My mom was a great cook. She didn't cook fancy or anything, but everything she fixed from scratch was good. There were a couple of misfires over the years involving packaged meal starters that we laughed about over the years, but everything she made herself was awesome. You would think that I would have learned at her knee and been cooking up a storm at a young age. You would be wrong. Trying to learn how to cook from her was frustrating, and being the impatient soul that I was then, I lost interest. Why?? Because my mom never measured a thing in her life. I honestly don't know why she even had measuring utensils because she certainly didn't use them for measuring. Imagine being a 10 year old and trying to learn how to make chicken and dumplings while your mom says things like "a few shakes of this and a handful of that with a cup or so of this other stuff..." That is how she cooked. And it was perfect, even if she never thought so.
She had to cook for some picky eaters. My brother didn't like anything with seeds in it; no onions or peppers of any kind for me and dad; and my mom was the only one who liked veggies. We gave her fits. I'm being paid back for my finicky childhood appetite with my two youngest boys, but Sully is the worst! He has a very short list of what he will eat and it is very frustrating cooking for him. I now know how my mom felt, even though I wasn't as bad as my son. I remember telling my mom that when I did learn how to cook it would be only stuff that I liked. What a bizarre comment: why would you cook something for yourself that you don't really like anyway? Oh yeahhh...you might marry someone who likes stuff you don't. And you might want to make him happy by fixing his favorite something which you hate...Nah! What a silly thought, ha ha ha...
I never really cooked much on my own when I was younger unless I had to or when I wanted to do something special, but I always - ALWAYS - followed a recipe. Over the years, though a subtle change was taking place: I was becoming my mother. It hit me just last week when I had a craving for my mom's potato salad. I couldn't find the one of hers that I had written down, so I had to wing it. I knew the ingredients, and as I looked at them laid out on the counter, I heard her voice in my head telling me "use about a cup or so of mayonnaise and a couple of squirts of mustard...several good shakes of salt and pepper and a little celery seed..." I've been doing it all along for years, really but hadn't been paying attention. I would try a recipe and then I would improvise, then the next time I made it I didn't use the recipe but what I remembered in my head. And then it dawned on me that every time I got a recipe from a lady at church it was my mom all over again. All of those wonderful cooks at church are just like my mom - they have all of that knowledge in their heads and it's up to the younger generation to decipher their code and make it our own. Some of you, of course were paying attention all along and are fabulous cooks - I salute you!
So, here is my mom's potato salad for picky eaters who don't like onions or celery (my family) - pretty much the way she told it to me. (I'm going on the assumption that you already know how to boil eggs and potatoes):
* 5 lbs of potatoes (probably 10 or 12 medium - I buy the smaller 5lb bag and use them all) cut up and boiled.
* 3 or 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped up bite-size
* A cup or so of mayo, depending on how creamy you like it.
* About a TBSP or so of mustard - not too much, just enough for flavor and color
* A TBSP of dill pickle relish
* A splash or three of Apple Cider Vinegar or pickle juice if you don't have the vinegar
* A few shakes of Paprika
* Celery seed - pour out about a dime-size amount in your hand and that should be about right (we didn't mind the flavor of celery, it was the texture of it that we didn't like,so mom used celery seed)
* Salt and Pepper to taste
** if you want to garnish your salad, you can boil one or two extra eggs to slice up and lay on top
Boil your potatoes to tender but not as long as you would for mashing. Hard boil your eggs and let them sit in ice water for easy peeling. When everything is cooled down enough to work with, carefully mix all of your ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate.
I have found that if the consistency is just right when you first mix it up, it will be slightly dry later after it has time to rest, so I add a bit more mayo to make it creamier and then a couple of hours later it is just right. And of course if there's not a single thing you like about celery, then leave out the celery seed altogether.
In the event that you also don't like dill pickles or relish, or mustard, then try omitting one or both and adding in bacon crumbles. Or just add them in anyway.
* 1/2 - 1 lb bacon cut up then fried (it's easier) and drained and mix into your potatoes, eggs and mayo, etc.
See? Something for everyone! Potato salads even the pickiest of eaters can enjoy. Unless of course you don't like potatoes, then I guess never mind. Carry on :)
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