Loaded Baked Potato Salad

Warning! This is not health food. Turn away now if you care about your weight or have no self control. However, this 'ish is A-MAZ-ING! I'm usually not one for potato salad. Down here in the south, or somewhat south since the true south stops at Georgia and Florida is just a big mixing bowl of different people, a true potato salad has eggs, mustard, and pickles. Well, if there is one thing you should really know about me, it's that I HATE eggs. Not all eggs, but most. In the case of potato salad, its hard boiled eggs and those are the worst of the worst. Between the smell, the taste, and the texture, I would almost rather eat horseradish; my #1 most hated food. I really wish I liked eggs, they actually look appealing, but I have tried and tried and have had no luck. Seeing that most potato salads have egg in them, I decided to come up with a recipe that didn't have them anywhere close (well besides the mayo, but that's OK.)

Loaded Baked Potato Salad is exactly what it sounds like. Take a baked potato that you would get with a steak with all the trimmings and turn it into a salad. Bacon, cheese, sour cream, and a secret (well not for long) ingredients make this salad one everyone will be coming back for seconds and asking you for the recipe. Now, I suppose there is a way to lighten this bad boy up using low-fat products, but this was for Memorial Day and you can't gain weight on holiday weekends. It's true, trust me. However, if you don't believe me (I might be lying here), see the Tips and Tricks section below on how to make this a little more figure friendly.

Loaded Baked Potato Salad

• 4 large red skin potatoes
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup sour cream
• 6 oz extra sharp cheddar, finely diced or shredded
• 8 pieces bacon, cooked and chopped
• 1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Peel and cut up potatoes into one inch cubes. This doesn't have to be perfect, but make sure all your pieces are around the same size so they cook evenly.
2. Boil potatoes in a large pot for 12 minutes or until potatoes are firm to the bit. Strain and run cold water over them until they are cooled. This will stop them from continuing to cook.
3. In a medium size bowl, mix sour mayo, sour cream, and ranch together until blended.
4. Add in cheese and bacon. Stir until blended.
5. Add in potatoes and mix until all potatoes are covered evenly. Taste and add salt and pepper accordingly.
6. Take a big spoon and start to mash the mixture or mix vigorously. You are looking to mash some of the potatoes to make the sauce a bit thicker, but you still want to keep most of the potatoes. 
7. Put in a container a refrigerate 4 hours or over night.

Tips and Tricks

• To make this recipe lower in fat and calories, use fat-free sour cream, low-fat mayonnaise, reduce fat cheese, and turkey bacon. 
• An easy and fast way to make bacon is by placing on a cookie sheet and baking at 400 degrees for 12 minutes or until desired crispiness.
• For extra flavor, add diced green onions.
• The longer it sits, the better it will taste.