Creamy New Potato Salad with Smoked Paprika

I must be getting old. When I was younger, I couldn't tolerate a potato salad that contained "weird crunchy" things in it. Today, I found that those weird crunchies add an interesting dynamic to the texture, nevermind what happens with the flavors.

Creamy New Potato Salad with Smoked Paprika

from Cooking Club of America

SALAD
2 lb. whole tiny new red or white potatoes, unpeeled, halved or quartered if large
2/3 c chopped red bell pepper
2/3 c sliced green onions
1/2 c chopped sweet onion
1/2 c chopped celery

DRESSING
1 c mayonnaise
2/3 c sour cream
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp sugar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Place potatoes in medium saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until just tender; drain. Cool under cold running water. (Potatoes can be prepared to this point 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)


Meanwhile, whisk all dressing ingredients in medium bowl.

Cut potatoes into thin wedges; add to bell peppers, green onions, sweet onions and celery.

Add 2/3 of the dressing; toss gently until combined, adding additional dressing as necessary. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Oh yeah, if you can handle crunchy potato salad, this will be right up your alley. If you like smoked paprika, this "orange" potato salad will rock your world. I loved it. When it came to effort, the greatest difficulty was slicing the cooked potatoes. The lengthiest part of this recipe was waiting for the potatoes to cook and the salad to marinate. Really though, it took less than 30 minutes of effort.

I used all but one cup of the salad dressing and I think even that quantity made the salad a little bit too far on the creamy side. The leftover dressing won't go to waste as it is a fantastic dip for vegetables, say for the remaining celery in the bunch that will otherwise wilt in the fridge.

Cost:

• potatoes: $2.79
• red bell pepper: $0.77
• green onions: $0.33
• sweet onion: $0.78
• celery: $0.79
• mayo: $1.25
• sour cream: $0.83
• garlic: $0.21

Total: $7.75 or $0.65 for each of 12 servings. I'll be honest, my servings weren't limited to a generous half-cup and thus were more along the lines of $1.30 each.

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Daisy Sour Cream

When I was in the store shopping for sour cream, I took my time to read labels.

Believe it or not, not all ingredient statements on sour cream are as simple as this one.

Grade A cultured cream went into my cart.

Available at Stater Bros. in a 16 oz container for $2.49.

Cinnamon Bun Bread

I did this recipe once before but instead of a loaf made muffins. Here's the original recipe in it's original form -- except for the fact that I greased the baking dish/loaf pan with butter instead of oil.

Cinnamon Bun Bread

adapted from Cooking Club of America

FILLING

1/4 c sugar
1/3 c chopped toasted walnuts
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

BREAD

1 3/4 c all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 c sugar
1/4 c unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 c whole milk

ICING

1 c powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 to 2 tbsp whole milk

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8.5x4.5-inch loaf pan with butter.

Combine all filling ingredients in small bowl.

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl.

Beat 1 cup sugar and butter in large bowl at medium speed 3 minutes or until light and fluffy.

Beat in egg and 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla until smooth and well-blended.

At low speed, beat in flour mixture in 3 parts alternately with 3/4 cup milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Spread one-third of the batter in pan; sprinkle with half of the filling. Top with half of the remaining batter, spreading gently. Sprinkle with remaining filling. Spread with remaining batter.

Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until golden brown and skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool completely.

Whisk powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon of the milk in small bowl, adding additional milk for desired consistency.

Drizzle over top of bread, allowing to drip down sides.

Sprinkle with remaining 3 tablespoons walnuts; press into icing.

Let stand until set. (Bread can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and store at room temperature.)


It worked out just like when I made the muffins except the loaf took longer to bake. Compared to the gluten-free loaf, the batter was really thin. Rather than spreading the batter, it was more like pouring. Tastewise, some people said they could tell a difference between this loaf and the gluten-free, but for the most part I don't think there was a noticeable difference.

Cost:

• flour: $0.37  
• sugar: $0.54
• butter: $0.29
• egg: $0.25
• milk: $0.60

Total: $2.05 + $1 SWAG for the nuts and stuff: $3.05.

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Cinnamon Bun Bread, Gluten Free

Since the Snickerdoodle Bread went over well at work and because I have a bunch of gluten-free flour left, I thought I'd whip up a batch of this bread. The muffins I made from the original recipe were delicious!

Cinnamon Bun Bread, Gluten Free

adapted from Cooking Club of America

FILLING

1/4 c sugar
1/3 c chopped toasted walnuts*
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

BREAD
1 3/4 c Bob's Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose flour

1 1/3 tsp Bob's Red Mill xanthan gum
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 c sugar
1/4 c unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 c whole milk

ICING
1 c powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 to 2 tbsp whole milk
3 tbsp chopped toasted walnuts*

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8.5x4.5-inch loaf pan with butter.

Combine all filling ingredients in small bowl.

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl.

Beat 1 cup sugar and butter in large bowl at medium speed 3 minutes or until light and fluffy.

Beat in egg and 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla until smooth and well-blended.

At low speed, beat in flour mixture in 3 parts alternately with 3/4 cup milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Spread one-third of the batter in pan; sprinkle with half of the filling.

Top with half of the remaining batter, spreading gently. Sprinkle with remaining filling.

Spread with remaining batter.

Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until golden brown and skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool completely.

Whisk powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon of the milk in small bowl, adding additional milk for desired consistency.

Drizzle over top of bread, allowing to drip down sides.

Sprinkle with remaining 3 tablespoons walnuts; press into icing. Let stand until set. (Bread can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and store at room temperature.)


Because I'd made a gluten-free quick bread once before, I knew to expect the batter to become pasty. What I didn't expect was how pasty it would be. When doing the flour/milk additions, the batter became so glue-like that it creeped up the beaters toward the mixer itself. I was forced to eject the beaters and finish mixing the batter by hand lest the entire mixer be covered in batter.

As you can imagine, spreading the batter, particularly after the filling was added, required a bit of patience. The filling stuck to the batter when spreading and it was like pages in a old book: easily opened. I realized that spreading the batter along the glass dish and then smearing it across the middle worked better than simply spreading it across the middle of the dish.

Unlike the last time I did a gluten-free quick bread, I used butter to grease the dish and it worked out so much better than greasing with oil. The bottom of the bread didn't burn at all; the color was a nice brown all over.

Cost:

• gluten-free flour: $1.36
• xanthan gum: $0.21
• sugar: $0.54
• butter: $0.29
• egg: $0.25
• milk: $0.60

Total: $3.25 + $1 SWAG for the nuts and stuff: $4.25.

Click for the printable