All-American Red, White and Bleu Potato Salad

Taste-tester approved potato salad

In honor of the Fourth of July holiday, I made the requisite potato salad, with a twist. It's called All-American Red, White and Bleu Salad. Red new potatoes, bacon, and bleu cheese are the main components. I know, I know, I used Gorgonzola and that's Italian, but Italian Americans are very patriotic...and they made me an offer I couldn't refuse! Translation: I had gorgonzola in the frig.

I researched a few recipes, one from SLO Veg and some on Pinterest. Then I made up my own version. It started with boiling the potatoes, then rinsing them under cold water and quartering and cubing them up. I started yesterday with the potatoes, but I didn't want to cook them into mush, so I guess I pulled them off the stove too early. I was trying to get them cooked and then go back to sleep because I am on nightshift and had to work later. I thought they were done, but after they cooled and I bit into one, they were a little too "al dente" for a good potato salad. So Thursday morning I put the potatoes back on the stove in a pot of water and cooked them for another 10 minutes or so. When the skins just start to peel off, that's when they are done.

Meanwhile, I made my dressing. I started out with mayonnaise, about 1-1/2 cups. I added a half cup of sour cream and about 2 tablespoons of white vinegar. I say "about", because I didn't measure anything. Using a trick from my mother-in-law, I sliced open my three hard-boiled eggs and incorporated the cooked yolks in the dressing part. Then I added some granulated sugar, about 2 tablespoons, three sliced radishes, a half cup of diced dill pickles and a can of coarsely chopped black olives. A little salt, a little pepper, and about a teaspoon of dried dill weed completed my seasoning. The white parts of the egg were chopped up and added to this mix along with some crumbled Gorgonzola cheese.

Meanwhile, I cooked three slices of bacon and added a half cup of chopped red onions to the bacon grease to saute for a few minutes.  When my potatoes were cooked and rinsed again and cooled off, I stirred the potatoes, onions and bacon pieces into the dressing. I mix it all up in a large Tupperware bowl, then I put it into my serving bowl and top it with a few slices of hard-boiled egg and sprinkled on some paprika. That's the way my Mom used to finish off any potato salad, so that's the way I do it. It looks pretty!

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All-American Red, White and Bleu Potato Salad

8-10 large red potatoes
3 slices bacon
1/2 cup bleu cheese
1-1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup chopped dill pickles
1/2 cup chopped black olives
3 radishes, sliced thin
2 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbs. white vinegar
1 tsp. dill weed
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Cook the potatoes until just tender, but not overcooked. Test with a fork. You want to be able to chop them up without them turning into mashed potatoes.  Drain and rinse in cold water, drain again. Chop into 1 inch pieces. At the same time, cook 3-4 eggs until hard-boiled. Cool and peel.

Cook the bacon until crisp. Using the bacon grease, saute the red onion until soft. Drain on paper towels.

Mix the mayonnaise, sour cream, sugar, salt, pepper, dill weed and egg yolks. Mix in the dill pickles, black olives, radishes. Add in the bacon and onion and mix well. Transfer to a serving bowl and top with sliced hard-boiled eggs. Sprinkled with paprika.

My big red Tupperware mixing bowl is perfect for blending all the ingredients
 of potato salad.

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This recipe from SLO Veg for a grilled potato salad looks really good. I had most of the same flavors, but my salad was a little different. Check this one out, too.

http://www.sloveg.com/printRecipe.cfm?recipe_id=582