Donna Hay's Sweet Potato, Leek and Sage Gratin

Here's my second Donna Hay recipe and it's a perfect potato dish for the holidays, although my photograph below doesn't look very Christmasy. I gave this a test run ahead of the holidays and loved the dish so much, I intend to make it for Christmas Eve dinner.
Use your mandolin to slice the potatoes...if you don't have one, slice thinly. I used fontina as it's such a nice melting cheese. Wonder how gruyere would taste?

Sweet Potato, Leek and Sage Gratin
Donna Hay, Issue 60

Ingredients:

40g (about 3 tablespoons) butter

4 leeks, cleaned and sliced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

sea salt and cracked black pepper

800g ( about 1 3/4 pounds; I used 2 large.) sweet potato, peeled and thinly sliced

800g (about 1 3/4 pounds; I used 2 large Idahos, they worked fine.) Desiree (waxy) potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup sage leaves, torn in pieces

300g fontina or cheddar cheese, sliced

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Melt the butter in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the leek and garlic, salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes or until softened. Place the sweet potato, potato, oil and salt and pepper in a bowl and toss to combine. Layer the sweet potato, potato, leek, sage and cheese in a 10 by 13-inch baking pan lined with non-stick baking paper, finishing with a layer of cheese. Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for a further 30 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Serves 6-8.

Roast Potatoes and Jerusalem Artichokes With Lemon and Sage

I love my Ottolenghi cookbooks. They're filled with absolutely mouth-watering recipes, each and every one you want to make immediately when you see it and the photography is smashing and so creative. 

So, while drooling my way through the hundreth reading of my first Ottolenghi, I came across an intriguing recipe for Roast Potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes with lemon and sage. Jerusalem artichokes? I knew the name, had seen them on menus, but didn't know much else, so I Googled it. Not an artichoke at all and commonly known as sunchoke. So my next trip to Whole Foods, I searched for sunchokes and found a bin of them. Ugly, knobby little guys they were too. If I had not been wearing my glasses I would have thought this was fresh ginger. 

Here's the good news: They taste great...I thought much like an artichoke heart, no matter what everyone says. They are prolific and easy to grow. They are highly nutritious with lots of anti-oxidants. They will keep in the refrigerator for several weeks or in a root cellar all winter.

Sounds good, right? Well, here's the thing..... 

Jerusalem artichokes are a pain to clean. (Mine were. Some are not and can just be washed and sliced.) They must be brushed and scrubbed under running water to remove the sand and dirt that hides among the knobs and folds and while most recipes state they do not need to be peeled, I peeled them as much as I could. 

And one more thing.....I shall put this as delicately as I can by merely saying sunchokes can cause flatulence in some people. Apparently not everybody is similarly cursed, but I regret to say that I am. I was so taken with the taste of sunchokes that I probably ate 4 of them all by myself. Perhaps I was punished for being such a glutton?

Why flatulence? Because sunchokes contain something called inulin. Inulin is a carbohydrate belonging to a class of compounds known as fructans. If you want to get into the chemistry, go HERE.
Chocolate and Zucchini has a lovely recipe for sunchoke soup and some excellent suggestions on how to avoid such problems. 
Simply, she suggests buying the freshest possible sunchokes (by the look of them I would venture to say mine were not) and then parboiling them with a bit of baking soda. (I read this bit too late to do that.)

Did I frighten you off? I hope not, 'cause this dish is mainly about potatoes. My advice is this: eat sunchokes in small portions until you know your own tolerance. Some people are not affected at all and it would be a shame to miss out on this delicious tuber. Moderation is key. One would think I'd have learned that lesson years ago. 

Really, this dish is a delicious combination of which sunchokes are only a small part. The potatoes and sunchokes are roasted in the oven until they are brown and crunchy. Definitely a great side dish with a lovely piece of steak.

Roast Potatoes and Jerusalem Artichokes With Lemon and Sage
From Ottolenghi, The Cookbook

Ingredients:
1 pound small potatoes
1 pound Jerusalem artichokes
4 garlic cloves, crushed
50 ml olive oil
2 tablespoons roughly chopped sage
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 cup kalamata olives, pitted
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Method:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash the potatoes well, put them in a large saucepan, and cover with plenty of cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer 20 minutes, until half cooked. Drain, cool slightly, and then cut each potato in half lengthwise. Put them on a baking sheet.

