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Jennifer Huard's weekly column appears in
the Rio Rancho Journal section of the
Albuquerque Journal newspaper every
Thursday.Email her at
jhuard@abqjournal.com
Summertime, the 4th and
the Favorite Potato Salad (6/26/06) |
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Summer is here and day camps are in full swing across Rio Rancho. And
that means another 4th of July is coming at you like a Mack
truck in your rear view mirror. If you don’t move with it, it will
flatten you like a cheese pizza.
Summer to me brings back some favorite memories. Memories of sitting
on a glider swing for what seemed like hours on end. Lazy summer days
seemed to have a different light too or I guess I was just shorter
then. I could tell what time of day it was just by the way the
sunlight reflected on the lake. Along with summer comes the nostalgia
of your own childhood summers and of course, the annual family reunion
Family reunions are not just for seeing the same relatives one year
older and 5 pounds heavier. Family reunions are a chance to try the
latest variation on that summer staple known as homemade potato salad.
We all have our own secret ingredients that make our potato salad the
best. One secret ingredient is Champagne Dijon mustard for the
kitten-heel crowd; sophisticated in appearance but has been known on
occasion to have an out of control after taste. Next, there is the
course horseradish and chive mustard for the Birkenstock bunch. This
outdoorsy variety tends to be a little on the gritty side and carry a
strong odor that when left out too long develops an unseemly stench.
Lastly, we have good old French’s “Yellow Mustard” for the Walgreens’
$3 rubber flip-flop type (to which my husband gleefully belongs). A
traditional flavor you can always count on. This one is not too fancy
yet can hold its own next to the best imitation crab salad or sweet
ambrosia.
In my family, grandmother’s secret potato salad recipe called for (shh,
it’s still a secret outside my immediate family) cottage cheese. A
unique combination of red potatoes, equal amounts of small curd
cottage cheese and mayonnaise, green onions and Lawry’s Season Salt to
taste. That would have put her in the Red Ball Jet deck shoe category.
Mimi’s potato salad screams summer time, rock painting and more
mosquito bites than the big bottle of calamine lotion could handle.
This was and still is one of my favorite recipes.
For those of us who will be in town over the 4th, The City
of Rio Rancho is putting on a fantastic 4th of July
celebration next Tuesday at Loma Colorado Park next to Rio Rancho High
School. You can actually get a head start on all the fun and
activities with a good old fashioned carnival. Starting tomorrow
through July 4th beat the crowds and take the kids for snow
cones, cotton candy and of course, the rides!
In teaming up with radio station Big I 107.9, the festivities look to
be bigger and better than ever for the 4th. The musical entertainment
begins and 5:00pm and includes some of country music’s lesser known
hot acts. They may not be in the Brooks and Dunn category, but they
will be soon. Rockie Lynne kicks off the show at 5pm. John Corbett
(who also has a successful television career) hits the stage at 6pm,
get your hot dogs and spread that blanket out. Megan Mullins is up at
7pm with lead act Cross Canadian Ragweed taking the stage at 8:25pm.
The musical festivities are all free. Parking will be available at Rio
Rancho High School for a $3.00 donation to the Rio Rancho Booster
Club.
If you are planning on staying home, just turn your patio chairs in
the direction of the RRHS at 10pm and tune your radio to 107.9 FM. The
radio station is synchronizing the music to the firework display. Miss
the crowd and still enjoy the show! Have a safe 4th of
July. And if you have a killer secret recipe for potato salad, I’d
love to hear from you. |
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