Fooditka's Crab Boil Potato Salad

It's that time of year again, folks.  Time for the 6th Annual Meyers' Ribfest competition, which is a more than a tradition at this point, it's the pinnacle of meat cookery amongst us NY food geeks.  Every year, it continues to be one of my favorite food events to attend, and last year I was even an esteemed judge.  It was a tough job but someone had to do it!

This year I'm extra excited, as the Meyers' stepped it up a notch again and added a mac n' cheese and a side dish throwdown into the mix.  I'm entering the latter with my crab boil potato salad I'm about to describe. 

The side dish throwdown includes a perfect BBQ pairing and there aren't any restrictions in terms of what you can prepare, but I assure that any ordinary sides won't do.  That's why a lightbulb automatically went off when I saw a little booklet titled "50 Potato Salads" in my July/August issue of the Food Network Magazine. 

All the recipes in it included the most non-traditional, inventive spins on potato salads I've ever seen - ham & cheese potato salad, avocado shrimp potato salad, pico de gallo potato salad, and also a crab boil potato salad, which totally tickled my fancy. Mixing seafood with potatoes, old bay seasoning, corn, celery and even a special secret component set my tastebuds aflutter.

I've tasted it and it's pretty darn yummy, but only time will tell what everyone else thinks.  I'll report back as soon as I return from Ribfest 2011.  In the meantime, here's the recipe:

Crab Boil Potato Salad:
Mix 1/2 cup each corn and chopped celery, 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 tbs lemon juice and 1 1/2 tsp of Old Bay seasoning.  Toss with 2 lbs of boiled, cubed red potatoes and 1 cup crabmeat.

My special component I included was caramelized bacon bits.  It added a hint of smoky sweetness that just makes you think of BBQ. 

Enjoy and do let me know about the interesting 4th of July dishes you prepared.