Potato Salad - It's Not Just For Breakfast

A good potato salad is a wonderful thing!

It is cool comfort for lunch on lazy summer days -- cold chunky potatoes, studded with crunchy bits and bathed in a silky dressing . . .

And the quintessential picnic food -- good with sandwiches, hamburgers, chicken, pork tenderloin, steaks, salmon and . . .

You know though, I've discovered potato salad is a perfect breakfast food for summer days here in the Heartland -- where the temperature never dips low enough at night to offer any relief from more suffocating heat and humidity the next morning, and the only breezes are strong winds that come under cover of darkness accompanied by lightning and thunder. Well, most of the time anyway.

So this is my idea for some cool fuel for those steamy mornings -- potato salad for breakfast!

This recipe was introduced to me by our neighbors at a unseasonably delightful June dinner party on their deck a couple of years ago. They were just back from Alaska and kind enough to share some of their beautiful salmon you see on the platter there . . . and this potato salad Dan found on the food channel.

I've adapted the recipe a little. I prefer my raw onions to be green and, if a little bacon is good, more bacon is better. Of course!

Even if you already make the world's best potato salad (and I need your recipe, if you do!) summer is long enough -- and hot enough! -- to add another to your repertoire.

You can think of this recipe as bacon and eggs, with a side of potatoes, all slathered in a creamy gravy.

See! Breakfast!

A perfectly lovely combination of bacon, eggs and chunky potatoes -- you'll have to remind yourself, it's not just for breakfast!


BACON RANCH POTATO SALAD
2 1/2 lbs. small Red Bliss or Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed clean
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 slices crisp cooked lean bacon, roughly chopped
6 hard-boiled eggs, sliced and roughly chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1 cup good ranch dressing (I like to use Hidden Valley dry packets and mix it myself)
3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley

Place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and add enough water to cover by 1-inch. Bring potatoes to a boil over high heat and cook until just tender, about 15 – 20 minutes. Drain, cool and then cut the potatoes into halves or quarters, depending on the size. Season with salt and pepper. In a large mixing bowl, combine potatoes with all remaining ingredients and gently toss to blend. Refrigerate finished salad for several hours before serving, to allow flavors to blend.
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