Ingredients You’ll Need

Here’s what you’ll need for this dill pickle potato salad (plus salt and pepper):

• Red potatoes: I like using a waxy potato here, which holds up well after boiling and has a naturally creamy texture. (Avoid russet potatoes!)
• White wine vinegar: A splash on the potatoes while they’re still warm helps them absorb flavor.
• Mayonnaise + Greek yogurt: My favorite combo for creamy salads that aren’t too rich. For vegan, use all vegan mayo (or a combo with cashew cream).
• Dijon mustard: Adds depth of flavor and more creaminess.
• Dill pickles + pickle juice: My secret to the big pickle flavor!
• Shallot or white onion and celery: To add the required crunch.
• Fresh dill: Fresh is genuinely worth it here. If you’re growing it, even better!

My Take on the Dressing (Skip the Balsamic)

A few notes on the dressing for this Caprese pasta salad. Some people like to use a balsamic vinegar here, since you often see Caprese salad with a balsamic reduction. But balsamic has a dark color that makes for a muddy-looking pasta salad.

Instead, this dressing is full of bright flavors, with white wine vinegar, garlic, a little sugar to balance, and oil. For the oil, you can use 100% olive oil if you like. But I like to use half olive oil and half neutral oil: it helps to keep the dressing from solidifying during storage.

More Pasta Salad Recipes To Try

Summer is all about pasta salad! Here are some of my top pasta salad recipes for the season:

• Go for the Italian-style Classic Pasta Salad
• Try zingy Greek-Inspired Pasta Salad, Bow Tie Pasta Salad or Mediterranean Pasta Salad
• Opt for creamy Pesto Pasta Salad or retro Shrimp Pasta Salad
• Opt for creamy and classic with Classic Tuna Pasta Salad
• Go for fan-favorite Easy Tortellini Salad

Ingredients You’ll Need

This green bean salad recipe is basic, but combines just the right flavors to make the beans irresistibly tasty. The tender vegetables are mixed with a red wine vinegar and Dijon vinaigrette, which adds a hefty dose of tangy flavor to the entire dish. The basic idea? Blanch the beans, cut veggies, make the dressing, and mix it all together! Here’s what you’ll need:

• Green beans: standard or haricot verts (French green beans) both work; the thinner haricot verts blanch about a minute faster
• Red wine vinegar and Dijon mustard: The tangy backbone of the dressing
• Honey: Just enough to round out the flavors (swap maple syrup to keep it vegan)
• Garlic powder: Gives a mellow garlic note without the bite of raw garlic
• Extra-virgin olive oil: My go-to heart healthy oil for everything
• Cherry tomatoes: Sliced in half; I like a mix of red and yellow if you can find it
• Shallot: Raw and sliced very thin
• Baby arugula: It adds a peppery layer; do not substitute mature arugula (more on that below)
• Feta cheese: Adds a nice salty pop; omit for vegan or use vegan feta.

How to Blanch Green Beans

The only part of this green bean salad that takes a bit of skill? Blanching the beans. Blanching is a cooking method that involves boiling vegetables until they’re crisp tender, then plunging them into ice water to stop the cooking process. The ice water helps to keep the veggies colorful by locking in a beautifully bright green color. Blanching is quick and easy; here’s what to do:

• Prepare the water: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Prepare a large bowl of ice water.
• Boil the beans: Add the beans to the boiling water and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until just tender but still bright green (taste a bean to assess doneness).
• Place in the ice bath. Right when the beans are tender, remove them from the boiling water with tongs and transfer them to the bowl of ice water. After 2 minutes, remove the beans to a colander to drain.
• Blot the beans dry. This is very important: otherwise you’ll end up with a watery salad! (Trust us, we forgot this once and we won’t again.)

Tips for Serving

Once you make this green bean salad, you can eat it immediately. Or, you can refrigerate it until serving, allowing the flavors to permeate the beans even more. To us, it’s just as delicious both ways! Here are a few things to note:

• Toss the salad well before serving. The tomatoes and feta can sometimes fall to the bottom, especially if it’s in a large bowl. Also, make sure the dressing is evenly tossed through the veggies.
• A shallow platter can be better for serving than a large bowl. This way you can make sure all the goodies are evenly dispersed.

