German Potato Salad!

I have been making this recipe for "German Potato Salad" for years.  I just love it!  If you have never had it, it's a completely different dish than regular American potato salad.   You serve it warm and it's seasoned with a tangy bacon flavored dressing, then topped with chopped bacon.  How could that not be good?   This also goes with just about anything.  I have taken a big dish of this to potlucks and I never bring a bite of it back.  Here is what you will need:

6 medium size potatoes, skins left on and sliced in slices

10 slices of bacon, fried and crumbled

1/2 cup diced sweet onion

1 Tbs. minced garlic

2 Tbs. flour

1/4 cup vinegar (apple cider or white both are fine)

1 cup water

1/2 tsp. seasoned salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

3 Tbs. sugar

1 tsp. celery seeds

2 Tbs. fresh parsley chopped (could substitute 1 tsp. dried parsley)

Scrub the potatoes and then slice in thin slices (not paper thin, just thin)  and place in a pot of salted water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook just until for tender...about 20-25 minutes.   When they are done drain in a colander.  If you over cook them or cut them paper thin, they fall apart too much when you dress them.  Leaving the skin on also helps to keep the slices fairly whole.   You can use most types of potato for this.  A Yukon Gold is nice, because of the  nice skin it has on it or a red potato is good.  I just used some russets I had on hand and they are good also.

While potatoes are cooking, fry your bacon up nice and crisp.  Remove to a paper towel lined plate, leaving the drippings in the pan.

Add the diced onions to the bacon drippings and cook just until starting to get soft.  Now add the minced garlic and flour.  Cook for about one minute, moving it all around to make a sort of roux.  Don't cook too long or the garlic might burn, just until the flour and bacon drippings are mix well. 

Add the water, vinegar, seasoned salt, black pepper, sugar and celery seeds.  Bring up to a boil, stirring constantly until it thickens. 

Place the well drained potatoes in a serving bowl and pour the hot dressing over top.  Gently toss to get the dressing distributed.  Sometimes I place half the potatoes in the dish and dress with half the dressing and then repeat so I don't have to toss it too much.  That keeps the potatoes from breaking up too much.  Crumble the bacon and place on top.  Then sprinkle with the fresh parsley.  This smells so good.

Serve immediately!  This is so good to take to cookouts in the Summer, but it's also a good Fall and Winter dish!