Best potato salad I've ever had was made with roughly chopped fingerling potatoes, fresh dill, olive oil, a dash of paprika, boiled eggs, onion, and really good quality black olives. Still warm, the potatoes are doused with vinegar and refrigerated until cold. Add all the other ingredients, give it a mix and let it sit for a couple of hours. Light and awesome.

"We can't protect our world if citizens are so insulated from it that they have never seen a fish with the head and scales on"

In China, a fish with the head cut off is considered ugly. It is served intact looking exactly like what it is - a fish. People there are more comfortable with natural food than with the highly processed junk we buy here. Also, they know how to cook and are willing to do it.

My mother made the best potato salad and we were always glad to see summer come around so we could have it. I make it myself now, and the secret is marinating the potatoes for several hours, or overnight, in a simple viniagrette. If you're adding sweet onions and celery, marinate them with the potatoes, too. Fresh chives are another nice addition. And real Hellman's, of course! I now use little red potatoes that take about 20-25 minutes to cook, then cut them in half with the skins still on. I'm going home to whip up a batch.

Last Sunday was my kid's 40th birthday bash. She asked me to bring "my" German potato salad because it's one of her favorites.

"Where did you get this," asked one gal as she and several others were heaping their plates with seconds.

"Aah, in my kitchen," I replied. The look was incredulous.

Garrison, you are so right. Books with pages and potato salad with homemade written on it. There are some things I don't wanna change...

Since my kid's favorite potato salad is made WITHOUT mayo -- due to many things including the 100-degree weather we too often have in No. CA -- here's my version of German Potato Salad, BUT made with turkey bacon. If you want the original with the real pig fat, there are dozens of recipes on the Internet....or in a real cookbook with real pages (preferably with stains on them).

Here's mine:

German Potato Salad (with turkey bacon, which saves a lot of fat calories)

(Serves 8 – 10)

• 9 med. large potatoes – I use unpeeled yellow potatoes

• 8-9 slices turkey bacon

• 1 cup chopped onions, more or less

• 2 T. flour

• 2 T. sugar

• 2 tsp. salt

• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 3/4 cup water

• 1/3 cup distilled white vinegar

• Dab of concentrated chicken broth (comes in a little box)

• Chopped green onions for top garnish

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 30 minutes. Drain, cool and slice thin.

Lightly oil a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven and add turkey bacon. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown, but not black. Remove and cut into small pieces.

In same pan, after slightly cooled, whisk together the leftover “drippings,” flour, sugar, salt and pepper (think roux) with the water, vinegar and the dab of concentrated broth. Cook and stir until it starts to thicken. Lower heat and carefully return bacon and sliced potatoes to the mixture, stirring gently until potatoes are heated through and coated. Garnish and refrigerate, if you wish, but we like it served room temperature.

But didn't I read somewhere that Jefferson & Co. plagiarized the Declaration of Independence from Locke's "Inquiry Concerning Civil Government"?

Store-bought is fine with me, since I'm not going to be eating it anyway.

Sorry, my dear, but my German mother-in-law is from Westphalia in the NORTH, and her potato salad is the best ever, hands down. She would be ashamed to serve her guests anything but homemade potato salad. So your north-south divide is not defensible.

I'm with ya, Garrison!

I'm posting a recipe in your honor on July 3

restlesschef.blogspot.com

Before I get into the recipe, for the record, I generally come on to Salon and check the headlines and go directly to Greenwald.

AND...I agree that Obama should appoint an independent prosector to investigate past (and present!!) war crimes related to torture. This body must have subpoena power...

(There's an article in The New Yorker on the Obama Administrations CURRENT torture by Jane Mayer...).

That having been said, this article on the potato salad caught my eye. I read all the various ideas/recipes and I'd like to share a different slant on the subject with everyone.

First, I get about 6 nice sized Idaho baking potatoes and I BAKE THEM!!! Early in the day. This way ALL the flavor is there. Let them cool a few hours then cube them up, skin and all on a cutting board and throw them in a giant bowl.

Next, chop up a nice purple onion (to taste) and throw that in.

Next, chop up 5 stalks of celery and throw that in.

Then I make the dressing: I take a bottle of CAPERS (the bottle that is about an inch in diameter and maybe 6" tall). I drain the juice into a bowl and toss ALL the capers into the bigger bowl with the other veggies.

Then I juice one lemon and add the juice to the caper juice. I then toss in about a half a cup or more of Veganaise or Hellman's mayonaisse (check out the Veganaise at the Health Food Store!), and I whisk that together.

Toss all the stuff in the big bowl, pour the dressing over and toss again. Salt and pepper to taste.

If you want to hard boil a few eggs and slice them around the top with a "Happy Face", that's cool. Then finish with paprika.

It's the CAPERS baby, yeah!!!

First you plant the potatoes . . .

Store-bought potato salad is always very sweet because the producers load it down with sugar as a preservative so that it can set on the shelf for three months. They do the same thing to pimento cheese and so disgrace that as well.