Stanley J Has Competition Red Skin Potato Salad

The sudden closing of Stanley J's New York Deli last Friday caused great concern in my family because it seems that at just about every gathering in the past 10 or 15 years, Stanley's Red Skin Potato Salad has been on the table. When my daughter and sister visit from out of town, they make a special requests that the sinfully rich concoction be chilling in the fridge upon arrival and on ice when they make the journey home with a fresh supply. The directions to the deli are even in a family cookbook as the "recipe" for my Mom's potato salad! So you can see why I left an urgent 9a.m. message to Mom to go stock up on closing day. I didn't need to worry however, because she was already in line, waiting more than a half-hour outside to purchase pounds of the the creamy goodness!!! With my final stash hidden on site as "the gold standard" I proceeded to experiment for over a week in my quest to duplicate the recipe. After 6+ trial run batches, I am proud to say that it is very difficult to tell the which spoonful is "original" and which is the "impostor", in fact, Hubby chose MINE as Stanley's during the last go around. I probably won't want to eat any potato salad for months now, but on the next holiday, reunion, or picnic, one of our traditional foods will still be on the menu!

INGREDIENTS
2 to 2 1/4 pounds red skin potatoes
1/4 cup sliced green onions (green tops only)
1 1/2 to 2 Tablespoons finely chopped green pepper
1/4 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 and 1/8 teaspoons white pepper
1/8 and 1/8 teaspoons black pepper
1 cup plus 1 Tablespoon Hellman's regular mayonnaise
1/4 cup regular sour cream

Chop green peppers and green onion tops. Mix the mayonnaise, sour cream, 1/8 tsp. white pepper, 1/8 tsp. black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt together. Add the green onion and green peppers and mix.  Set in refrigerator to allow the flavors to blend while the potatoes are cooking.

 Bring 1/2 large dutch oven pot full of water to boil and add a few dashes of salt.  I weighed the potatoes using my kitchen scale to get the proper amount. Quarter the potatoes (do not peel) and place in the boiling water, cooking until very soft and skin is beginning to slightly separate from edge of potatoes. Drain and cool slightly in cold water.  Drain again. When potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut into small pieces and place into a large bowl. If pieces of the skin come off, place them in the bowl as well.  Add the remaining spices (1/2 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. white pepper, 1/8 tsp. black pepper) evenly to the warm potatoes and toss lightly. Stir potatoes with a large spoon "smashing" them to a consistency that is like very lumpy mashed potatoes with small pieces of potatoes in it. Do not use a mixer to do this. Next, add the mayonnaise mixture to the still warm potatoes. Stir lightly to coat all potatoes, then squish it all together with your hands until you reach desired consistency. The actual Stanley J's salad is very creamy with a few very small pieces of potatoes in each spoonful, but some people like larger pieces of potato to hold all the dressing.

I know you will not be able to restrain yourself, so go ahead and taste it....but it will taste even better after sitting in the refrigerator for several hours to the flavors can continue to meld.

A "Sip and See" Shower

A "Sip and See" is a Southern tradition of the old school.  It is sometimes used to allow friends and families to see new babies and the accompanying gifts on display.  Other times, wedding gifts will be displayed in a formal room in a bride-to-be's home while snacks and tea or cocktails are served. When I learned about the cocktails being included, I couldn't wait to have my own Sip and See.  Luckily my cousin Nic is marrying the lovely Evaline in October, so my daughter Amanda and I quickly got into party planning mode and held a lovely afternoon get together at my mother's home. It is always good to see my wonderful family and Evaline got to know everyone in a casual atmosphere.

We had a Champagne and Sparkling Cider Bar with juices, fruit, bubbly, and other flavorings so everyone could make a mimosa, Bellini, or their own creation. 

