Gettin’ Creative in your vegan kitchen

The Spicy Spatula

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Vegan Mediterranean Potato Recipe

Written by

Natasha

writinstuff

Contemporary romance writer, political comedy writer, ghostwriter and editor. Lover of coffee & cocktails, world traveler, off-key singer, vegan and adventurer-ish!

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What’s in your fridge the day before you do groceries? We usually go on Mondays because weekends at the market are usually a madhouse and no thank you. I like that it’s just me and all the old people on Monday morning even though they touch everything and put it back!

Anyway yesterday was the day before grocery day for us–duh, right?–and there wasn’t much to choose from. But we still some potatoes that were still good despite the heat and I had an idea based on a similar meal I’d made earlier in the week, courtesy of Instagram. Say what you will about social media but if someone else is already taking the time and effort to make videos of yummy vegan recipes, I think we owe it to them to test them out. I’m an author not a recipe creator, at least not full-time and this means I only need to focus on making a successful dish.

Right?

Anyway this vegan recipe is super easy. All you need to do is cut up and season a few potatoes and let the oven do the rest of the work and then mix the topping. It really is an easy vegan recipe that you can create and re-create whenever you’re in a potato kind of mood.

You can pair this Mediterranean potato recipe with anything you want. I opted for a simple side salad from the remaining salad ingredients from the week.

What is your go-to vegan potato recipe?

Kitchen Tools:

*Cutting board
*Veggie brush
*Kitchen Knife
*Baking Mat
*Mixing bowls

Track Your Nutrition & Health Data with cronometer.com

Ingredients:

*Potatoes
*Shallots
*Sundried tomatoes
*Dill pickles
*Capers
*Hot chili pepper
*Lemon juice
*Salt & pepper
*Dill & Oregano
*Oil (optional)

Instructions:

*Cut the potatoes. In this instance I kept the chunks a bit bigger because the potatoes are the main attraction of this dish so don’t dim their shine by making them too small.

*In a large mixing bowl or right on the baking sheet, toss the potatoes with your favorite seasoning until well coated. Cook at 180c until crisp on the outside and soft AF on the inside, about 25 to 30 minutes. I used my old faithful seasonings: salt & black pepper, smoky paprika, ground coriander, garlic & turmeric. Oil is optional but you know I try to keep it out of my diet as much as possible.

* While the potatoes are cooking, it’s time to make the Mediterranean style topping.

*Quick pickle the shallots with salt, pepper, lemon juice/vinegar. Let sit about 10 minutes before mixing with the other ingredients.

*Chop sundried tomatoes, rough chop or dice the pickles and chili pepper.

*Keep half the capers whole and rough chop the others.

*Add those along with the dried or fresh herbs into a mixing bowl and stir well. Taste and add more seasoning as needed.

Serving:

The choice is your on how to serve them. My original plan had been to toss the potatoes in with the caper & shallot mix but I didn’t end up doing that, though I wish I had. I added a few spoonfuls on the bottom of the plate and then piled the potatoes on before adding the rest to the top. I added a small spoon of chili paste because, well because I like it spicy.

If you choose to make oil in this recipe, I’d really recommend that you toss it so you don’t end up with soggy potatoes on the bottom.

Personally I think this recipe is complete on its on but I added a salad on the side because we all need more fresh vegetables.

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12 responses to “Vegan Mediterranean Potato Recipe”

  1. Dorothy's New Vintage Kitchen Avatar
    Dorothy’s New Vintage Kitchen

    What a lovely and flavorful combination, starting with potatoes what’s not to like?

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
    1. writinstuff Avatar
      writinstuff

      My sentiments exactly!!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  2. Pooja G Avatar
    Pooja G

    Yes to potatoes always!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
    1. writinstuff Avatar
      writinstuff

      Absolutely. A side dish or a meal, they’re ideal!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  3. Maryanne Avatar
    Maryanne

    This might be your best recipe yet! I love the idea of using sundried tomatoes.

    The other day I made baked potato “chips” using coconut oil and fresh herbs. I like to add lemon, but I was out. Cutting them so thin makes the “chip” quality; and they bake faster.

    Today will be my first attempt at vegan mashed potatoes.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
    1. writinstuff Avatar
      writinstuff

      Thanks, it was crazy delicious and super easy! I keep trying different chip recipes but I’m finding that the oil is necessary and I really try to keep my oil intake as low as possible b/c it really messes me up. Do you just spray them or what? Have you tried with an air fryer? Good luck with the mashed potatoes! I find using some of the starchy water helps with the creaminess.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. Maryanne Avatar
        Maryanne

        I just put less oil than the recipe calls for, like less than a tablespoon. And I never use salt.

        I’m the opposite of you with oil. I tried giving it up years ago, but for me, I do need the oil fats because it helps my skin look nicer and feel softer (though you can’t see that in photos — the other day I met some online friends and they said, “You look so much better in person, you’re glowing.”). Oil is like a lubrication for me. One tablespoon per day is good for me. Or an avocado. My body loves the good fats. Sometimes I’ll add hemp seeds to smoothies, or eat olives. If I go just one day without oil, I can feel the difference in my skin. My fingertips get “pinchy.” It’s weird.

        ANYWAY, the mashed potatoes came out absolutely perfect! My husband loved them. I just chopped up potatoes and put them in water as they boiled. No salt even though the recipe called for it. Then after 20 minutes, they were already soft. I added soy milk and vegan butter (I love Miyokos). Then I added a little bit of sea salt and pepper. You can also drizzle coconut aminos on it (like a little gravy).