How To Make This Dill Potato Salad

The way that the seasoning is added to the potatoes makes it into a naturally creamy, gooey texture. Here’s what I learned from Julia Child on the best way to make a dill potato salad that’s full of serious flavor:

• First, boil the potatoes whole until they’re fork tender. Drain and allow them to cool, then when they’re cool enough to touch cut them into bite-sized pieces.
• Place the warm potatoes in a bowl and mix them with white wine vinegar, shallot, kosher salt, and here’s the kicker: ½ cup warm water. Let this mixture stand for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. The potatoes will absorb the water and and a runny sauce will form! (If you didn’t add water, the potatoes would simply dry out.)
• After the rest time, then add the olive oil, capers and herbs and mix to combine. The potatoes will continue to break down a little and form a gooey texture.

What to Serve with Dill Potato Salad

This dill potato salad is built for summer and it goes with almost anything you could think of. A few of my favorite pairings:

• As part of a spread of summer side dishes
• Grilled shrimp skewers for a quick weeknight dinner
• Easy baked salmon when I want something Mediterranean
• Easy grilled tofu for a vegan-friendly cookout plate
• Burgers, bratwurst, or anything else off the grill

More Dill Recipes

• Top 10 Dill Recipes
• Lemon Dill Salmon
• Dill Pickle Dip
• Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
• Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
• Quick Refrigerator Dill Pickles
• Cucumber Dill Sandwiches

Tips For The Cashew Cream

The only part about vegan potato salad that requires some forethought is making the cashew cream! You’ll need to think in advance to soak the cashews: but otherwise it’s as simple as whizzing together a few ingredients! Here’s what to know:

1. Soak the cashews 30 minutes to 1 hour (or even overnight). Soaking cashews in water makes them break down to make a smooth sauce. We have a high speed blender, so we only soak for about 30 minutes, 1 hour if we have time. But the longer you soak the cashews the better! Soaking overnight is fantastic. A high speed blender is perfect for blending the cashews, or a really good standard blender. The cashews form a thick cream when blended.
2. Blend the cashews with spices and seasonings. This recipe uses yellow mustard, white wine vinegar, garlic powder, and a hint of maple syrup. The result is a creamy spread that tastes like mayo, but it’s fully vegan and dairy-free!

How To Serve It

This vegan potato salad was a huge hit in our family — and beyond! My son Larson absolutely adores it. My good friend has declared it her favorite potato salad: ever! She makes it often in the summers and it’s always a huge hit with her family! Basically: all signs point to delicious on this one. How to serve this potato salad? Here are a few ways I’d recommend:

• For a cookout. Serve it alongside your favorite grilled veggie burger or grilled portobello burgers.
• For a picnic. Serve with Chickpea Salad Sandwiches and fresh fruit.
• With a trio of salads. Pair it with Black Bean Salad and Cucumber Salad for a tasty salad luncheon. Or browse our Vegan Salad Recipes!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s a true crowd-pleaser. The tangy-briny-herby flavor is hard to stop eating: everyone I’ve served it to loves this combination.
• Make-ahead friendly. You can mix it a full day in advance and it tastes even better the next day.
• Works for many diets. It’s vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free so it’s great for cookouts with many types of eaters.

How to Serve French Potato Salad

This French potato salad is perfect for all sorts of occasions and to pair with dishes of all kinds. Here are my top ways to serve it:

• Nicoise salad. The hands down best way to serve it: as part of Nicoise Salad! It’s a French main dish salad that’s off the charts good, with boiled eggs, green beans, tuna, olives, and greens covered in a tangy lemon dressing.
• With salmon. Try it alongside my Lemon Dill Salmon, Easy Baked Salmon, or Grilled Salmon.
• With chicken. Add my grilled chicken thighs or best chicken burger.
• At a summer barbecue. It’s the perfect summer salad for a cookout or barbecue (here are 30 more summer salads).
• With a plant-based main. Class up my veggie burger or portobello burger.

Method 2: On the Grates (Best for Pepper Quarters)

Use this method if you’re making grilled bell peppers without onion! This method requires large pieces so they don’t fall into the grill. Here are some tips on this method:

• Cut the bell peppers into quarters. Then mix with olive oil and salt.
• Place them directly onto the grates. You’ll want to space them apart as much as possible because they’ll cook faster this way.
• Grill about 6 to 10 minutes, until tender.

