Friday, September 4, 2015

Dilly Dip Potato Salad


I've never been much of an experimenter in the kitchen; I have always been pretty dependent upon other people's expertise, cooking wise. That said, I've been getting braver in the last year or so, and today's recipe is representative of that. I adapted two different recipes for this potato salad, which I'll be taking to a party tomorrow. The first recommended baking the potatoes, rather than boiling them, so that's what I did. The second recipe is my own, which usually calls for mayo (Miracle W and mustard); I decided to go really crazy and use a local product that I'd never tried before: Let's Get Dilly dip mix, from Chics-n-Dip.


"Specializing in creating zesty chip & veggie dips, sweet cheesecake dips, meat rubs & bread mixes," Chics-n-Dip is a small Wisconsin company run by two women who work their tails off to offer more than thirty delicious dips and more. My personal favorites are The Villain, I'm Too Sexy for My Beer Belly, and Bling for Carrots; but that's only because I like them so much (as do my guests) that I haven't had the chance to try the rest! I'd never tried the Let's Get Dilly Dip, but since the others are so great, I figured it would be too, and I was right! The directions are simple: mix with one cup each of sour cream (or plain yogurt) and mayo, and you're in business.


I mixed the dip, chilled it, and then prepped the rest:


1 cup chopped celery
1.5 cups chopped cucumber
1 cup chopped dill pickles (my favorite ingredient)
3/4 cup chopped red onion
3 hard boiled eggs, chopped
yellow mustard
1 cup real mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream 
1 pkg Chics-n-Dip Let's Get Dilly dip mix

I used this much mustard:

[I had my ingredients in bags because I prepped them ahead and put them in the fridge.]

1 5-lb bag of potatoes

Poke holes in and bake the potatoes (whole) at 350 degrees for an hour or until soft. 
Cut them in half and let them cool enough to handle.
Remove the skin (or keep it, if that's your style) and chop into bite-sized pieces.
Place on a tray and chill about an hour.
(This helps the bites keep their shape and keeps the dressing cold during mixing.)


Mix everything together,
add salt if desired, and enjoy!
I enjoyed some before it even had time to "get happy," 
and I can't wait to eat my fair share tomorrow!
It has just the right amount of dill in it, and the crunch and zing of the pickles...YUM!