. TPL's Facebook page has 3,897 likes. I'd love to get to 4,000 this week! If you haven't already, please like the Facebook page!