Creamy Dill Potato Salad

Kathy Patalsky does it again with a potato salad (the unconventional kind!). It is all kinds of good, and you're sure to make some for the weekend or just for a picnic - c'mon, it's Spring! Let's celebrate!

Ingredients:

1 lb mini potatoes, halved/quartered 1/2 cup celery, chopped 3/4 cup sweet onion OR scallions, chopped 1 1/2 cups fresh dill, chopped (stems and fronds)

Dressing:

1 Tbsp garlic powder 2-3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar 4 Tbsp vegan mayo 2-3 Tbsp spicy/Dijon mustard 1/4 tsp cayenne fresh black pepper and sea salt to taste

Optional:

2 Tbsp EVOO 1/2 cup nutritional yeast folded into cooked potatoes

Directions:

Prep all your ingredients. Scrub your potatoes well. Halve and quarter them. Smaller potato bits will cook faster.

Bring salted water to a boil and drop your potatoes. Cook until tender - do not over cook or you will end up with more of a "mashed" potato salad. Rinse cooked potatoes in ice water to halt cooking.

There are two options now. You can chill your cooked potatoes first - then fold your ingredients directly into the potatoes and serve or chill. This prevents the vegan mayo and other creamy ingredients from 'melting' into the hot potatoes. The other option is to simply toss all the ingredients into the warm potatoes - and then chill until ready to serve.

Chill your salad until ready to be served. Garnish with fresh dill sprigs and a drizzle of good olive oil and fresh black pepper over top.

Hazelnut Mousse Pumpkin Pie

Alan Carter from Mission Beach Cafe shared us this amazing pie recipe a few years ago, and of course we have to bring it back for this Friday. Afterall, it's Friday! So treat yourself!

Ingredients:

1 15oz. can of pumpkin 1 cup packed brown sugar 2 teaspoon of powdered ground ginger 1 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon of salt 1/8 teaspoon of cloves 3 large eggs ½ teaspoon vanilla 1 cup milk ¾ cup heavy cream 1 frozen pie crust (NOTE: Alan makes all pie crusts from scratch at the restaurant, but has substituted a ready-made one for this recipe for the ease of the home cook)

Method:

Combine ingredients into a pot over a medium flame, about 4 to 5 minutes (just to integrate the flavors). Remove from heat. Beat eggs into the mixture 3 large eggs then add vanilla, milk and heavy cream. Pour mixture into a pre-baked pie shell and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Let the pumpkin pie cool and rest in the refrigerator.

Ingredients for Hazelnut Mousse:

2 egg whites or 1/4 cup of egg whites ¼ cup water ½ cup white granulation sugar 1 cup heavy cream 1 cup mascarpone cheese 2 Tblspns Frangelica liquor 1/3 cup roasted, peeled and ground hazelnuts

Method for Hazelnut Mousse:

Mix egg whites into a mixing bowl with whip attachment. In a separate small pot over medium heat add water and sugar until it reaches 240 degrees on a candy thermometer (about 5 minutes). Immediately and pour the mixture into the mixing bowl with the egg white mixture while they are beating. Be careful to pour it so the sugar stream hits the side of the bowl and not the whisk.

Slowly pour the hot sugar down the side of the bowl while the mixing is on high. When all of the sugar is added, continue to beat until the bowl is cool to the touch.

In another bowl add heavy cream and mascapone cheese, use a whisk to blend, then add Frangelica liquor and hazelnuts. Now add the cooled egg white mixture to the heavy mixture and whisk only until it slightly thicken. Put mousse into a piping bag and decorate your pumpkin pie. Sprinkle on top a small amount of ground hazelnuts.

Refrigerate and serve. Enjoy.

The Kitchen of Jillian Rose Reed

Lucky for us, we got to spend a day with actress Jillian Rose Reed (MTV's "Awkward"), and she taught us how to make popcorn-themed cupcakes! We're movie fanatics, so this is the perfect call for a movie night with your best gal pals. And after Jillian taught this fun DIY, we got to sit down with her to talk about everything going on in her busy life!

It was so fun working with you! Thanks for letting us invade your home for just a bit... It was gorgeous! Tell us, are you secretly a Martha Stewart wannabe? Because your decor is spot-on.

Thank you! It really all comes from my mom. I grew up in a gorgeous house that my mom and grandma took a lot of pride in decorating! I owe it to her, she helped me decorate my entire apartment!

And you baked some delicious cupcakes! (Can you share the recipe?) We loved the fun take on the cupcake decoration – how perfect for the movies! Are you an avid baker? What are some of your specialties?

Speaking of Martha Stewart, I actually use her recipe for Vanilla cupcakes! After I make the cupcakes, the decorating comes in. I started baking when I was younger and realized I wasn't the best cook. I figured I'd start baking because who wants to show up to a girls night with a bowl of macaroni and cheese...which is about the best I can do! For me, the fun is in the decorating, because anyone can make a cake!

My mom started my collection of cupcake decorating books when I was younger. She gave me one every Christmas or birthday, and I probably have 10-15 of them now. The popcorn cupcake is my favorite. After making the cupcakes, I just use yellow food coloring to dye half a bag of mini marshmallows and then alternate a "buttered" mallow with a white mallow. Cut the mallow in half, then stick it back together (gives it a kernel look), pile them on the cupcake and you're done!

So are you very much a DIY-kind of person? Do you read up on any blogs? I love making DIY crafts and other fun things. I use Pinterest..I get a lot of my ideas from there. Last Halloween I threw an entire DIY Halloween party with tips and tricks from Pinterest!

What are some other things you enjoy pursuing in your downtime… assuming you have any while on filming schedule! I like to exercise! I also spend a lot of time with my family and friends. We enjoy hanging out and going out to eat!

So you're on MTV's "Awkward!" It is, of course, a very dramatic show. Do you think your life is nearly comparable to the show's many twists and turns? Sometimes! Obviously, since were on TV, everything is a bit more exaggerated but I think we do a really good job of mirroring what a real high school experience was like. I can't say my life has as many twists and turns now, but it probably did when I was 16!

What’s the next step in your future? What kind of role are you dying to play? Or what type of movie/show do you want to work on – horror, romantic comedy, etc? And who with? We all have those celebrity crushes! I'm in love with comedy, so hopefully in the future I can do more of that. I would love to do a comedic movie and work with people like Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston, or Sandra Bullock!

Tell us what a day in your life looks like! What are some daily routines? Outings? Anything new that you’re obsessed with? Whether about news you’re following, or bad reality shows you watch but have yet to confess? Usually I go to bed super early, so I like to get an earlier start to my day. I try to go to the gym in the morning and then it's off to work! I can't lie, when I get home I usually find myself watching Bravo...I love all of the housewives!

When you were breaking into acting, did you face objections from family or friends? Did you have any doubts starting out? What got you through? I didn't actually. My family and friends have been nothing but supportive from the start! That's one of the main reasons I've been able to stay in L.A. so long. It's really wonderful and a lot easier when you have people looking out for you.

The best piece of advice anyone has ever given you…? The best advice I've ever gotten was just to always work hard and be the best you can be. I've learned that in such a competitive industry, it's most important to always be proud of the work you're doing!

Photographed by Jessica Castro Styled by Alisa May Hair by Erika Barquinero Makeup by Jeanne San Diego