More Bell Pepper Recipes

Here are a few more favorite bell pepper recipes you might enjoy with this healthy vegetable:

• Classic Stuffed Peppers A hit every time! The roasted bell peppers are filled to the brim with melty cheese and Italian flavor.
• Quinoa Stuffed Peppers Recipe A colorful and delicious healthy dinner, full of Mediterranean flavors like lemon, parsley and feta!
• Vegetarian Fajitas on the Grill Easy to grill up as a fast and easy dinner recipe! The charred veggies and black bean filling is always a crowd pleaser.

Ways To Serve Bean Salad

This is literally my favorite side dish from May through September. It plays well with just about every grilled dinner, and it’s great for adding protein to a vegetarian plate. A few favorite pairings:

• Grilled mains: It’s a natural alongside grilled chicken thighs, grilled salmon, grilled shrimp, or anything off my list of 25 fun vegetarian grill recipes.
• Burger night: Add it next to a grilled veggie burger or classic cheeseburgers.
• Potluck spreads: Set it alongside best potato salad, orzo pasta salad, or easy vinegar coleslaw for the full picnic lineup.
• Holiday gatherings: It’s a regular on my 4th of July recipes and Memorial Day recipes rotation and earns a spot in any picnic menu.

How To Grill Potatoes In Foil

You might think grilling potatoes in foil is simply throwing potatoes into aluminum foil and grilling them. You’d be right! There’s really no trick to this recipe. However, it’s nice to know the grill temperature, approximate timing, and level of seasoning. That’s where we come in! Here are the basic steps (or jump to the recipe below):

• Preheat a grill to medium high heat. That’s 375 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, the temperature for most grilled vegetables.
• Chop the veggies and throw them on foil with the seasonings. See the recipe below. Place a piece of foil on top, seal the seams, and poke holes to let the steam escape.
• Grill the packet for about 30 minutes. Test with a fork to assess doneness.

More Potato Recipes to Try

Here are more of my top potato recipes using this popular root veggie:

• Parmesan Potato Wedges: Crispy, savory, and covered in crunchy cheese.
• Perfect Boiled Potatoes: Tender and buttery: the ideal easy side dish!
• Spanish Tortilla: A potato and egg omelette that is a tasty Spanish dinner or tapas recipe!
• Quick Baked Potatoes: The trick to making baked potatoes…fast.
• Loaded Potato Soup: Cozy, healthy, and loaded with creamy goodness.

Ingredients You’ll Need

The biggest challenge with green salads? Creating the right balance of flavors and textures. I’ve learned that the key is creating contrast: sweet berries, tangy dressing, crunchy nuts, and creamy cheese work together to make each bite interesting.

• Ripe strawberries: Finding truly ripe berries is my number one priority! I look for fully red berries with a sweet aroma. If local berries aren’t available, I buy them in summer when they’re in season (late spring to early summer) for the best flavor.
• Mixed greens: I use a blend of spinach and lettuce for the ideal texture. The slight bitterness of the greens perfectly balances the sweet berries.
• Red onion: This adds a savory punch that complements the sweetness. My game-changing trick: soaking the slices in cold water for 15 minutes eliminates harsh onion breath while keeping the flavor! Or even better, make a batch of pickled red onions.
• Toasted nuts: These provide essential crunch. I typically use pecans, walnuts, or sliced almonds, and always take the extra two minutes to toast the nuts—it makes a world of difference. Pistachios are also nice.
• Cheese crumbles: Optional but highly recommended! I usually choose feta, but goat cheese adds lovely creaminess that ties everything together.

Other Salad Recipes You Might Enjoy

Ways To Serve It

This salad pairs well with just about anything, making it an incredibly versatile side dish! Here are a few ways we’d suggest pairing:

• With more salads: Serve it as a salad trio as a summer salad dinner! Try it with Tortellini Salad, Watermelon Feta Salad, Antipasto Salad, or Grilled Corn Salad, Red Cabbage Slaw, or my favorite Carrot Salad.
• Seafood: I also like it with seafood like Baked Salmon, Grilled Salmon, Grilled Tilapia, Grilled Shrimp, Ahi Tuna, Pan Fried Cod or Seared Scallops.
• Pasta. Or, try it alongside Roasted Eggplant Pasta, Butternut Squash Pasta, Creamy Cavatappi or my Favorite Vegan Lasagna.

