purple potato salad

• fresh purple potatoes, scrubbed and sliced in half
• Dijon mustard
• Champagne vinegar
• honey

In salted boiling water, cook potatoes for 10-15 minutes until fork tender. Combine equal parts honey, vinegar and mustard; adjust according to taste. Pour dressing over potatoes and serve either warm or cold. I was lucky enough to have a close to empty squeeze jar of Dijon in the fridge so I used it to mix the dressing and I was able to achieve the cool drizzle effect in the photo.

The dish: I usually try to avoid Frankenfood because square watermelons and grape flavored apples just don't do it for me. I'm not sure how altered purple potatoes are, but our farm friends had some and I just had to try them. They taste just like a regular potato, but carry some of the health benefits associated with other purple foods. The most abundant of the good stuff are flavonoids, antioxidant compounds that among other things, might help keep cancer at bay. There's been a lot of research into the biological environment cancer cells live in and what we can do through diet to alter it. In other words, if Madame Cancer decides to take up with us, we don't have to be good hosts. Cancer is a tricky disease that's good at sending out signals to our bodies to divert resources like food and energy toward its own benefit. Everything we eat or drink changes the composition of our blood, and various nutrients in food can alter it in such a way that it blocks some of cancer's communications. Various flavonoids and antioxidants can actually fight cancer by doing things like controlling blood sugar to reducing inflammation. In addition to tasting great, this salad has tons of cancer fighting properties and nutrients our bodies can put to use. Not to mention, the distinctive purple and yellow coloring looks like the velvet pouch that Crown Royal comes in, and only good things come out of that magical bag.

potato crusted tilapia in a sour cream and chive sauce

• tilapia fillets
• 2 eggs
• instant potato flakes
• white pepper
• fat free sour cream
• fresh chives, chopped fine

In a bowl beat the two eggs. On a plate combine potato flakes with white pepper and salt. Dredge fish fillets in the egg and then the potato mixture. In a little bit of olive oil over a medium high flame, saute the fish for about 3 minutes per side (the topping will fall off so try to be gentle). Once cooked transfer to an oven at 350 degrees. Reduce heat in pan and add chives to pan drippings and saute for 3-5 minutes. Shut off the heat under the pan and add sour cream, mixing until consistency becomes sauce like. Spoon sauce over cooked fish and serve.

The dish: I already let you know that Lee Iacocca was my favorite childhood hero, but there were a few other runner ups. Dave Thomas, the iconic founder of Wendy's restaurants was always near the top of the list. Dave was an orphan who grew up fast and had no one to rely on but himself. He worked a variety of kitchen and restaurant jobs, always dreaming of having his own establishment. What you may not know is that Dave left his mark on the fast food industry long before anyone knew the name of his daughter with the red hair and pigtails. Working his way up through the ranks, he essentially saved Kentucky Fried Chicken from collapsing into certain bankruptcy (a fate that GM would have you believe is some kind of milestone). All the delicious menu items, Dave thought those up; that timeless red striped bucket, his invention; creating the image of the Colonel being a jovial old man instead of a crabby, fouled mouth hot head, his doing as well. It wasn't until he achieved a fair amount of success in the fast food industry that he opened Wendy's, and he stayed active in its operations well past what most would consider to be normal retirement age, especially with his means. Why do I mention all this? Simple, he was the first (and only to my knowledge) fast food executive to realize that sometimes fries just won't cut it, and every now and again people need a baked potato. Few things in American cuisine are as widely accepted as a baked potato with sour cream and chives. Not too healthy, not too decadent, simple, affordable and with flavors that taste like they were made for each other. That was the thinking I had when putting this dish together. It worked well, but I still like salmon better. Of course, after typing this I see a trip to Wendy's in my near future.