Al's Pea Salad

[kendall]

My man's father Al, asked me to recreate a pea salad recipe for the Christmas season in 2006, which his old friend, Novi, had whipped up for many years, and was now too old to continue her holiday traditon. Al didn't know all of the ingredients, so I went on some 1950's recipe sites and came up with this pea salad recipe. It was so good it that it made it to 3 of my holiday parties. The second one was for my best friend's party, of which I unknowingly bought some maple-smoked bacon ends and pieces, and threw the packaging away, thinking it was just plain ol bacon. I was extremely pleasantly surprised with the maple bacon taste. The 3rd one I made was for my step-daughter's New Year's party. Novi's pea salad, at that party, converted one young man who never ate veggies, and several young people who said they never knew peas could be so good. I called that store's distribution warehouse to find out what company distributed the maple-smoked bacon I had purchased, and they said they didn't know who they received it from, but it could have been Ragland's brand, which is not on their usual order. So I figure I have come up with the perfect pea salad, much like David Allen Coe's perfect country and western song.

Al's Pea Salad

Salad:

2 10 oz packages frozen peas

8 oz sharp cheddar cheese-1/4 inch cube

1 3.8 dry weight can of sliced black olives

1 small onion-fine chop

4 oz pimentos/or one red bell pepper-fine chop

1/2 lb maple-smoked bacon-crispy fry-minced

4 hard boiled eggs-fine chop

Dressing:

1 Part sour cream/1 part mayo/1 T milk to equal 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups, depending on how creamy you prefer it.

1/2 t salt

1/2 T pepper