More Salads To Try

There are so many great salad recipes to try! Here are some of our top salads:

• Perfect Italian Salad Your soul mate side dish! It features crisp veggies, crunchy croutons, tangy pepperoncini, and a punchy homemade dressing.
• Kale Quinoa Salad Full of healthy ingredients and tastes incredible! Meal prep this easy plant-based lunch idea for meals all week.
• Arugula Beet Salad or Beet Salad with Balsamic The perfect easy side dish! Vibrant beets and zingy vinaigrette dressing.
• Easy Mexican Salad Topped with savory cilantro lime dressing and crunchy tortilla strips.
• Cucumber Salad A tangy sauce with dill and shallots brings an irresistible flavor.

How to Grill Green Beans, Step by Step

A nice thing about grilled green beans: you can place them directly on the oven grates! There’s no need for a grill basket. If you do have a grill basket, you can also use it: it just results in less charred green beans. Our preferred method is the grates: we love the char marks! Here are the basic steps (or jump to the full recipe):

Step 1: Preheat a grill to medium-high heat (375 to 450°F). Trim the green beans, then mix them with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Step 2: Grill on the grates 5 minutes per side. Flip with a spatula and grill until tender and charred!

Step 3: Transfer to a serving plate or platter. Spritz with fresh lemon juice and enjoy.

What to Serve Alongside

Green beans work with almost anything—they can fit into many cuisines! Here are a few recipes I’d pair them with to make a grilled meal (and drinks!):

• Fish: Add grilled salmon or grilled tuna steak, grilled potatoes, and an Aperol spritz.
• Scallops: Try grilled scallops, basil rice, and frosé.
• Veggie burger: Serve with a veggie burger or portobello burger, grilled corn, and Moscow mules.
• Chicken: Add grilled chicken thighs, tzatziki sauce, and a bed of farro.

More Green Beans Recipes To Try

Love green beans? Here are some of my favorite green bean recipes:

• These green beans almondine or garlic green beans are simple sides.
• Steamed green beans are quick and easy, made on the stovetop.
• This spin on everyone’s favorite green bean casserole uses fresh green beans instead of canned.
• The classic French Nicoise salad wouldn’t be the same without crisp tender blanched green beans.

How to Cut Onions for the Grill (the Most Important Step)

Here’s the number one most important thing about making grilled onions: cut them so the root end stays intact. Here’s why:

• Keep the root intact so the layers stay together on the grill. Otherwise, the onion will separate into layers and all the layers will fall into the grates. If you accidentally do this, it’s ok! You’ll just need to use a grill basket or sheet of foil and place that over the grates.
• Cut the onion in half, then make wedges by cutting just below the root. This lets the layers all stay attached with the root end. See the photos for details!

Best Bread to Use

The best bread for garlic bread is French bread, or any medium-sized artisan bread loaf. It can be hard to find bread specifically labeled “French,” so just find something that looks similar to what you see here. Avoid using a baguette, which is smaller and crustier, and doesn’t make as good garlic bread.

How to Make Garlic Bread

This is my very favorite easy garlic bread, perfect as a side for pasta like veggie lasagna or creamy cavatappi, or as an appetizer dipped into marinara sauce. It’s got the best rich, savory flavor and a crunchy yet chewy texture. Here’s how to do it in 4 simple steps!

Step 1: Slice Your French Bread Lengthwise

Slice the bread lengthwise, as shown in the photo below. This makes for the fun strip-sized pieces you see above, versus a large round bread circle. While you’re cutting the bread, preheat the oven to 400°F.

Step 2: Brush the Cut Sides With Garlic Butter and Bake

Melt the butter in the microwave or place it in a saucepan over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Then transfer it into a small bowl and grate in 3 garlic cloves. The easiest way to grate garlic is with a microplane (here’s the microplane I use).

If you don’t have a grater, just mince the garlic as finely as possible. Next, mince the fresh parsley as finely as possible; you’ll want it to be very fine flecks.

Add the parsley to the butter, then use a brush to evenly coat the cut sides of the bread. Place the halves together, cover the garlic bread loaf in foil, and bake for 8 minutes until warmed through.