Scrub the Jerusalem artichokes, peel if necessary, cut them into slices ¼-inch thick, and add to the potatoes. Add the garlic, olive oil, sage, salt, and pepper. Mix everything with your hands and put in the oven.

Meanwhile, thinly slice the lemon and remove the seeds. After the vegetables have been roasting for about 30 minutes, add the slices of lemon, stir with a wooden spoon, and return to the oven for 20 minutes more. Now add the cherry tomatoes and olives, stir well again, and cook for a further 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and stir in some of the chopped parsley. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with the remaining parsley.

Serves 4-6

Salsa Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Avocado Crema

There's nothing not to like about this great supper! It's easy, it's fast and it's healthy. First you have a yummy sweet potato, topped with your favorite corn and black bean salsa (homemade or store-bought), topped with melted cheese, served with a great avocado crema. The crema is rich, cool and creamy (I made mine with a hand mixer because I wanted a little texture), making a nice foil for the hot and somewhat spicy potato. A winner of a supper for your family. 

Salsa Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Avocado Crema
From Averie Cooks

Ingredients:
(This recipe is for one potato, serving two people. There was plenty of crema for more)

Sweet Potato and Filling
1 medium/large sweet potato
heaping 1/2 cup corn and black bean salsa ( a nice chunky one)
salt and pepper, optional and to taste
1/3 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend 

Avocado Crema
1 medium ripe Hass avocado, peeled and pitted
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons lime juice 
pinch salt, to taste
water, if necessary
cilantro, optional for garnishing

Method:
Pierce potato with fork a few times before cooking in microwave on high power for about 7 minutes (medium) to 10 minutes (large). (It took mine 15 minutes) Cook until fork tender and done. 
Preheat oven to broiler setting.
Remove potato from microwave and slice in half lengthwise on a cutting board.
Hollow out a center column of each half with a spoon. Don't actually remove any flesh, but pile/push it around the edges of the potato so the center is a bit shallower to make room for the filling.
Place the halves on a non-stick baking sheet.
Evenly divide the corn and bean salsa between each potato half.
Add salt and pepper to taste. Top each potato half with cheese.
Broil for about 3 minutes, or just until cheese begins to melt and is bubbly. Remove from oven and set aside to cool momentarily. While potatoes cool, make the avocado crema.

Avocado Crema
In a food processor or blender (I used a hand mixer because I wanted the crema to have some texture), combine most of the avocado (reserving a small portion of chunks or slices for garnishing if you want), sour cream, lime juice, salt to taste, and blend until smooth and creamy. If mixture is thick, add water 1 tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Drizzle avocado creama over potato.
Garnish with reserved avocado and optional cilantro. Potatoes are best enjoyed warm and fresh. 

Potato Galette with Sautéed Asparagus and Fresh Peas

How perfect for a quick dinner! Just a simple potato pancake but topped with fresh veggies from your garden or farmer's market. 

Potato Galette with Sautéed Asparagus and Fresh Peas
From Mimi at her Manger blog

Ingredients:
4 large potatoes 
3 small shallots, finely chopped
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
4 tbsp plain flour
Coarse sea-salt and freshly ground black pepper
A bunch of asparagus (3-4 per person) (I used white asparagus)
1 cup fresh peas, shelled
A small piece of Cheddar cheese 
A dash of piment d’espelette
A few sprigs of fresh chives
A dash of freshly grated lemon zest
A tablespoon of crème fraîche per serving
Butter & olive oil for frying

Method:
Peel the potatoes and grate them into a large bowl. Add the chopped shallots, nutmeg, egg and egg yolk, flour. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well with a wooden spoon.
Heat the 2 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in a sauté pan until sizzling hot, scoop about a tablespoon or one and a half tablespoon (depending on how large you want the galettes), flatten them with a spatula. Cook them on both sides until golden. Grate a teaspoon of cheddar cheese on top. Place them on kitchen paper to absorb excess oil.
Peel the asparagus and cut off the stiff ends. Slice the asparagus in half. Sauté the asparagus in a pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter, stiring gently. After 5 minutes add the peas. Season with salt & pepper. Add a few tablespoons of water and continue to cook until absorbed and asparagus and peas are tender yet al dente.
To serve:
Place the potato galette on a serving plate, place the asparagus and peas on top, add a tablespoon of crème fraîche, season with salt & pepper and a dash of piment d’espelette. Sprinkle with lemon zest and finely chopped chives.
Makes about 8 galettes, depending on size.

