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Potato Salad, by Andrea Charroin
It is funny how food memories can be so ingrained in us.
My mother, Gloria, made the most amazing potato salad. Her rendition of the typical homey potato salad honestly spoiled me to all potato salads that crossed my path, sort of like her holiday stuffing.
But what I remember most about her potato salad was the special dish it was usually served in. There was a beautiful green-fluted glass bowl, you know, that ’70s green glass? I just loved that bowl. I will be heartbroken if my mother tells me that the bowl was won at a dime toss at some long-ago carnival. To me that bowl was just glamorous, something from Gump’s even.
Potato salad was one of the only dishes I ever remember being lucky enough to make it into the green bowl. As much as I adore my mom’s potato salad, I never asked her for the recipe. I had a fear that I would not make it as wonderfully. Nor do I have that special bowl, that I was sure contributed to the potato salad’s flavor.
Today, I finally asked for the recipe. Although I knew the basic components of the salad, I was thrilled to take the leap and make my own. I am happy to report that my salad was everything I wanted it to be, and more.
I am thrilled that I can now pass this Charroin Family gem on to you at Food For Thought - A News Cafe.
Serve as an accompaniment with your favorite summer barbecue recipes!
Don’t forget to serve it in your own special bowl.
Print This Recipe[print]
Gloria’s Potato Salad
6 medium-sized baking potatoes, peeled and cubed1 small (about the size of a baseball) sweet yellow onion, diced
1 small red onion, diced
10 sweet pickles, chopped
4 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 1/2 cup mayonnaise (Homemade, or your preference. When I don’t have time to make my own mayonnaise, I am dedicated to Best Foods.)
1/3 cup mustard
3 tablespoons pickle juice
Salt
Pepper
In a large pot cover cubed potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil. Cook until potatoes are cooked through, about 30 minutes.
Drain potatoes. Return potatoes to the pan and let sit until cool to the touch, about an hour. This helps the potatoes dry out a bit, so that they can absorb all of the flavor of the mayo mixture.
Toss the diced onions and pickles in with the potatoes.
Mix the mayo, mustard and pickle juice in a separate bowl until smooth. Pour mixture over potatoes and combine. Taste, and add salt to your preference. Add chopped hard-boiled eggs. If your potato salad looks a little dry, add a little more mayo.
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Andrea Charroin was a trained baker and pastry chef in San Francisco before she, her husband Westley, and their two sons moved to Redding nine years ago. After falling in love with Redding’s downtown, Andrea and Westley opened a little pastry shop, Rene-Joule Patisserie, across from the Cascade Theatre. For the three years Rene-Joule was in business, it was renowned for making everything from scratch, using the best ingredients and keeping with a seasonal menu. To this day, Andrea is still asked about her Marathon Bars, Orange Twists and sourdough bread.
Copyright 2008 Andrea R. Charroin
Enjoy!
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Andrea that special green bowl was a wedding gift from a cherished friend….I also have a special attachment to that bowl.
Mom
Wow! That potato salad looks good enough to eat.I wonder if I may request the recipe for lemoncello. (sp?) we have lost ours and our lemon trees are loaded this year and will soon be ripe.
Tom - it’s a timely request. There is so much content here, that you need some tools to find what you want. So, I’ve got three approaches to suggest:
For something specific on this site, try the search box next to the magnifying glass (on the upper right corner of every page). A well chosen (and spelled) word will usually work. (how do you spell lemoncello, anyway) - I know, I’ll just try lemon - nope, too common. Ok, I’ve got more approaches to try.
I’ll go to the ‘recipe’ section - it’s a link at the bottom of the food category - oh no, there are a lot of recipes - and scanning them is not going to work, I’m too easily distracted by those other recipes I just saw. Ok, time for door number three - google is my friend.
If I go to google, and try my magic search there, let’s see what we get. My search is “lemoncello site:donigreenberg.com” That last part tells google to only look at things from this site, and is extremely handy. And, drum roll please, google helpfully suggests the word I’m looking for is: limoncello! If I’d known that to begin with… it wouldn’t have taken three steps.
(
Jim and Tom. To find the delicious limoncello recipe that Doni gave us, use Jims first approach, going up to the little magnifying glass on the upper right corner. Type in Doni’s limoncello. The recipe comes right up. Good luck with all the lemons!
oh mom’s potato salad - I think I was the only one who didn’t like it growing up (it’s the hard boiled eggs) - but as an adult I LOVE it. And the sweet pickles are a must!
Thank you for publishing this andrea - I can’t wait to make it for the eikenbabys.
d
Sorry Andrea but the lemoncello recipe is not coming up.
Here you go Tom, enjoy!
Doni’s Limoncello
1 dozen large, clean lemons (use more, if they’re small; try to find organic or home-grown lemons, if possible)
1.75 liters cheap vodka (preferably 100 proof, but 80 proof will work, too)
7 cups water
3 1/2 cups sugar
Remove just the yellow rind from the lemons. (The white pith is bitter.)
Pour the vodka into a wide-mouthed jar or container, preferably glass. Add the lemon peel. Cover tightly.
Leave the mixture in a cool, dark place for 2 to 8 weeks. (The longer it steeps, the more flavorful and colorful it will be.) Don’t stir it or fuss with it.
Weeks later ….
Boil the water and sugar in a heavy pot on the stove, stirring occasionally, for between 5 to 8 minutes, or until the syrup starts to thicken.
Remove from heat. Let cool.
Strain the lemon rinds from the vodka. (If you used a microplane, a final strain through cheesecloth will help remove remaining particles.)
Pour the cooled, simple syrup into the strained lemon liquid.
Pour into bottles. Allow bottles to rest for another 10 days or so in a cool, dark place.
Store the sealed bottles in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to serve or give as gifts.
Tom, the reason it did not come up is because you misspelled it.
It is LIMONCELLO with an I not an E. I did the same thing
But, when we look for Andrea’s Potato salad we will have to be sure not to add an e at the end
Andrea -
Loved the story~! It’s the same situation with me, my mom, Barbara, has always made the best potato salad. I asked her for the recipie when I was just out of college. I made it just as the instructions were written, but it was just not the same! I think that moms have some kind of special talent or special seasoning or something that others don’t have. Maybe it’s love, that kind of wonderful love that only a mother can give. Must be! B
Thanks Darcie but I have lemons.I stoped growing limons last year.Ah well the recipe should work for either.
Great recipe, I agree Aunt Gloria makes the best! She taught me how to make it when I first came into this family. Your Grandmother served it in a green crock bowl….must be family another tradition…Love, Aunt Linda
Hi Andrea,
Have saved the recipe and will give it a try. Always preferred my mom’s recipe, but yours sounds even simpler, which is usually best. Thanks!
– Laurie
Thanks all .Even though I’ve displayed my ignorance once again for the whole world to see limoncello is in my future.As soon as the lemons ripen I will be away for quite some time.
I used the Potatoe Salad recipe last night and it was big hit! I’ve always loved potatoe salad, even as a kid at family gatherings that’s what went on my plate first. Thanks for sharing the recipe. This was the first time I made the Potatoe Salad for the family. I’m looking forward to the leftovers for lunch. Annette
Will someone please, please tell Andrea to stop writing and start baking??!!
I got your website from your mom. I wanted to tell you how much I am enjoying your website. I love the recipes. Gloria prepared her potato salad for our faculty and now I have the recipe so I can make it myself.