        Liked by 1 person

      2. writinstuff Avatar
        writinstuff

        Glad to hear the potatoes came out so well! I get what you mean about the oil and it’s funny because I was reluctant to give it up and then as I usually do, I gave it a trial run. I learned that I didn’t “need” it the way I thought I did for cooking and then when I added it back in I learned that it gives me a lot of belly rumblings if it’s too much and “too much” means more than a little spritz. It’s why I try to get sundried tomatoes and even artichokes in water instead of oil. Water for me is what oil is for you. I do rely on seeds for good fats though, sometimes I’ll put them in a spice blender and turn them into a flour of sorts for baked goods or energy balls though often I just roll them into the balls whole. Your skin does look good so I’d say your body gobbles up the fats properly!

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Maryanne Avatar
        Maryanne

        Yeah, decades ago vegans were giving up on oil. I tried and within a day my fingers looked like I was in a pool for three hours, all shriveled on the pads. So I was like “never again.” And just a minimal amount does my body good. I was reading this amazing book that was written many years ago (I think either in the late 1800s or early 1900s). It’s a philosophy/spiritual book, but also talks about diet (though I hate that word, I’ve never been on a diet in my life, nor do I count calories — just eat natural and everything works out). ..Anyway, the book talks about regular stuff like proteins and carbs and vegetables with each meal, etc. but it also says that if you’re not overweight you should also have a good oil with each meal because it lubricates the body.
        But if your body is rejecting it, stay away from it. (That’s how my body is with conventional and cane sugar. I just hate it, it’s too sweet and it makes me depressed. If something has even a little bit of it, I can taste it).
        As for seeds, I found an amazing clean protein powder with different types of seeds that I take every morning. And, of course, the 8 servings of 8 ounces of water per day, which is more than enough. We spoke about this on a raw vegan board years ago too, that fruits and vegetables contain water so you don’t have to obsess over it. I like a nice herbal tea at the end of the day too before I meditate.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. writinstuff Avatar
        writinstuff

        Really? I didn’t realize that was a vegan thing, giving up oil. I tried it about a year into losing weight because it’s got a lot of calories and I was trying to find ways to cut unnecessary ones like deep frying vs sauteeing or making my own oil-free salad dressings, so I tried it. Like you said, our bodies will let us know when something isn’t working. It’s not all oils per se, but oil as in olive, coconut etc.. It’s actually funny because that’s probably why I just got used to feeling bad when I was fat…the oil and all the fried foods. I totally count calories but that’s b/c I have a lifetime of poor eating habits to overcome and while I could stop now (probably), I haven’t lol. I’m not one to obsess over the water either b/c like you said again I get plenty of it with vegetables and fruit but I also drink mostly water. Coffee in the morning and maybe a cocktail in the evening otherwise just water. It’s funny, I was about to write that I haven’t given up sugar b/c consciously I haven’t but I use sugar-free flavor drops in my coffee, I don’t drink juice or pop and I don’t eat many sweets so maybe I have???

        Liked by 1 person

      5. Maryanne Avatar
        Maryanne

        Yeah, on all the vegan message boards people were talking about giving up oil; and Happy Healthy Vegans talk about their oil free cookbook (it’s a wonderful book, but TOO BEAUTIFUL — I’m afraid to use it, I might mess it up. My husband got me a cookbook holder to use while I’m cooking, but still…..). The paleo folks thrive on oil and good fats. A friend of mine did paleo and miraculously reversed his type 2 diabetes. That’s why I say giving up oil is a “vegan thing.” My other friend who is on the Mediterranean diet uses good oil olive all the time. She looks decades younger than she is. I joke and say that she drinks blood from virgins. Ha-ha!

        Anyway, it sounds like you’re on the right track. I never understood what is fattening or what wasn’t because sometimes I’d eat fries and weigh less the next day; or sometimes I’ll eat perfectly healthy all day and gain a pound. That’s why I just let it all work itself out. There are always other factors like exercise, stress, happiness. When my mom died last year, I was a bit bloated for months. Not enough to see a difference or to have my clothes tight, but enough for me to know. Then I went back to normal, even a little thinner since I stopped eating in restaurants.

        I have to try those flavor drops. I remember you telling me about them! I don’t drink soda either, I haven’t since the 1990s!! (I used to have a weird habit, for some reason I loved diet Coke with Chinese take-out). And once in a blue moon we’ll go to Playa Bowls and get fresh juice. I used to juice all the time at home, but I just hate seeing all that pulp go to waste. We’d feed it to the groundhogs, but I’d rather blend and get all the fiber. That’s just me though. I’m sure juicing is amazing, I’m just into water and coffee. LOL! 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      6. writinstuff Avatar
        writinstuff

        Yeah it took me a while to find the right track but I’m here now and I won’t go back. It’s not about what is or isn’t fattening to me, at least not really, but as long as I’m where I need to be calorically then I’m good b/c I eat a mostly plant based vegan diet so I know I’m getting my nutrients. If I feel good then I know I’m good. That’s how I figured out the oil, it was one of the few times in the past 7 years that I felt like crap after eating. My hubs doesn’t react to oil the same but we’ve both gotten the vegan “age reverse bump” lol, which is always nice.
        Coke & Chinese takeout was probably to offset the saltiness with something sweet! Back when I used to drink pop it was Sprite and in college it was Mountain Dew. Once in a great while I’ll have a sarsaparilla from Bundaberg but they went and changed the recipe so it’s super sugary now.
        Same about the juice. At least if I eat the fruit I’ll be satisfied for bit compared to just the juice. But if I happen to be someplace where they do fresh juice, I’ll probably get one. Went to a coffee shop in Timisoara this summer and they had fresh juice…apple and cucumber (separately of course) and they were amazing.

        Liked by 1 person

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