7 Potatoes, 7 Eggs, 2 Ways, Part 1

Yum, yum, people! SO, today I realized I had 7 large baking potatoes. In the fridge, I also had 7 eggs (okay, I had 11, but just bear with me for the sake of the story). Originally, I was going to make a potato chowder for Freezermeal Friday, but I am not so sure how potato soup freezes, and of course I didn't want to steer you wrong. So then I thought, "Oh, I'll use half the potatoes for soup, and we'll eat it in the next few days, and with the rest I'll make something else". Then I realized I didn't have any carrots or celery (this never happens, I was out of town!), so soup was out of the picture.


I finally settled on potato salad and potato and egg pie.

Potato Party Salad

serves 6 as a side dish

5 large baking potatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs, $.75 Haymarket)

3 T. chopped white onion ($.03 Haymarket)

1/3 c. mayonnaise ($.25)

1 1/2 T. Dijon mustard ($.13)

1 t. salt (<$.01)

1/2 t. black pepper ($.03)

2 hard boiled eggs (organic - $.60)

1 T. white vinegar ($.01)

Total is $1.81 for about 2 lbs of potato salad...not bad!

1. Peel and chop potatoes into large cubes (I halve, then quarter then chop a few times, resulting in about 12 chunks per potato - I don't have my camera so I can't share the pictures with you, sorry...)
2. Put them in a large pot and cover with cold water. Cover and bring to a boil.
3. Boil until fork tender (the fork goes in and out easily, and they are beginning to get a little soft...I would take them out when they're right about where you'd eat them)
4. Drain. While they're still in the strainer, cover with a dishcloth for about 5. This allows the steam to go back through the potato resulting in a great consistency. The Barefoot Contessa taught me this one!
5. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, mustard, salt, pepper, and onions.
6. When potatoes have sat under the towel long enough, pour a T. of white vinegar over them.
7. Toss the vinegar-y potatoes with the mayonnaise mix.
8. Chop hard boiled eggs and add to salad, mixing to combine.
9. If you'd prefer more dressing, just add more mayonnaise by the tablespoon full, and add another teaspoon of mustard for every tablespoon of mayonnaise you add.

scrimpyTips:

- This is pretty much a pantry recipe, I keep all these ingredients on hand.

- This would look pretty with some chopped green onions sprinkled on top, and would be perfect to serve at a brunch!

- This is good served alongside a salad or sandwich for a dinner entree.

- This is a good microwave free lunch dish.

- You can add extra eggs, or omit the eggs entirely.

- You can add chopped celery if you like that, too.