Irish Boxty

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

What's boxty you ask? Traditional Irish potato cakes. It's said the recipe dates back to the days of the Irish famine, presumably to make potatoes stretch further. After searching online for boxty recipes, the two main ingredients are always leftover mashed potatoes and grated raw potatoes and the patties are usually fried in butter. With even more butter slathered on top of the hot patty! (I skipped that part!)

While boxty used to be considered a peasant dish, it is now common to see it on menus everywhere in Ireland.

I'm joining Kathleen  at Cuisine Kathleen, for her 6th Annual St. Patrick's Day event. Please stop by and see what everyone's doing!

There is a little ditty that accompanies the recipe....

Boxty on the griddle,
Boxty in the pan,
If you can't make boxty,
You'll never get your man.

Irish Boxty

Ingredients:

1 cup raw, grated potatoes

1 cup leftover mashed potatoes

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

dash pepper

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup (about) milk to mix

Butter for frying

Applesauce for serving

Method:

Place the grated raw potatoes in a clean cloth and twist to remove excess moisture. Whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder. Combine flour mixture into raw potatoes, mashed potatoes, and eggs. Add milk until you have a thick batter. Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat and add butter or oil. Drop potato batter by the tablespoon into the hot pan.

Brown on both sides (about 4 minutes per side).

Butter each boxty and serve hot with applesauce or sour cream.

Yield: about 4 servings

Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves

Whoa! Brace yourselves....a healthy recipe coming your way today! I saw this in Martha Stewart Living magazine and tore it out. It's a nice side dish, good flavor, nicely flavored with curry and the only complaint I had was it was just a little bit dry. Have you made it? Would love to hear about your results. Perhaps I was just expecting this to be more like a moist meatloaf and it's supposed to be on the dry side. What do you think?

Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves
From Martha Stewart Living, September 2013

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for loaf pans 
2/3 cup white rice, preferably short-grain 
2/3 cup green lentils, picked over and rinsed 
1 sweet onion, such as Vidalia, finely chopped (about 2 cups) 
2 1/2 teaspoons curry powder 
2 cups water 
1 can (15.5 ounces) black beans, drained, rinsed, and mashed 
2 medium carrots, grated (about 1 cup lightly packed) 
3/4 cup tomato puree 
1 cup lightly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped 
2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt 
2 large eggs, lightly beaten 

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 3 mini loaf pans or 1 standard loaf pan with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang; brush with oil. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add rice, lentils, onion, and curry powder. Cook, stirring, until fragrant and toasted, about 3 minutes. Add water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until water is absorbed and lentils and rice are al dente, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat.


Stir in remaining ingredients. Transfer to pans; bake until tops are golden brown and firm, about 1 hour. Let cool at least 10 minutes.

Ina First Fridays: Chive Risotto Cakes with Scallops

Welcome again to an Ina First Friday! 
My son requested risotto cakes when he was visiting a while back and it rather took me by surprise as I rarely make risotto to begin with. (And you don't have to with this recipe either, merely cook the rice.) Fortunately, I had seen Ina make these risotto cakes so had the perfect recipe for him. 
When I was a child, my mother used to take leftover rice, form it into patties and fry them simply in butter with salt and pepper. Nice and crunchy and buttery. They were good, but really, the flavor combo in Ina's recipe can't help but be way tastier. (Sorry, Mom.)   The chives, fontina and yogurt make for a delicious risotto cake; I served it with scallops, but it's perfect as a supper all on its own with just a veggie on the side. Fontina is such a lovely cheese and melts beautifully.
(Chef's note: mixture requires refrigeration for 2 hours or overnight.)

Ina's Chive Risotto Cakes
2008, Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics

Ingredients:
Kosher salt
1 cup uncooked Arborio rice
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
2 extra-large eggs
3 tablespoons minced fresh chives
1 1/2 cups grated Italian fontina cheese (5 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup panko
Good olive oil

Method:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 1/2 tablespoon salt and the Arborio rice. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. The grains of rice will be quite soft. Drain the rice in a sieve and run under cold water until cool. Drain well.

Whisk together the yogurt, eggs, chives, fontina, salt to taste and the pepper in a medium bowl. Add the cooled rice and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight, until firm.

