Category: Starch – Potatoes

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Margie makes the world’s greatest garlic mashed potatoes.  Just ask her husband and daughter.  And they reheat.

Ingredients:

  • 3 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, unpeeled, cubed
  • 2 cloves raw garlic
  • 12 cloves roasted garlic (see below)
  • 1/2 sour cream
  • ½ c butter, softened (one stick)
  • milk or cream, if needed
  • salt and white pepper

Directions:

  1. Boil unpeeled potatoes and raw garlic in salted water until tender.
  2. Drain.
  3. Smash roasted garlic with the side of a large knife.
  4. Return potatoes to potato pan and heat until dry and a film forms on the bottom of the pan.
  5. Mash by hand with roasted garlic, sour cream, butter, and salt and white pepper.
  6. Add cream or milk to adjust consistency.
  7. Place in casserole and reheat (microwave or oven) when ready to serve.

Serves: 10 – 12

Source: The daughter, Margie

Roasted Garlic: How to Batch Roast and Freeze Garlic

Ingredients:

  • Garlic cloves, peeled (You know, the big bag/jar from Costco)
  • Olive oil
  • Salt & Pepper

Directions:

  1. In a large bowl, toss garlic with a generous amount of olive oil – enough to coat each clove.
  2. Spread garlic cloves onto a foil lined baking sheet in a single layer.
  3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  4. Cover the baking sheet with foil, making sure you have a good seal over top and around the edges.
  5. Bake at 375 degrees for one hour.
  6. Remove from oven cool (without removing foil) for about 15 minutes.
  7. Remove foil and allow to cool to room temperature.
  8. Place in a freezer bag and freezing flat. (Make sure to taste test some on a toasted baguette first though!)
  9. When you’re ready to use, just break off as much as you want to thaw, then return the rest to the freezer.

Source: Mama Loves Food!

Gratin Dauphinoise

Incredibly good potatoes! Personally, I go for the cheese too. Kind of like “Gilding the lily”.

Ingredients:

  • 3 ½ lbs potatoes, preferably Yukon Gold
  • 5c milk
  • 5 garlic cloves, crushed, and finely chopped (2 teaspoons)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 c heavy cream

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 3750°.
  2. Peel the potatoes and slice them 1/8 inch thick, by hand, with a vegetable slicer, or with the slicing blade of a food processor. Do not wash the slices.
  3. Combine the potato slices, milk, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring gently to separate the slices and prevent the mixture from scorching. It will thicken as it reaches a boil.
  4. Pour the potato mixture into a 12-cup gratin dish or 9×13 pan, and pour the cream on top.
  5. Place the dish on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until most of the liquid is absorbed and the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.
  6. Let the potatoes rest for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.

Serves: 10 – 12

Source: Jacques Pepin, September 11, 2011 – Essential Pepin

“This dish is my version of a classic from my youth. My mother always makes her gratin exclusively with milk and tops the potatoes with grated Gruyère cheese before baking. Sometimes I use grated cheese in this dish, but other times I don’t, depending on my mood.”

Comment: It is important not to rinse or soak the potatoes after slicing them. Rinsing would remove most of the starch, which is needed to thicken the mixture as it comes to a boil on top of the stove.

German Potato Salad (a la Scott’s Grandmother)

This recipe came to us from our friend Scott Wolfgang, via his aunt. The German ladies would all contribute dishes to church socials, and this one was his grandmother’s specialty. We made it for the Twelfth Night party that he and Jackie hosted, and consensus was it was pretty darned good.

Ingredients

Salad:

  • 10 medium potatoes, cooked, peeled, sliced.
  • 4 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
  • 4 stalks celery, chopped
  • 2 small onions, chopped

Dressing (see note below):

  • 4 slices bacon, diced
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 2 tbsp corn starch
  • ½-¾ cup sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • 1/3 cup vinegar

Directions

  1. Combine potatoes, eggs, celery, onion in a large bowl; mix gently.
  2. Cook bacon in skillet until crisp.
  3. Combine water and corn starch, mixing well
  4. Stir corn starch mixture, sugar, salt, pepper, and vinegar into skillet.
  5. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick.
  6. Pour dressing over potato mixture; mix gently.
  7. Cover and chill overnight.
  8. Spoon into a dutch oven.
  9. Cook over low heat until thoroughly heated. Serve immediately.

Servings: 12

Notes:

  • A note on the handwritten recipe suggests doubling the dressing recipe.
  • One question that came up during cooking was how much of the bacon fat to retain in the dressing. We drained all but about a tablespoon.

Potato and Wild Mushroom Cake

This cakes can be done 6 hours ahead and then reheated before cutting.

