Oh boy, oh boy it only took 6 years to fully get all the secrets to this treasure. My mom has been making this Mac salad for longer than I can remember. My husband adores this salad and when we have it in the house he eats it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. No joke!! Okay maybe not breakfast.
The first time I asked her for the recipe she only gave me bits and pieces. Every time she made it my husband studied her process and he would say oh you put “that” in it as well?! Eventually we acquired the entire recipe.

Let me just say it is not a summer family gathering or holiday potluck without it.

Love you mom

Ingredients:

1 box of elbows Dreamfileds Pasta cooked according to box (this pasta is awesome it is a whole wheat but cooks white) big secret for incorporating whole grains at a picnic

1 small can of black olives, diced

1/4 cup chopped carrots

2 small container of grape tomatoes (cut in half)

6 hard boiled eggs (plus more for decoration)

1/2 cup chopped celery (about to stalks)

1/2 cup yellow onion chopped

2 TB fresh chives

2 TB fresh parsley

6 turns on the pepper mill

4 turns on the salt mill

6 small sweet pickles

1/2 cup light mayo

1/2 cup light miracle whip

1/2 cup light sour cream

2 tsp prepared mustard

4 TB sweet pickle juice

2 TB table sugar

This recipe yields 4 quarts of Mac salad !

1. In a large bowl that fits a sealable lid, mix all liquid ingredients together along with fresh herbs, sugar, salt and pepper.

2. Then add chopped eggs and noodles to the paste, use spatula to fold in the liquid ingredients. Then fold in the chopped vegetables to fully incorporate.

3. Top with decorative slices of hard boil eggs and a few grape tomatoes.

4. Keep cold and on ice bath at the picnic! Don’t forget your food safety !