One P'dayda, Two P'dayda, Three P'dayda, Four?

Memorial day is almost here and you know what that means! Flies!!

Dave Garroway meets an uninvited picnic guest

Not just flies, but Picnic food!! This week I want to cover some of my favorite summer picnic recipes. Picnics and Memorial Day. What a pairing huh? Let's face it, nothing honors the dead better than a good old fashioned picnic spread right?

Lena, Ida, Marie, Loretta and Artie 1949

At the risk of starting a great debate, I am going to touch on the question of what makes a great Potato Salad. You might have your ideas, but please keep an open mind while I share two options with you.

I DON'T like YELLOW potato salad See?

There are so many potato salad recipes , I could write a whole blog just on that topic. Which type do you like? Yellow with Mustard or White? Sour Cream or Mayo? With Egg or without? Do you add pickles or olives or go plain?


To make things easier, I am just going to tell you about two of my favorite potato salad recipes. These can easily be modified to meet your tastes.


Whenever my family plans a picnic or any family gathering, the question will come up, "Will Mom be making her Potato Salad?" That's because it is a widely held truth that my Mom makes The World's Best Potato Salad. And we don't just wait until the warm weather to enjoy it. If you stop by Christmas Eve, you will find Mom's potato salad on the table, but it may be hard to find at first because it most likely will be in the shape of a snowman.

My Mom. Queen of Potato Salad (and so much more)

Mom's secret for potato salad (though not a secret any more thanks to me) is that she assembles it while the potatoes are still warm.


Mom's Potato Salad


4 pounds of Potatoes washed but not peeled (any type)


Boil potatoes in salted water, remove from stove when potatoes are tender and a fork can easily be inserted.


Drain water from pot of potatoes and refill will cool water. The skins should start to burst and will easily slide off or can be peeled off by just using your fingers.


While potatoes are boiling, mix together the Dressing:


I cup of Hellman's Mayonnaise
2 tablespoons of Vinegar (Wine, Cider it does not matter, which ever you prefer)
1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon of Sugar
1 teaspoon of Salt
1/4 teaspoon of Black Pepper.


When potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel off skins and cut into chunks. The size of the chunks is up to you, but I prefer larger chunks, though small chunks work great too. The bigger the chunks, the less dressing you will use to bind the salad together.


Place the warm chunks in a bowl. At this point, my Mom grates 1/2 of a small onion over the bowl of warm potato chunks letting the juice coat the potatoes. Some people prefer to skip adding in the onion, and that works too. You can also to add 1/2 cup of finely chopped of onion instead of using the grated onion. I prefer the grating option because I don't like to bite into raw onions but I like the flavor, to me, it gives the salad a great punch of flavor.


I also like to add in a cup of finely chopped celery to the salad. I use the stalks and the leaves. This too is optional.


Coat the potatoes with the dressing and mix well. Refrigerate or eat warm. Mom likes to dress the top with Paprika to give it the finished look. And I wouldn't have it any other way.


One potato, two potato, three potato, four.

Bring it on!

A few years ago, confident that I had inherited the answer to how to make the worlds best potato salad, my world was rocked when I met Eleanor Angle and her answer to the World's Best Potato Salad. We met at a friend's birthday party. After tasting her version of potato salad, I knew I had to have that recipe, and now I am going to share it with you.


Eleanor Angle's Green Bean-Potato Salad


2 pounds of Red Potatoes (or Fingerling Potatoes)
1 pound fresh Green Beans ( I prefer French Green Beans)
1/4 cup of Red Vinegar
4 Green Onions, sliced thin
2 teaspoons chopped fresh Tarragon (look for fresh rather than using dried)
2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
2 teaspoons Olive Oil
2 teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
(fresh Tarragon springs for garnish)


Boil potatoes for about 13 minutes. Add in beans and cook for 7 minutes more or until potatoes are tender. Rinse with cold water. No need to remove potato skins. Cut potatoes and beans into bite sized chunks.


Whisk together dressing in a large bowl and then add potatoes and beans. Chill at least 2 hours before serving. Garnish with left over tarragon sprigs.

So. Which version do I like the best? Luckily they are different enough that I have no problem having both. Give these recipes a try and you decide.

Need something to help you choose? Try this game to help you decide which is "It" for you.


Either way, you will be the winner!!


One potato, two potato, three potato, four.
Five potato, six potato, seven potato, more.


When playing games as a kid, you always had to pick who was going to be "It". Who ever was "It" had to be the one to seek all the hiders, or run after the ghosts when we played "Ghost Ghost".


Most of the time, we used rhymes to pick who would be "It" by making fists and turning them sideways. We would then say the rhyme and hit the other persons fist as well as yours using your chin as the substitute for the fist that you were using. Each fist would be hit once when we would say a word from the rhyme. One word for each fist. At the end the person whose fist was hit last was out. If everyone wanted to be it, the last person in the game was it. If no one wanted to be it, the first person out was it.


One rhyme I remember using was One Potato, Two Potato ( no extra "e" needed at the end George).


One potato, two potato, three potato, four.
Five potato, six potato, seven potato, more.
(The person would remove the fist on the word "more")