Red Skinned Potato Salad

You can't have a summer BBQ without potato salad.  The bacon is what makes this soooo good.


Red Skinned Potato Salad

Adapted from this recipe on Allrecipes.com

Prep Time: 1 hour
Serves: 12

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds red potatoes
• 6 eggs
• 1 pound bacon
• 1 onion, finely chopped, or 3 green onions
• 2-3 stalks of celery, finely chopped
• 2 cups mayonnaise
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the potatoes and cook until tender, about 15 minutes.  Drain and set in the refrigerator to cool.
2. Place eggs in a small pot and cover with cold water.  Bring water to a boil, remove from heat and cover.  Let the eggs stand in the hot water for 10-15 minutes.  Remove from the hot water, cool, peel & chop.
3. Place bacon in a larget skillet and cook over medium heat until brown and crispy.  Drain and crumble.
4. Chop the cooled potatoes, leaving the skins on.  Put in a large bowl and add the eggs, bacon, onion and celery.  Add the mayo and salt and pepper to taste.  Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

Notes & Suggestions:

I decided to cut the potatoes before boiling them.  I'm terrible about overcooking potatoes when I make potato salad, so I boiled them for 10 minutes and they were perfect.  Tender, but still just a little firm so they hold together.  

Make sure your bacon is crispy.  Otherwise it will get soggy in the potato salad.  We had leftovers the next day, and the bacon was still nice and crispy.  

The great thing about this recipe is that you customize however you want.  I added a big squirt of mustard, just to give it a little tang.  You can also add in some shredded cheddar cheese, relish or chopped pickles, or reduce some of the mayo and add in some sour cream.  

This does take some time to prep, but the good thing is that it can be made way ahead of time.  Plus it's so worth the time!

A Tip on Freezing Bacon

My husband and I love bacon, but we only seem to eat it on the weekends for breakfast or for the occasional BLT for dinner.  I usually buy a 1 1/2 lb. package of bacon, and it doesn't take it long to go bad once it's opened.  So I found a handy way to freeze it.

Roll up each piece of bacon (like a pinwheel) and put them on a cookie sheet.  Put the cookie sheet in the freezer, then once the bacon is frozen, put it in a resealable plastic freezer bag.  That way you can grab however many pieces you need out of the bag, defrost them in the microwave and you're good to go.

Oh, and don't forget to label your bag with the date. According to www.foodsafety.gov, bacon only last 1 month in the freezer, but I've kept it twice as long as that and it was perfectly fine.

Fluffy Pancakes

This is the best pancake recipe!  Light and fluffy pancakes with the perfect texture.


Fluffy Pancakes
Adapted from this recipe on Allrecipes.com

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Makes 6 pancakes

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup buttermilk (or 3/4 cup milk + 2 tbsp. vinegar)
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp. butter, melted

Directions:

1. If using buttermilk, go to step 2.  If using milk, combine milk & vinegar in a medium bowl.  Set aside for 5 minutes to "sour."
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl.  
3. Whisk egg, melted butter and vanilla into buttermilk (or "soured" milk).
4. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk just until all lumps are gone.  Be sure not to overmix.  Let batter sit while skillet/griddle is heating up.  
5. Heat a large skillet over medium heat (or a griddle to 350 degrees) and coat with cooking spray.  Pour 1/3 cup of batter onto skillet or griddle.  Cook until bubbles appear, then flip and cook until browned on the other side.  

Notes & Suggestions:

We absolutely love these pancakes!  I rarely have buttermilk on hand so I make the "soured" milk.  I was a little apprehensive the first time I tried it, but it doesn't make anything taste sour at all so don't worry.  It's just a way of making buttermilk if you don't have any.  

The batter comes out pretty thick, so we usually add 2 tbsp. of extra milk (or buttermilk) to thin it out and make it easier to pour.  

Once you make the batter, let it sit while your skillet/griddle is heating up, and resist the urge to stir it again.  It gets a little foamy as it sits and that's what gives the pancakes their fluffy texture.

We usually serve these with a maple butter syrup.  We just mix 1 tbsp. of melted butter with 1/4 cup maple syrup.  But these would also be great with strawberries and whipped cream or any other kind of fruit topping. Yum!!!