For food, Country Ham biscuits from Moore's are a must, as well as Derby Chicken Salad from our local grocery deli.... my theory is don't mess with perfection and try to make my own!  We got creative with our desserts: Bellini Cupcakes, and Strawberry Semifreddo Shortcake.  Plenty of sipping and eating and ooooohing and ahhhhhing ensued, so a good time was had by all.

Bellini Cupcakes

We wanted to make something different....so this recipe from Paula Deen filled the requirements.  I didn't realize Champagne cake was so easy to make. The only other extra step was cooking the peaches and making the puree.  The peach taste countered the usual icing sweetness and gave an kick to the light cupcake taste.  I will definitely make these again and the only change I would make is to use a less dry champagne for a touch more sweetness in the light cake batter. Read the directions for cake carefully... on the first batch,  I missed the part that said mix the sugar in with the flour before putting it in the butter, since that is not a step I am familiar with doing.

Cake :
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1 cup champagne
1 ½ cups cake flour
¾ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix egg whites and champagne and set aside.  Combine cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cream butter , then add the dry ingredients until crumbly.  Mix champagne and eggs into the butter/flour mixture until blended.  Divide into 12 cupcake liners and bake for 20 minutes until it bounces back when touched.  Since there are no egg yolks, the cake will be pale, so do not overbake.

Icing and Peach Filling:
15 oz can sliced peaches
½ cup + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
White sanding sugar or sprinkles for topping
Drain the peaches and pat the pieces dry with a paper towel. Melt the two T of butter in a skillet and place peach slices until browned....3-5 minutes, watching closely.  Turn over and cook other side.  Cool and puree in a food processor or immersion blender. Use a small knife to make a hole in the top of each cupcake, removing 1/2 inch circle of cake.  Fill the holes with two teaspoons of the peaches.
For the icing, beat the butter with an electric mixer for 5 minutes, then add the powdered sugar, salt and vanilla extract until smooth.  Blend in 1/4 cup of the peach puree until blended.  Pipe the icing onto the cupcakes and decorate with sanding sugar or sprinkles.


Strawberry Semifreddo Shortcake
Wow. This is easy, tasty and makes a beautiful presentation.  What more can you ask for?  I saw this in the July 2011 Southern Living Magazine and immediately wanted to try it.  When we decided to have the shower which had a red and purple color scheme like the wedding, I knew I had to give this a whirl.  I could not find fresh lady fingers in the deli/bakery, nor did I have the time or knowledge to make them, so I substituted an orange flavored, sugar free brand called TastyKake. Twinkies would also work, but I preferred the less sweet options to balance out the flavors.  Plan ahead when making this though, as you need plenty of time to let the layers freeze before adding the next one. Oh, and I learned something... in case you were wondering, semifreddo means semi-frozen in Italian.

Ingredients

2 (3-oz.) packages soft ladyfingers

2 pt. strawberry ice cream, softened

1 pt. strawberry sorbet, softened

1 pt. fresh strawberries, hulled

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1/2 (7-oz.) jar marshmallow crème

1 cup heavy cream

Line the bottom and sides of a springform pan with the ladyfingers or substitutions.  If needed, trim bottom layer to fit - you can also cut them in half lengthwise to make a thinner base.  Soften ice cream at room temperature and layer on top of shortcakes. Freeze.  Soften sorbet and spread layer on top of ice cream. Return to freezer.  Process or blend strawberries together with powdered sugar, making a puree. Reserve 1/4 cup of the strawberry mixture.   Whisk the remaining puree into the marshmellow creme until well blended.(This will take some time).  Whip the heavy cream with an electric mixture until stiff peaks form. Fold strawberry mixture into whipped cream. Pour over the frozen sorbet.  Take the reserved strawberry puree and drizzle over top of marshmallow cream creating swirl designs with a toothpick or small knife.  Return to freezer until the top layer is firm. Allow cake to stand at room temperature  a few minutes before serving.(The top will be harder than the ice cream underneath, so go ahead and slice with a sharp knife to see if it is ready to serve) Garnish with fresh strawberries if desired.