My last post, about walking in the mountains in Andorra, brought back a lot of memories about that small Principality.
Andorra has been an independent country since 917 (I think that's the right date), well over 1,000 years.
They are independent, not only in politics, but in mindset.
The Andorrans march to their own drummer.
They can, after all.... It's their country!
Our house in Andorra was 'on the hill', meaning built into the mountainside. We were at 1300 meters elevation. The back of our house was dug into the mountain; the front had spectacular views.
Directly above us, at about 2000 meters, was the Andorran Shooting Club.
It was in a glorious position, jutting out over the side of the mountain. The targets were thrown up and out, arcing over the valley below.
A few years ago they hosted the World Trap Shooting Championships.
This was a 4-day event and shooters from all over the globe participated.
As you may or may not know, Trap Shooting, along with Skeet and Clay Pigeon Shooting, is an event in which people with shotguns shoot clay targets, also known as clay pigeons.
Well......
Apparently the Andorrans thought this was a bit boring.
They decided to use real pigeons.
Real, live pigeons.
They brought in some 50,000 live pigeons for the event.
One can only assume that they (in turn) assumed that the world class competitors would actually hit and kill the pigeons.
They were wrong.
There were dead, dieing, maimed, limping, broken pigeons gracing the mountainside for weeks after the event was over....
As well as a few that escaped unscathed to take up residence in the trees and rooftops.
Where, you might wonder, were the people who chastised President Obama for his inhumane murder of a fly?
First, they probably don't know where Andorra is.....
Second, when one has one's own country, one gets to make the rules.... Including who gets to come in....
But that story is for another day.
This recipe is based on one from the Time Life "Foods of the World" series that I have had for years. The first time I had a similar salad was in Germany, I had expected the typical Midwestern version of Hot German Potato Salad and was wonderfully surprised by this light salad, perfect for summer, and much lower in calories than other potato salads.
German Summer Salad
4 - 5 medium potatoes, depending on size, 14oz (450gr) total
1 large onion
3/4 cup (6oz, 175ml) chicken stock
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs white wine tarragon vinegar
2 tbs Dijon-style mustard
1 tbs lemon juice
Potatoes: Put a large saucepan half full of water on medium heat and bring to boil. Cut potatoes - the long way, first in half, then in half again. Now slice (the short way) about 1/4 inch thick. We are aiming for bite size so if you have a huge potato, adjust accordingly. Add to water, cover partially and cook until done, about 15 minutes.
Drain, put into a serving bowl and immediately pour sauce over, turning to coat slices evenly. Set aside to cool.
Sauce: Finely chop onion and sauté in olive oil until transparent. Add stock, vinegar and mustard and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.
To serve: Salad should be served just slightly warm or at room temperature. Refrigerate leftovers.
In addition to the above, for the week of June 26 we have Grilled Swordfish, Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce, Grilled Pork Chops, Grilled Chicken Breasts, Cucumber Salad....
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