Step 3: Top With Parmesan and Broil

Here’s the fun part! Remove the bread from the oven and sprinkle it evenly with grated Parmesan cheese. (Grated Parmesan is the type that looks like powder, while shredded is long shreds.)

Then broil the garlic bread for 2 to 3 minutes to give it an irresistibly crunchy topping. Rotate the baking sheet halfway through broiling to get even browning.

Step 4: Slice It and Serve!

Finally, slice the bread crosswise into thin slices. This makes the perfect crunchy, tender strips for serving as a side dish.

Serve immediately, warm out of the oven. Or you can put the strips back into the aluminum foil, turn the oven down to 350 degrees, and keep them warm until serving. Voila: the best easy garlic bread ever!

What to Serve With It

What doesn’t go well with garlic bread, really? Here are some great entrees that would be made perfect with garlic bread:

• Pair with Easy Stuffed Shells, Pasta Pomodoro, or Classic Red Sauce Pasta
• Go for Vegetarian Lasagna with Ricotta, Lasagna Roll Ups, or Zucchini Lasagna
• Dip it into Homemade Tomato Sauce or Baked Goat Cheese as an easy appetizer
• Pair it with Tomato Artichoke Soup or Classic Tomato Soup

Love garlic? Try more Great Garlic Recipes like simple and impressive Garlic Butter, Garlic Confit, Garlic Noodles, and more.

More Bread Recipes to Try

• No-Knead Bread
• Easy Focaccia Bread
• Baguette
• Garlic Naan Bread
• Homemade Sandwich Bread

How to Cook Bulgur Wheat (Step-by-Step)

So, there’s not much to how to cook bulgur! As I mentioned above, you’ll use the soaking method where you simply heat up water and then pour it over the grains. The biggest thing you need to know is how much water to use: and that’s even super simple.

What’s the bulgur to water ratio? 1:1, meaning 1 cup bulgur to 1 cup water.

OK, this literally could not get any easier, right? Here are the basic steps for how to cook bulgur (see the full recipe below):

• Boil the water in a teapot.
• Place the bulgur wheat in a bowl, then pour the water over it.
• Let it stand for 7 minutes for fine-grind bulgur or 15 minutes for medium-grind bulgur.

As it sits, the grains absorb all the water and the grains become large and tender. That’s it! This is a great candidate for making a large batch to eat off of throughout the week.

Or, do you have an Instant Pot? You also can cook bulgur in a pressure cooker: see our Instant Pot Bulgur Wheat recipe.

Ways to Use It

Once you’ve got a big pot of bulgur wheat, there are so many ways to use it: in salads, grain bowls, soups, and more! Here are some of my favorite ideas:

• Tabbouleh: The most popular way to eat bulgur is tabbouleh, with lots of fresh parsley, tomatoes, and garlic. Try my Mediterranean Bulgur Salad.
• With veggies & fried egg: Make it a vegetarian main dish with beans and greens and topped with a fried egg. Try Bulgur Wheat Recipe with Fried Eggs.
• As a side: Try it as a side dish for Baked Salmon or Stovetop Shrimp.
• In a grain bowl: Try it in a Couscous Bowls with Tahini Sauce (instead of couscous) or Roasted Vegetable Bowl (instead of freekah).

How to Cook Quinoa

Here’s how to cook quinoa:

• Rinse the quinoa. Rinse it in cold water using a fine mesh strainer, then shake off the water. Why rinse quinoa? It reduces bitterness (it helps to remove the natural coating called saponin) and in our experience, helps it cook more evenly.
• Simmer covered for 15 to 18 minutes. Place 1 cup quinoa with 1 ¾ cups water in a saucepan with ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer where the water is just bubbling for about 15 to 18 minutes, until the water has been completely absorbed. Check by pulling back the grains with a fork to see if water remains.
• Allow to sit covered for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit with the lid on to steam for 5 minutes, then fluff the grains with a fork.

Quinoa Nutrition: How It Compares

There’s lots of love about quinoa. It’s a good source of antioxidants and minerals, and it provides more magnesium, iron, and zinc than many common grains. Here’s a breakdown of the basic nutrition facts of quinoa, with white and brown rice provided as a comparison (via Healthline). Quinoa is significantly higher in protein and fiber than both white and brown rice.