My Favorite Potato Salad

I waded through hundreds of potato salad recipes to see if this recipe was already posted -- no! The potatoes are cooked, then marinated in an italian dressing mixture for extra flavor. Not sure where this came from -- could have been a cookbook I had early in the 1980's.

• Ready In: 3 hrs 10 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 2  lbs potatoes, peeled
• 1⁄4 cup  finely chopped onion
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1⁄8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1⁄2 cup mayonnaise
• 3  tablespoons prepared mustard
• 1⁄2 cup  chopped celery
• 12  slices  cooked bacon
• 1⁄2 cup  sliced black olives (optional)
• 1⁄3 cup parmesan cheese (optional)
• 1⁄2 cup  thinly sliced radish (optional)
• 1⁄2 cup  chopped green pepper (optional)
• 1⁄2 cup peas, cooked (optional)
• 1⁄4 cup pimiento (optional)
• 6  hard-cooked eggs, coarsely chopped
•  paprika, to garnish

• Italian Dressing

• 1⁄2 cup  vegetable oil
• 2  tablespoons lemon juice
• 2  tablespoons white vinegar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon sugar
• 1⁄4 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1⁄4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1⁄4 teaspoon paprika
• 1⁄4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1  pinch dried thyme
• 1  garlic clove, crushed

Directions

1. Boil 1" of salted water in a sauce pot. Add whole potatoes. Boil, reduce heat. Cover pot and cook until tender 30-35 minutes. Drain and cool.
2. Prepare italian dressing mixture. Cut potatoes into cubes or slices. Stir in onion, italian dressing, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
3. Combine mayonnaise, mustard, bacon, celery, and optional ingredients. (This can be done ahead of time and refrigerated).
4. Just before serving, drain potatoes if necessary. Toss potatoes with mayonnaise mixture. Gently stir in eggs. Sprinkle with paprika.