Macaroni Salad, and Potato Salad

There are two salads that remind me of my Grandmother: Potato Salad  and Macaroni Salad.


Here are my favorites!

Macaroni Salad is one of my favorite Summer Salads. I believe my Grandmother made the best Macaroni Salad. Here's my recipe that I've been making for years.

It's very basic, sometimes that's the best recipe!

Macaroni Salad:

Dressing:

Whisk together in a small bowl and set aside.

1/2 C Mayonnaise

2 TBS Dill Pickle Juice

1 TBS Sugar

1 TBS Yellow Mustard

1/2 tsp Salt

Salad:

2 C uncooked Elbow Macaroni ( cook according to package directions, drain)

1 tsp Olive Oil

1 C diced Onion

1/4 C chopped Celery

3 Hard Boiled Eggs, chopped

1 (2oz. jar) Pimentos, drained

1/8 C Dill Pickle Relish

1/4 C Dill Pickle Juice

Salt and Pepper to taste

Place cooked pasta in a large serving bowl.

Drizzle with the Olive Oil and stir to combine.

Add:

Onion

Celery

Eggs

Pimentos

Relish

Pickle Juice

Toss until well combined

Add the dressing and mix well

Season to taste with Salt and Pepper

Refrigerate overnight

Toss again

Add additional Mayonnaise if needed

Enjoy!

Peace in the Kitchen!



Potato Salad:

I had to include my recipe for Potato Salad in my Best of the Best reposts.

Summer in Michigan meant picnics at my Grandparent's house, at Aunt Faye's , in the back yard and during our summer vacations with relatives at Higgins Lake.

I want to do a segment here on traditional American Picnic recipes.

Summer is coming and so are the picnics.

We have a portable picnic table that we keep in the trunk of our car in the summer so we can enjoy picnics on the side of the road as we travel. We took this idea from our friends in the South of France.

The most popular Picnic dish would have to be Potato Salad.

I believe that my Grandmother made the best!

She never had a recipe for it, nor do I.

We knew it had to have Potatoes, Hard Boiled Eggs, Onion, Celery, Pickle Relish, Mustard Mayonnaise, Paprika, Salt and Pepper.

She would boil peeled potatoes, cool them completely, hold one in her hand and begin randomly cutting them with a paring knife over a large crock bowl.

One rule was that for as many boiled potatoes she made, she made an equal number of hard boiled eggs She always mixed the "dressing" separately and added it at the end. The amount of ingredients depended on how many people there were for lunch and that determined how many potatoes and eggs.

I also know that she would refrigerate the large bowl of prepared salad before she served it because it would soak up the dressing in the refrigerator and then she would have to add additional mayonnaise.

Here's my attempt to create my Best of the Best recipe for Potato Salad.

8 Potatoes that are peeled, boiled and then randomly cut with a paring knife over the bowl.

8 Hard Boiled Eggs cut with a paring knife, into the Potatoes.

The Sauce or Dressing consists of ( these amounts are approximate)

In a separate bowl, combine:

1 C of diced Celery

1 C of diced Onion

1/2 C of Pickle Relish

2 or more TBS of Yellow Mustard ( we always refer to this as Kid Mustard) , nothing fancy like Dijon

2 C of real Mayonnaise, additional as need at the end

Salt

Pepper

Fold the Sauce into the bowl with the Potatoes and Eggs

Refrigerate 

Add Additional Mayonnaise as desired

Sprinkle with Paprika just before serving.

Enjoy!

Peace in the Kitchen!