Potato Salad for Two

We've discussed my difficulties with potato salad before, so you may be wondering about my post of another one!

Well when you struggle with something so basic you have two choices . . .

1) Study and experiment until you conquer it.

2) Buy it at Hyvee.

I'm stubborn . . . oh yeah, "strong-willed" is the current term!

My mother always said I was incredibly strong-willed. Then she met my future husband. Then we procreated four times. She once commented "They're kind of like animals . . ."

Now, to her defense, she was raised on a farm and knew that most animals have to be convinced that an action is to their benefit before they'll do it. The cow and chicken are not really concerned about your happiness or needs. I am sure that's what she meant . . . really . . . sure . . .

My children's mistakes are generally their own, sure as heck ain't peer pressure!

It's going to make them happy responsible adults. I hope.

Anyway back to potato salad! I decided to make potato salad yesterday because I wanted something cold for dinner. There's a heat wave you know.

I also had three old, small potatoes that really needed to be used up! So I figured "Why not?"

Go ahead and peel them up.

I like to cube russets since they tend to crumble. You can cube them to whatever size you like. Just try to get most of them the same size.

Here's an example! Those skinny corner pieces will end up quite crumbly by the time the big ones are done but it'll be okay.

Put the potatoes in some lightly salted water. Just enough to cover them will do. Go ahead and put them on the stove on some high heat. The dressing for our salad is soooo simple it'll take no time!

Here's my secret condiment! Can you tell what it is?

Here's the deal, as long as you use your favorite ranch dressing you'll end up liking the potato salad!

A little mustard is in order! I like the bright yellow hot dog mustard in this salad but this is what I have right now.

Mix it right in!

Now this is important. We're going to add some more raw vegetables to our salad so we need to make sure our cutting board is clean of potato dirt! Potato dirt often carries bacteria that will give you the food poisoning that's blamed on mayonnaise!

Now for a little onion. I like to slice my green onion in half so there's no huge chunks of onion.

Slice them thinly and add 'em in.

Now for celery! Split it down the middle . . .

Nice thin slices . . .

Mix it all together.

Give it a taste . . .

Needs a little more tang so more mustard is necessary. When the mustard hits the hot potatoes it's vinegary tang is going to be really muted. So at this stage I always make it tangier than I want the ending salad to be.

After you clean up your cutting board and knives your potatoes are probably going to start boiling. It'll only take 5-10 minutes for them to get soft.

They're soft!

Drain the potatoes and put the dressing on them.

Stir them up!

Now go ahead and spread it out on a plate and sprinkle some flat leaf parsley on it. Parsley is sprinkles for potato salad! For this simple one it actually adds a nice flavor.

Mmmm, the potatoes are soft yet still have their naturally firm texture. The ranch dressing is salty and creamy. The mustard adds tang and color. The onions and celery add crunch, gentle heat, and a delicate sweetness. The parsley is the finishing touch! It's green is so pretty and its flavor adds the herbaceous bitterness I crave in all my foods!

Okay, it actually serves four!

Ranch Potato Salad

3 small russet potatoes, peeled and diced
3 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup ranch dressing
1 1/2 tsp mustard
1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
1 green onion, finely sliced
1/3 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

Place potatoes, water and salt in saucepan and bring to boil. Cook until tender and drain.

Meanwhile, Mix ranch dressing, mustard, celery, and onion together. Dress hot potatoes with dressing. Place on serving platter or bowl and sprinkle with parsley. Chill in refrigerator. Serves 4.