Good Morning.
I told a vegetarian family member that it was probably rather insensitive to use a big glob of hamburger for a graphic last week so I'm headed his way this morning with vegetables. A potato is a vegetable, right? No asparagus with Hollandaise or spinach souffle for me at the moment. Starch, beautiful, fabulous starch.
We begin with a Potato Gratin with Goat Cheese.
1 cup Half and Half
1 tbsp. flour
1 cup goat cheese, crumbled up
1 cup whole milk
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
2 1/2 pounds potatoes, Yukon Gold recommended
Peel and thinly sliced the potatoes. Combine two tablespoons Half and Half with the flour in a bowl and whisk. Add the rest of the Half and Half, the cheese, milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk all of that together. In an oblong baking dish sprayed with cooking spray, arrange half the potato slices. Pour half of the liquid mixture over them. Repeat with the rest of the slices and milk mixture. Bake at 400 degrees for an hour and ten or fifteen minutes until the potatoes are golden brown. This amount should serve eight people.
Most gratins use Gruyere or Cheddar or a combination, but this one has a nice kick with the goat cheese. Serve with a salad and a glass of wine and you have a meal.
Now we have German Potato Pancakes.
2 large eggs
2 tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
6 potatoes, peeled and shredded
1/2 cup minced white onion
1/4 cup Canola oil
Beat the eggs, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper together in a large bowl. Stir in the potatoes and minced onion. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Working in batches, drop big tablespoonfuls of the potato mixture into the skillet. Use a spatula to flatten them. Cook about three minutes on each side until golden brown and drain on paper towel.
Potato-Carrot Casserole
2 cups peeled, diced potatoes
3/4 cup peeled, sliced carrots
2 slices bacon, optional
1 cup sour cream
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup minced onion
1 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
In a medium saucepan, cook the potatoes and carrots until just tender and drain. Cook the bacon until crisp and set aside. In a large bowl, mash the potatoes and the carrots together. Beat in the eggs, half a cup of Parmesan, the minced onion, and the sour cream. Bake in a casserole, uncovered, at 350 degrees for twenty minutes. Crumble up the bacon and scatter it on top, along with a tablespoon of Parmesan, and bake for fifteen minutes more. Serves four.
When I was three years old, I loved potatoes but did not like carrots as much. The way various adults got me to eat my carrots was to mash them up with the potatoes and presto, chango, I had magical orange potatoes. I think I've relayed that story before but it's kind of a happy memory.
This is another dish that will make a meal when combined with a salad or maybe a green vegetable - and some garlic bread - and some wine or an ice cold beer.
Sweet Potatoes with Blue Cheese and Almonds
4 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 cup sliced almonds
4 tbsp. butter
1 cup blue cheese, your choice, crumbled
Cut the sweet potatoes into bite-sized chunks. Mix them with the olive oil in an oblong baking dish, sprinkle with thyme, and bake them in a 350 degree oven for thirty to forty minutes or until tender. Saute the almonds in butter and set them aside. When the potatoes are done, transfer them to a serving dish and toss with the almonds and crumbled blue cheese.
The sweetness of the potatoes, the sassiness of the blue cheese, and the crunch of the almonds is a great mix of textures and flavors. Try this out next Thanksgiving. Or stick with the dish with
marshmallows. Blue cheese is an acquired taste.
Next up, Mashed Potatoes and Parsnips.
4 large baking potatoes, peeled and sliced into rounds about 1/4 inch thick
3 parsnips, peeled and sliced into rounds about 1/4 inch thick
1/2 stick unsalted butter at room temp
2 tbsp. cream-style horseradish
Dash of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup heavy cream at room temp
Boil the potatoes and parsnips in a large saucepan until tender and drain. Put them in a bowl with the butter, horseradish, and seasonings. Using a potato masher or an electric mixer, mash until smooth. Add the cream and blend well, adding more cream if needed. Transfer to a serving dish for four or five people.
I grew up on parsnips because they were my father's favorite vegetable. His other choice was Harvard beets but it surely was not mine. Once again mixing potatoes with a vegetable worked well then and works well today. I recall a lovely story when my husband and I were reconnecting but hadn't yet actually seen each other in person. He wanted to know if I was still a brunette and I told him yes with a bit of help. "So how's the rest of you?" he wanted to know, to which I replied, "I like a fair amount of starch in my diet," to which he replied that he did too but he didn't like mashed potatoes. That almost ended things right then and there, but I decided to
ignore this terrible character flaw and forge ahead, and he decided to extend the same courtesies to me.
Finally, we suggest Spinach and Potato Frittata.
2 tbsp. olive oil
6 small red potatoes, peeled and sliced
1 cup fresh baby spinach, stems removed and torn
2 tbsp. sliced green onions
1 tsp. minced garlic
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
6 large eggs
1/3 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Heat the oil in a skillet. Place the potatoes in the pan, cover, and cook for about ten minutes until tender but still firm and not mushy. Mix in the spinach, onions, and garlic and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes until the spinach is wilted. In a bowl, beat the eggs and milk together. Pour into the skillet over the vegetables, sprinkle with cheese, and reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan and cook for six or seven minutes until the eggs are firm.
This is a great breakfast with or without meat but probably needing, say, a nice big blueberry muffin and good coffee.
Suffice to say you will not lose weight eating any of the above dishes. You won't lose any with a
big steak or a pork chop either and in my world, I usually combine the two to the great chagrin of my physician.
Best regards,
Elisabeth
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