Sour Cream Potato Salad, Mayonnaise Free, with the taste of a baked potato!

Potato Salad is a classic, American, summertime favorite. There's just one problem with it, it has tons of mayonnaise and gotta say, I'm not a fan and neither are most of my kids. As I was topping baked potatoes the other day it struck me that I could use sour cream instead of the mayo to make a potato salad with. I'm sure people have been doing this for years and years and it's nothing new but it was new to me. That wonderful taste of a baked potato in a salad! What more could I want? Nothing! Plus, the light sour cream I use (Daisy) has half the calories and a quarter of the fat that mayo has which is a bonus in my book!  Since I was going with the whole baked potato idea I combined some of the flavors of regular potato salad and the flavors of a baked potato and this is what I came up with.

Note: Some people may like a super slimy creamy potato salad- if you're one of those people, double the dressing recipe for the same 2 pounds of potatoes to get that effect. We don't like it very creamy but you can make it any way you want. Some people also may want to add 2 chopped up hard boiled eggs to this recipe, if you're into that kind of thing, go for it.

Ingredients- Makes enough for 4-6 servings

• 2 pounds small red potatoes cut into small cubes
• 4 sliced of bacon cooked and crumbled
• 3 green onions (scallions) sliced very thin the white and the tender greens
• 4-5 stalks of celery diced
• 2 TBS chopped Dill or use 1 tsp of the  Dill- Gourmet Garden Herbs in a tube 
• 3/4- 1 cup low fat sour cream
• 2 TBS yellow or spicy brown prepared mustard
• 2 TBS lemon juice or 1 TBS vinegar (optional if you don't want to use relish) I like a little acid in my salad
• 1 tsp salt or to taste 
• 1/4-1/2 tsp pepper to taste
• 3 TBS pickle relish (optional) 

Instructions

1. Cut up the red potatoes. place in a large pan and cover with water. I usually add about a tsp of salt to the water. 
2. Bring the potatoes to a boil over high heat, once they are boiling reduce heat to med and cook until potatoes are tender when stabbed with a fork. You don't want crunchy potatoes or mashed potatoes so  check every 5 mins. It will take about 20-30 minutes. 
3. Pour potatoes into a colander and drain well. If you're in a hurry to serve this and want it cold, you can dump them into a bowl of ice water for 5 mins and that will chill them faster. 
4. While the potatoes cool down or even while they cook make the dressing. 
1. Into a small bowl add the sour cream, mustard, lemon juice/vinegar or pickle relish, salt and pepper. Stir until combined. 
2. Cook and crumble up the bacon- Set aside
3. Chop the green onions, celery and dill*
4. Add the onions, celery and dill to the dressing
5. Once the potatoes are cooled, place them into a large bowl and pour the dressing over the top. Stir until the potatoes are coated. 
6. You can actually serve this warm or chilled. We had it both ways and it was delicious either way. If you like it chilled it will take about 3-4 hours to get it good and cold. This also allows the flavors to meld together. 
7. Just before serving sprinkle the bacon over the top or stir it in if you're like me. 

*Let me share my thoughts on Gourmet Garden Herbs. They come in a tube found by the fresh herbs at the grocery store and you store them in your refrigerator or freezer. Now that all my kids are gone, my husband and I can't use up a ton of fresh herbs before they go bad. It's reality. Even when my kids were all at home, I had trouble using herbs up sometimes or I'd need herbs for a recipe and wouldn't have them. I wish I'd had these. My daughter, Laura, introduced them to me. I now always have the Garlic, Basil and Dill on hand. They last about 3 months in the fridge but I do use them up faster than that. Plus bonus they don't smell up the refrigerator. They are easy and delicious, just squeeze and stir them in!  They have no idea I'm talking about their product but I really do like them. Do I still buy fresh herbs- yes for some things but for everyday cooking these are so easy and taste so good! I love that!