Spread the panko in a shallow dish. Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Form balls of the rice mixture using a standard ice-cream scoop or a large spoon. Pat the balls into patties 3 inches in diameter and 3/4-inch thick. Place 4 to 6 patties in the panko, turning once to coat. Place the patties in the hot oil and cook, turning once, for about 3 minutes on each side until the risotto cakes are crisp and nicely browned. Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and keep warm in a 250 degree oven for up to 30 minutes. Continue cooking in batches, adding oil as necessary, until all the cakes are fried. Arrange on a serving platter and serve hot.

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Ina Fridays participants:

 Alyce @ More Time at the Table

Ansh @  Spice Roots  

Bhavna @ Just a Girl From AAmchi Mumbai..

Chaya @  Bizzy Bakes

Linda,  @ Tumbleweed Contessa

Mary @ The Egg Farm

Minnie @ The Lady 8 Home

Mireya @ My Healthy Eating Habits

Patti @ Comfy Cuisine

Peggy@ Pantry Revisited

Rocky Mountain Woman @ Rocky Mountain Woman

Shiloh @ Cheese with Noodles

Veronica@ My Catholic Kitchen

Potato Gratin with Rosemary Crust

Are you mulling over lists for holiday dinners yet? My biggest quandary has always been side dishes...veggies or potatoes...finding something a little different. My family demands mashed potatoes, so year after year they grace the table. Any inventiveness and adventure rested with vegetables or sweet potato dishes; they didn't mind variety there, just as long as I didn't mess with their turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy. 
Now that everyone's older, when I'm doing the cooking at Thanksgiving, I don't even necessarily make a whole turkey, but try things like Ina's stuffed turkey breast  or the Two Fat Ladies chicken. Anything goes. 
For potato-type sides, Ina's Rosemary Roasted Potatoes  were a big hit one year but this year you really must try this gem of a recipe I found recently: Potato Gratin with Rosemary Crust. There is a double crust with rosemary and Gruyere stuffed in between. Very unusual. While the bottom photo looks like this gratin has an overabundance of crust, you can see by the first photo there's not as much crust as you would expect.
Let me sum it up: pretty layers of potatoes, cheesy and delicious. Go ahead, make it for your family...they'll love it. 

Potato Gratin with Rosemary Crust
From Southern Living, December 2010

Ingredients:

1   (14.1-oz.) package refrigerated pie crusts  
1 tablespoon  chopped fresh rosemary  
1/4 teaspoon  freshly ground pepper  
2 cups  (8 oz.) shredded Gruyère cheese, divided  
1 1/2 pounds  Yukon gold potatoes  
1 1/2 pounds  sweet potatoes  
1 teaspoon  kosher salt  
2/3 cup  heavy cream  
1   garlic clove, minced  
  Garnish: fresh rosemary sprigs  

Method: 
Preheat oven to 450°. 
Unroll pie crusts on a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle rosemary, pepper, and 1/2 cup cheese over 1 pie crust; top with remaining pie crust. Roll into a 13-inch circle. Press on bottom and up sides of a 9-inch springform pan; fold edges under. Chill.
Meanwhile, peel and thinly slice Yukon gold and sweet potatoes. I used a mandolin to get thin, even slices.
Layer one-third each of Yukon gold potatoes, sweet potatoes, and salt in prepared crust. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Repeat layers twice, pressing layers down slightly to fit.

Microwave cream and garlic in a 1-cup microwave-safe measuring cup at HIGH 45 seconds; pour over potato layers in pan. Sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. I was afraid it would leak, so I covered a baking sheet with foil and then placed the springform pan on top. Then cover with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
Bake at 450° for 1 hour. (Yes, that says 450) Uncover and bake 25 minutes longer or until potatoes are done and crust is brown. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes. Carefully transfer to a serving plate, and remove sides of pan. If desired, carefully slide gratin off bottom of pan using a long knife or narrow spatula. Garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Asian Fried Rice

During our Air Force years in the 50's, we became friends with a Chinese couple. She taught me lots of quick, easy tricks to cooking Chinese....and this fried rice was one of the recipes. Although I don't know if you can call it a recipe exactly, it's more of a guide. Use what's in your fridge. If you have leftover chicken or shrimp, use it. Ditto with vegetables. I remember she often started with chopped bacon and used the bacon grease to scramble her eggs; she also used onion instead of shallot.....I just prefer the milder taste of shallot. Your choice. Edamame was not available back then (I doubt I even knew what it was), that's been a more recent addition; I always have some in my freezer. This is one of those quick meals that I loved when I was a busy mother, a refrigerator with lots of leftovers and an added bonus: my family was crazy about it.

