Roasted Potato Salad

Here is one recipe I now make several times a year. My older daughter had be bring to a pot luck and my younger daughter asked me to make it for her Christmas party. This is a recipe I call a success!

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs small red potatoes, fingerling work well also -- but avoid baking or real waxy potatoes
• 1 small bunch of spring onions, or 1 small red onion
• 3 oz ham
• 2 celery stalks
• 2 hard-boiled eggs
• 1/2 cup of frozen peas
• Mayonnaise, about 1 cup
• Mustard, 2-3 Tbs
• Mirrin (Rice Wine Vinegar), or Apple Cider Vinegar, about 1 Tbs
• Fresh Dill
  

Prepare the potatoes

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F.
2. Clean and halve the potatoes. If you have a mix of large and small ones, third or quarter the larger ones to about the same size as the halves. This keeps the cooking even.
3. Toss with some olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper.
4. Spread in one layer on a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, start checking after 30.
5. Once a sharp knife slides in and out easily, they are done. Pull out and put in a bowl to cool some.

While the potatoes are cooling, prep the rest

1. Chop the spring, or red, onion into small pieces
2. Dice the celery into pieces about the same size as the spring onion
3. Dice the ham
4. Coarse chop the eggs
5. Prep the dressing:

• Place the Mayo in a bowl and whisk in the Mirrin. This is less for taste as to thin out the mayo a bit and add a little acidity
• Add half the mustard and taste. Keep adding mustard until you get the taste you want. I keep going until the mustard can tasted lightly. Rule-of-thumb if the mustard smacks you in the face as opposed to kissing you on the lips -- add more mayo :-)
• Add 2 Tbs of finely chopped Dill. Add more to taste

Put it all together

1. Cut up the potatoes into quarters or sixths. You are after a bite-sized pieces.
2. Place potatoes in a large bowl
3. Add ham,. onions, celery, eggs and peas
4. Pour 3/4 of the dressing on top and gently mix. You have to be gentle or you might end up with a mashed potato salad. If you are worried about your potatoes might be a little soft, refrigerate them for 30 minutes before dressing.
   
5. Add more dressing as you mix -- if needed. It's always easier to add more than take out.

Refrigerate. It's actually better the next day.

There you have it. I have tried many variations and some went over well, other less so. For example a little sun-dried tomato or roasted red pepper was great. Chicken was a bust. Cucumbers or fresh tomato added to much liquid to the dressing. But please feel free to experiment and pass any good ideas back to me.