Ingredients:

  • 3.5 oz dried porcine mushrooms
  • 10 Tbs butter (divided)
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 2.2 lbs russet potatoes

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Place the mushrooms in a bowl with 2 cups boiling water.
  3. Let sit for at least 15 minutes until softened.
  4. Drain off the liquid and squeeze out excess liquid.
  5. Cook garlic in 2 Tbs butter about 1 minute.
  6. Add porcinis and cook about 5 to 10 minutes.
  7. Butter two 8-9 inch ovenproof pan. (cake pan works, or spring free pan)
  8. Peel potatoes and cut in 1/8 inch slices – do not rinse.
  9. Layer half the potatoes in the pans, overlapping slightly.
  10. Top with the porcine.
  11. Dot with 4 Tbs butter.
  12. Top with the remaining potatoes and butter.
  13. Cover with foil and bake 45 minutes, until potatoes are soft.
  14. You can uncover the last 10 minutes to make them crispier.
  15. Remove from the oven and run a knife around the edge to loosen.
  16. Let sit at least 5 minutes.
  17. Invert onto a baking pan.
  18. Reheat 10-15 mins in 350° oven.
  19. Cut each cake into 6 wedges to serve.

Serves: 10 – 12

Source:  bbcgoodfood.com

Idaho Nachos with Granite City Dip

Not your abuela’s nachos!

Nachos Ingredients:

  • 1 bag waffle cut fries
  • 2 c shredded cheddar cheese
  • 6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
  • 2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
  • 3-4 green onion, sliced.
  • Granite City Dip

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400°.
  2. Spray large baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
  3. Layer the fries onto the baking sheet.
  4. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the fries begin to turn golden brown.
  5. Remove from oven.
  6. Place on oven proof platter or tray.
  7. Top with cheese, bacon, tomatoes, and green onions.
  8. Place in 400° oven for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
  9. Serve on a tray with bowl of sauce.

Granite City Dip Ingredients:

  • 1 c sour cream
  • 2 Tab mayonnaise
  • 2 Tab dried parsley
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • ½ tsp onion powder
  • ½ tsp curry powder
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl,.
  2. Stir until incorporated.
  3. Pour sauce into serving bowl and place on nachos tray

Serves: 10-12

Source: A Nickel’s Worth of News, Copycat Recipe by Mrs. Nick with reference to a post by Granite City Food and Brewery. (which has restaurants in Nebraska, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and other states, but not Idaho!)

Mashed Potato Casserole with Smoked Gouda and Bacon

Really good with pork roast or chicken, or anything that is not going to make gravy.

Ingredients:

  • 6 slices thick cut smoked bacon
  • 3 large green onions, white and green parts, finely chopped
  • 3 lbs russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1½ inch cubes
  • ¾ c sour cream
  • 1/3 c whole milk
  • ¼ c (½ stick) butter
  • 2 c (about 8 oz) coarsely grated smoked Gouda, divided

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°
  2. Butter 9 x 13 baking dish.
  3. Cook bacon until golden brown and crisp.
  4. Transfer to paper towel to drain.
  5. Chop bacon, place in bowl with onions.
  6. Place potatoes in large pot, add enough cold water to cover, sprinkle with salt, cover (slightly ajar), boil until tender — about 15 – 20 minutes.
  7. Drain well, return to pot and cook over low heat, stirring often, until potatoes are dry and light film forms on the bottom of pot — about 2 minutes.
  8. Add sour cream, milk, butter.
  9. Using masher, mash until almost smooth.
  10. Stir in 1½ c Gouda and 1 c bacon mixture.
  11. Season with salt/pepper.
  12. Spread mixture in baking dish.
  13. Sprinkle remaining Gouda over.
  14. Bake until cheese melts and edges are bubbling – about 40 minutes.
  15. Sprinkle with reserved bacon mixture.

Serves: 6-8

Notes: I used red potatoes and did not peel them.

    Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Orange Ginger Butter

    Margie made these last Thanksgiving.  I’m not a yam/sweet potato kind of guy, but those who like this sort of thing will definitely find it the sort of thing they like!

    Ingredients:

    3 large red skin “sweet potatoes” (yams)
    2 tbsp. Olive Oil
    Kosher Salt

    ½ c Butter
    ¼ c Orange Juice
    ¼ c Marmalade
    2 tbsp. Candied Ginger – diced

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat oven to 375F
    2. Slice yams into 1 inch cubes. Place in shallow roasting pan and toss with Olive Oil. Sprinkle with salt. Roast until brown and tender (~20-30 minutes).
    3. While the yams roast, cook butter, orange juice, marmalade, and ginger in microwave for 30-60 seconds, or until melted and bubbly.
    4. Place cooked yams in medium casserole dish and drizzle with butter mixture. Serve immediately or cover dish and keep warm in oven.