Mary Thurman's Potato Salad

Bruce's mother, Mary, was frequently called upon to assist with the post funeral meals a family would have. One of the staples of these events was Mary's own special potato salad. A few years ago, Bruce told me the recipe, or at least the basics of it, and I made it for a party. It was a hit. Now every party has to have a big bowl of this frankly unique salad. Since posting about it on Facebook, I have been innundated with requests for the recipe. I kept warning people that it was not an easy thing for me to give the recipe, but they persisted.

So what's all the drama?

I never wrote it down, like most of my favorites. And I never make it the same way twice, like most everything else I make. Plus, I only know how to make huge quantities.

So here it is folks.... as it is. Adapt it to your quantity. And enjoy.. it is good.

Cook potatoes to just slightly underdone, you don't want them mushy. Peel and chop roughly. Place in a large bowl and cover with bottled oil and vinegar type Italian salad dressing. Just the regular old kind, not the balsamic reduction-red wine-shallot-dijon style, just plain ordinary tangy dressing. To give you an idea, for 10 lbs of potatoes I used 1 whole 28 oz bottle. Just enough to cover but not swim in. Got it? Marinate this overnight (oh yes, this is a two day affair).

By the morning, the potatoes should have all absorbed the dressing. Add to this celery seed, a bit of celery salt (not much, the bottled dressing is usually salty enough), raw white sweet onions finely chopped, freshly chopped celery (lots of it, you want it nice and crunchy) and a jar or so of chopped green salad olives with pimentos, drained (Ok I confess, not in the original recipe, I add a bit of the juice from the olives), a couple of finely chopped hard boiled eggs, a squirt or 2 of mustard and a bit of mayo to hold everything together.

I think that is it. If I remember anything else, I'll let you know.

Bon appetit!