Pickled Jalapeno Avocado Potato Salad

What do you serve with Mexican or Southwestern main dishes? Refried beans? Rice? Green salad? Or maybe something a little unexpected?

Now that warmer weather is here...for the moment again, anyway...I decided to accompany black bean tostadas with something just a bit more summery. Not potato salad, not even guacamole, but a fresh take on the old salad standby that's kind of a mashup of both. With a big kick of heat!

The idea came about by accident when I'd tried a batch of jalapeno pickled eggs. The results were okay, but not what I was looking for exactly. I had this big jar of pickled jalapenos and onions leftover that I couldn't bear to just toss in the disposal. So I got busy and came up with this spicy twist on a standard.

Just a bit of advice. Taste your pickled jalapenos before you decide what quantity to use in the potato salad. Some brands are hotter than others. I've found the Old El Paso brand is comparatively mild (to my heat loving tastebuds, anyway), so I used the full cup. If you like more cilantro, use more...if you don't like it at all, leave it out. Like it tarter? Use more pickling liquid or more lime juice. Let your own taste and preference be your guide.

You know, I'm pretty sure I won't be saving this just for a TexMex meal. The heat of the jalapenos, soft creaminess of the avocado, the zing of lime and the crunch of celery all work together for one especially crave-able summer salad. It's too good NOT to have it a lot more often than that!

The inspiration.

Pickled Jalapeno Avocado Potato Salad

• 2 1/2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, cooked, cooled slightly, peeled and diced
• 1/2 C celery, diced
• 2 hardboiled eggs, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 C - 1 C pickled jalapenos, drained and sliced across - reserve liquid (the amount of pickled jalapenos you use depends on how spicy you like things and how hot the peppers are. Some pickled jalapenos are hotter than others.)
• 1/4 - 1/3 C minced fresh cilantro
• 1/4 C onion, finely minced
• 2 avocados, 1 very ripe, the 2nd not quite so ripe. The very soft one will be used in the dressing, the other diced for the salad.
• juice of 1 lime (2 T approx)
• 1/2 C mayonnaise
• 1/4 C reserved pickled jalapeno liquid
• 1 T Jane's Crazy Salt

In a large bowl, mix potatoes, celery, eggs, jalapenos, cilantro, onion, and the diced avocado. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mash the soft avocado with a fork and add mayo, pickled jalapeno liquid, lime juice and Crazy Salt. Mix well and pour over the potato mixture. Mix gently, but thoroughly.

Chill until serving time.

Triple Dilled Potato Salad...and Changes

Change is inevitable. Back at the beginning of the year, change was on my mind...only natural as the calendar flips to a new year, a new time, hopes for a new beginning. All change should be so kind, not all changes are.

In a post at the start of the year, I shared my husband's struggle with heart surgery, our wait for a heart transplant and our hopes and dreams for a beautiful 2014. Together with our daughters and grandchildren, we rode the highs and lows of that entire life-changing experience, finally with a successful(!) heart transplant on Mother's Day. 

A beautiful new heart in a beautiful man who wanted nothing more than to enjoy again the simple pleasures of home and independence. And he achieved just that. 

Mark grew stronger, was able to drive not just his car, but his treasured tractor (he DID have t-shirt that said, "The Lawn Ranger!). We grilled and smoked and even bought a new charcoal grill for the neighborhood get-together we were planning to thank our wonderful neighbors for all their help over 7 long months.

We got out and about and socialized with friends and family all around Pittsburgh and looked forward to ditching that 2-hour travel restriction and really getting back on the road again...Michigan to see the kids and grandkids, Maryland and the ocean, the bay and our beloved Baltimore and further still to South Carolina and long-missed family.

Then changes came 'round again. Suddenly. Quickly Mark was back in the hospital. Immunosuppressant drugs are both a miracle and a curse, the latter when infection strikes and no way to battle against it. A man who fought so bravely over so many months with such determination and an amazingly positive outlook, was felled in just a few hours.

And here I am again talking about change. And heartbreak and hope. Change, good or bad is inevitable. Change is just another part of life and life goes on, differently, but on. With sweet memories.

Triple Dilled Potato Salad

I made this variation on my standard potato salad for Mark just a couple of weeks ago. He loved it so much he asked for it again when our potato-salad-loving grandson came to visit from Michigan. Matt really likde it, too! 

• 2 1/2 pounds Russet potatoes, cooked in their jackets, peeled, cut into medium dice
• 4 hard boiled eggs, peeled, cut into small dice - save one for garnish 
• 1 large celery stalk, cut into small dice
• 1/2 medium onion, cut into small dice
• 1 C Vlasic Zesty Dill Spears, cut into small dice (or use your favorite dills with a nice zip to them)
• 1 T Jane's Crazy Salt
• 1/2 t dill seed
• 1/2 t celery seed
• 2 T brown mustard
• 3/4 C mayo (Hellman's, of course)
• 1 t sugar
• 1/4 C dill pickle juice from the jar - or more to taste
• 1/4 C fresh dill fronds, minced - plus extra for garnish

In a large bowl, gently mix potatoes, eggs, Jane's Crazy Salt (Yes, you can use another seasoned salt, but why? Jane's is the best!), veggies and seeds.

Mix well the mustard, mayo, sugar & juice and pour over the potato mixture. Sprinkle the fresh dill over the top and gently fold the dressing into the potato salad. 

Transfer the salad to a serving bowl and garnish with a sliced egg and dill fronds. Cover & refrigerate until serving time.

Dilled & Lemoned Fingerling Potato Salad

Summers demand salads that are a) Simple. b) Scrumptious. c) All of the above. We all know the correct answer is C because nobody wants to swelter and sweat in the kitchen when it's beautiful outside.

This one is quick because you don't have to peel fingerling potatoes...the skins are so tender...and you don't have to cook the potatoes very long either because fingerlings are so small. I used Golden Fingerlings, cooked them whole and just sliced them in half lengthwise to allow them to absorb the dressing easily.

This isn't just easy, it's light, too. Yes there's mayo in the dressing, but just a little as all the flavor comes from lemon zest, lemon juice and a healthy handful of fresh dill...and just a smidge of whole grain mustard, too, for zip.

The simple salad went quite nicely with a very simple summer meal of smoked ribeyes and corn on the cob. It would be just as happy with burgers, dogs or grilled chicken, too. What was it they used to say? K.I.S.S.? Keep It Simple Summer!

Dilled & Lemoned Fingerling Potato Salad

 Serves 4

• 1 pound tiny fingerling potatoes, cooked until just tender, cooled, sliced in half lengthwise - do NOT peel
• 3 hardboiled eggs, peeled and cut into pieces - an extra one cut into wedges if you want to garnish the salad
• 3 green onions, sliced well into the green
• 1/3 cup fresh dill fronds, finely chopped
• 1 lemon, zested first and then juiced

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice, reserved from above
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon stoneground mustard

Put potatoes, hardboiled eggs (not the extra one for garnish), onions, dill and lemon zest into a large bowl. Set aside.
 
Mix well the mayo, lemon juice, salt and mustard with a small whisk.
 
Pour dressing over the potato mixture and gently fold together well.
 
Chill until serving time. Wasn't that simple?!

NOTE: Feel free to substitute tiny red potatoes or mixed red, fingerling and blue potatoes...that would look pretty cool, don't you think?