One Potato, Two Potato Salad with Garlic-Dijon Aioli

I haven't posted in about six weeks, mostly because for the last six weeks the hubby and I have been trying low FODMAP for a happy tummy, which involves cooking gluten and dairy free, among other things. I've been floundering a bit mealwise; we still don't have an easy and convenient standby with the "safe" foods my husband can eat so every day is a bit of an experiment. I'm slowly discovering another world of marvelous gluten-free blogs that inspire me to get back in the kitchen and confidently know I can make old favorites and discover new dishes with a few tweaks and growing pains along the way. We're still not sure if this will be a permanent change for us, but right now are just grateful for another step towards wellness.

This particular potato salad's greatest recommendation has nothing to do with being low-FODMAP or gluten-free as it's all about what it's got going for it and not what it's missing. What it's got going for it is buttery Yukon Gold and sweet potatoes married beautiful in an unctuous aioli punctuated by the sharpness of good Dijon and pungent garlic. Yukon Golds are probably my favorite potato variety similar to red or new potatoes but with a wonderful buttery taste and a creamy texture. They are excellent mashing potatoes for that reason because you don't need to add nearly as much butter as usual and just a tiny bit of cream or half and half coaxes them into creamy whipped goodness. While sweet potatoes need no introduction this salad is just one more reason to love them any time of day.

Two things I always do when making potato salad: Boil the potatoes in their skins and dress them while they're warm. If you're the type that thinks ahead you will quickly realize this involves peeling and dicing boiling hot potatoes. I use a potholder and a combination of a peeler and butter knife because the skin tends to peel off fairly easily of the hot potatoes. If you're going to skip one of these steps, go ahead and peel (but don't dice) your potatoes while they're raw. There will be much more of a flavor difference if you dress cold potatoes than if you boil peeled potatoes. Make sense? ;)

The recipe below makes a good amount of dressing; that's so you can add it in dollops to the potato salad to get it as creamy as you would like and save the rest to slather on boiled asparagus, hard-boiled eggs, and artichokes. 

One Potato, Two Potato Salad

• 2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes (I used 5 medium sized Yukon Gold potatoes)
• 2 lbs. sweet potatoes (I used two large sweet potatoes)

 Garlic-Dijon Aioli (adapted from Creamy Garlic Vinaigrette, New Best Recipe)

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 heaping tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 small garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pepper to taste

1. If the sweet potatoes are very large, cut them in halves or quarters so that they are roughly the same size as the Yukon Golds. Place the potatoes in a large pot with water to cover. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and boil the potatoes until they are just cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.
2. While the potatoes are cooking, whisk together the ingredients for the aioli. I made the aioli in my nearly-empty Dijon mustard jar, which allowed me to just shake to my heart's content until combined. You're done when everything emulsifies and is one luscious mass with a much thinner consistency than mayonnaise, similar to natural yogurt. A food processor or hand blender is also great for this task.

3. Drain the potatoes and immediately peel and dice them, transferring them to a large bowl as you go and covering the potatoes with a dish towel as you go to keep them warm. I find it makes a huge difference to dress the potatoes while they're still warm, especially since we boiled them in their jackets and so they are completely unseasoned at this point.

Holding the potatoes in a potholder in order to peel while warm.

Ready to dice!

This is how I dice, cutting the potatoes first into lengthwise planks, lengthwise again 90 degrees into french fries, then finally crosswise into dice.

4. Toss the diced potatoes gently with the aioli to taste. Start with 1/4 cup and if you like your dressing a little creamier add a bit more dressing 1 tablespoon at a time.

This is just as easily at home besides a roast chicken for dinner as it is all by itself for a light lunch or even breakfast.