I love this particular dish because it combines so many things I absolutely love – tasty salted pig bits, blue cheese, and tater salad! It’s the perfect Fourth of July dish – and not just because of the cheesy patriotic name. My parents had an absolute look of disgust when I told them I was making this — I guess they were picturing some grotesque, Crayola-bright dish with unnatural ingredients. Crayola belongs in the beautiful yellow box – not in our food. The red is potato, the bleu is cheese…there’s nothing crazy about the way this looks in the end…but the taste is crazy good!
Red, White & Bleu Potato salad
- 4 slices bacon
- 2 pounds red new potatoes
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1 cup chopped green onions, divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup sour cream (light works beautifully)
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise (light works too – but if I’m choosing a place to leave a little fat in, this is where I feel the added flavor is worth considering the added fat)
- 1/4 cup or about 1 1/2 oz crumbled bleu cheese (you can definitely choose reduced-fat here!
Optional ingredients:
- 3 garlic cloves, minced *OR*
- 1 Tablespoon fresh dill, minced
Cook bacon. Make sure you include an extra piece to snack on, ’cause it’s salty and delicious!! Cool on a paper towel, crumble, and set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. I don’t really believe in putting salt in water that’s not boiling. There are lots of different takes on it: that salt makes the water boil faster; that salt in a non-boiling pot can pit your cookware…as there seems to be no good answer, I stick with the non-salty water. Anyhoo, boil that water, then add the potatoes and cook them until they’re tender but still firm (we call that fork tender ’round these parts), about 12-15 minutes. Drain them and let them cool.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl (so you don’t have to wash extra), mix together the vinegar, mayonnaise, sour cream, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup green onions. **If you use either of the optional ingredients, add them here as well** Once the potatoes have cooled, cut them into cubes, leaving the skins on. Add the taters, bacon, and bleu cheese to the dressing and toss very gently to coat.
