Quickie Potato Salad

Choose a mate that likes the same potato salad as you. Maybe it's more of a guideline than a rule, but still. When I met Rick I was so surprised to find his grandma had the same recipe as my mom, which is kinda rare. My mom always used sweet pickles, it gives the dish a whole different flavor profile. That's how I like it and, fortunately, Rick too. However it is a pain to make ANY potato salad. Two pots, one for potatoes, one for eggs, dicing said sweet pickles, onions, eggs, celery, potatoes. Big mess and since I'm going to all this trouble I usually make enough for a small army. This isn't helpful. So last week when Rick and I decided to take the tandem over to Indian Valley for a ride (more on that in a minute) I was craving Mom's potato salad. If you know me you know I like home cooking in a hurry. I cut a few corners and guess what? Delish!

First of all I made a small batch which meant I could toss the eggs in the boiling water WITH the potatoes the last few minutes. Bam, one pan. Then I used our Produce department's fresh cut red onion, pickle relish and celery seed, waaaay less chopping. Here is the express version of my Mom and Rick's Grandma's Potato Salad:
           
4 medium Yukon Gold Potatoes
1/2 to 1 ( however much onion YOU like) small container diced red onion
2 eggs
1/3 cup Best Foods Mayo
1/3 cup Del Monte sweet pickle relish
1 teaspoon mustard, I used Inglehoffer stoneground
1 teaspoon celery seed
Enough juice from a jar of sweet pickles to just sprinkle over potatoes, save pickles for another time.

Wash and boil whole potatoes until tender, 20ish minutes, add eggs to water last 3 minutes, turn off heat, cover and let cool a bit. Mix together mayo, relish, mustard, sprinkle with salt and pepper, remove eggs from pot and chop, add to sauce and mix again. Taste sauce to be sure you have enough salt and pepper. Drain potatoes and peel (skin should easily slide off) dice and lay out flat, sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper, drizzle with sweet pickle juice. Combine everything in a bowl, salt and pepper again and refrigerate.

Now you can spend the rest of the day doing something fun. Like going to Indian Valley, one of the most gracious, beautiful road bike rides around. Cars, the few you will see, give a full lane as they pass and most of the time a friendly wave too. Greenville hosts a 30-60-100 mile bike ride for Memorial Day each year. This is where I first rode 100 miles with Rick, Jim Chapman and Kristy Allen. Many years later it's still a favorite as is Mom's Potato Salad. For today at least, both are a condensed version :)

Have a safe Memorial Day everyone!