American Potato Salad

Because I've had to force myself to rest more often,
I've been spending time watching PBS.
One habit I've gotten into is watching the cooking shows on weekends.
I'm not one much for tv, but PBS always seems to have something good on.
One of the shows I enjoy is "America's Test Kitchen".
This program gives home cooks step-by-step instructions
on making everything from soup to dessert.
Most of the recipes are straight-forward and simple,
and the staff has tweaked them so that they always turn out great.

Our local library had the new companion cookbook,
so I ordered it and have been perusing it for the last week or so.
In almost 800 pages, this tome is chocked full of easy-to-follow recipes.
There is also a section where products are rated and a taste test chapter,
where staff members have recommended the best ingredients for your masterpieces.

We made potato salad this past week and it was excellent.
We didn't have some of the needed ingredients and so we did a few substitutions.
We used pickled okra instead of pickles, apple cider vinegar for the red wine vinegar 
and omitted the celery completely.
The most interesting part was the technique of putting the vinegar solution 
on the potatoes and then refrigerating them.
This really seemed to make a taste difference compared to other potato salads I've made.  
Great trick!
The salad was delicious and we'll be adding the recipe to our family recipe notebook.
If you've got some potatoes to dig up from your garden,
give this recipe a try.
We can't wait to test some of the other ideas in this cookbook.

American Potato Salad
(America's Test Kitchen)
2 lbs. red potatoes (about 6 medium), scrubbed
1/4 C red wine vinegar
1/2 C mayo
1/4 C sweet pickles, chopped fine
3 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped fine
2 T red onion, minced
2 T parsley, minced
2 t Dijon mustard

Place potatoes in large saucepan, cover with 1 inch of water and bring to a boil
over medium-high heat.  Reduce to medium and simmer,
stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender, 25-30 minutes.
Drain potatoes and cool slightly; peel if desired.
Cut potatoes into 3/4 inch pieces while still warm.
Combine potatoes, vinegar, 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper in large bowl
and toss.  Cover and refrigerate until cool, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients and salt and pepper to taste.
Add potatoes, stir gently to combine and serve.
Serves 4-6.
Enjoy!