Roasted Red Potato Salad

It's getting to be that time of year again...BBQ season! I love BBQ Season! BBQ is quick and delicious and the best part of all, it is most often shared with great friends and family. Mother's Day weekend seems to always kick off the this season, perhaps because in my family the men cook on Mother's Day. And how do men like to cook best? On the grill of course...or at least the men in my life do. So to bring in the season I made Roasted Red Potato Salad with my basket this week. It is rustic and delicious but it does have to be said that this is definitely "Not Yo Mama's Potato Salad!" This potato salad kicks the trash of regular potato salad, it is packed full of flavor and will have your taste buds dancing! It is much quicker then regular potato salad and it can be made a day in advanced. I hope that you all get the season kicked off right with this amazing potato salad!

Roasted Red Potato Salad

Here are your ingredients. And yes that is right you do see Blue Cheese Dressing there, I told you that this is Not Yo Mama's Potato Salad! I happen to absolutely love Blue Cheese Dressing if you however are not the true blue fan that I am you could use Ranch Dressing or just Mayo in it's place. The blue cheese is definitely mellowed out by the rest of the ingredients in this salad and just adds great depth of flavor to this recipe.

4 lb. "Bountiful Red Potatoes"

1/4 lb. Bacon

3/4 C. Diced Celery

1/3 C. Mayo

1/3 C. Blue Cheese Dressing

1 Tbsp. Dijon Mustard

1 Pkg. Lipton Onion Soup

1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1/2 Tsp. Salt

1/4 Tsp. Pepper

2 Tbsp. "Bountiful Fresh Dill"

1 1/2 Tbsp. "Bountiful Fresh Chives"

One of the add on's this week were fresh herbs and what a bargain we got a ton of them for only $12! I always say that the difference between good food and great food is fresh herbs. But I also think that they are incredibly over priced in the grocery stores. They are generally easy to grow and I highly recommend that you add them to your garden! You will love having fresh herbs on hand all of the time and it will definitely take you from a good cook to a great cook!

Now that we have my tribute to fresh herbs out of the way let's get cooken! To start wash and chop your "Bountiful Red Potatoes" into 1 inch chunks. Place them on a lined sheet pan. (I usually will use tin foil for this but of course I had just run out before making this and so I had to use parchment paper, but either way it will make clean up much nicer.) Drizzle your potatoes with olive oil and then pour your Onion Soup packet on top. Using your hands, that's right I said hands, mix them together until all of the potatoes are coated. I have tried many times to do this without using my hands and I have found that the only way to really get the job done right is to just dive in. Besides olive oil is great for your skin anyways. Then Chop your bacon up into 1/4 inch pieces. Sprinkle that over your potatoes and bake at 450 degrees for 34-45 minutes or until fork tender and golden brown as shown. P.s. The smell of this cooking is intoxicating!

Allow the potatoes to cool. While you are waiting for that in a small bowl mix together your Mayo, Blue Cheese Dressing, Dijon Mustard, Salt and Pepper. Then when your potatoes are cooled scoop them into a large bowl and pour in the sauce, herbs and celery. Stir to combine sprinkle on a few extra herbs for garnish and either enjoy now or put it into the fridge until it is cold and enjoy later.

Helpful Hints: I have found that the best way to keep herbs fresh longer is to wrap them up in a damp paper towel and put them into a zip top bag and store them in the fridge.