Asian Fried Rice

Ingredients:

3 cups leftover cooked brown rice (or any rice you have left over)

2 or 3 eggs

1 tablespoon oil for cooking

1 large shallot, chopped

2 cloves garlic, diced  

6 scallions, chopped (reserve some of the greens for the top) 

1/2 cup shredded carrots 

1/2 cup water chestnuts, sliced 

1 cup ready-to-eat edamame 

2 tablespoons soy sauce

salt and freshly ground black pepper 

Method:

Beat the eggs and scramble them (I used Pam in the pan). If you have a wok, that's perfect, but I do it in a largish frying pan. Remove the cooked eggs from the pan and put aside.

Reheat the pan until hot, add the oil, then the shallots, scallion whites, carrots and garlic. Cook, stirring, for about a minute until soft. Add brown rice and stir for several minutes to heat through. Add your cooked eggs, soy sauce, water chestnuts, scallion greens and edamame, and fry together for a few minutes. Garnish with some scallion greens.  

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Much as I think word verification is annoying AND time consuming for my followers, I've been getting way too much spam (and some of it not very nice). So starting with this post, I'm adding word verification. Sorry everyone!

Update: Susan's comment above suggested turning off the anonymous comments might be enough, so I'll try that first. (Can't read those numbers and letters anyway half the time!)

Darina Allen's Champ for St. Patrick's Day

Our Game Changer group did Darina Allen recently and I ran across her recipe for Champ. Hard to believe I'd never made this....what could be a simpler way to spruce up mashed potatoes? I used Yukon Gold potatoes and scallions. But you could use kale, parsley, chives, peas or a cabbage like Savoy instead of scallions. Doesn't the photo tell the story?
The next night, I made it into little pancakes, coated it with panko and fried them. Naughty me.

Champ
From Irish Traditional Cooking by Darina Allen

Ingredients:

6 to 8 unpeeled baking potatoes, e.g., Russet or Yukon Gold

1 bunch scallions (use the bulb and green stem)

1 1/2 cups milk

4 to 8 tablespoons butter

salt and freshly ground pepper

Method:

Scrub the potatoes and boil them in their jackets. Finely chop the scallions. Cover the scallions with cold milk and bring slowly to a boil. Simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave to infuse. Peel and mash the freshly boiled potatoes and, while hot, mix with the boiling milk and scallions. Beat in some of the butter. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve in one large or four individual bowls with a knob of butter melting in the center. 

Champ may be put aside and reheated later in a moderate oven at 350°F. Cover with foil while it reheats so that it doesn't get a skin. 

Two sides: Ina's Rosemary Roasted Potatoes and Rutabega with Crispy Shallots

What can I say? Ina is the best. And of course, these sides are divine. They went perfectly with our roasted turkey roulade and gravy last year. Even if you don't make these with your turkey, be sure to try these lovely potatoes sometime soon. I'm seeing them everywhere online. There's nothing simpler, it makes a super presentation and who doesn't love a crunchy potato? Or as Ina puts it: "How easy is that?"


Rosemary Roasted Potatoes
2010, Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients:
3 pounds baby Yukon Gold potatoes
1/3 cup olive oil
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary (divided)


Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Slice the bottom off each potato and cut crosswise at 1/8-inch intervals, cutting to within 1/4 inch of the bottom. (You can place the potato on a large spoon so the edges of the spoon prevent you from slicing completely through the potato.)

Place the potatoes in a large bowl, add the olive oil, salt and pepper and 1 tablespoon of the rosemary and toss well, working the salt mixture in between the slices. Arrange the potatoes on a sheet pan cut side up.

Bake the potatoes for 30 minutes, until they are tender and golden and crisp on top. 
Sprinkle with remaining rosemary and serve.

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This is the end of my recipes from last year's Thanksgiving. Aside from a couple old favorites, I tried all new dishes. A lot of people don't care for rutabega. I love it. It's also known as a yellow turnip.

It's got a waxy outside, so you peel it and inside is a hard orange/gold vegetable which you can roast, boil, mash, whatever. My mother served it to us a lot when I was a child so we grew up loving it. Oddly, I don't remember serving it to my kids very often, but they really enjoyed this side dish last Thanksgiving.


Mashed Rutabega with Crispy Shallots
1994, The Union Square Cafe Cookbook, by Danny Meyer and Michael Romano, All Rights Reserved and as reprinted in Barefoot Contessa Family Style, by Ina Garten, by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups light olive or vegetable oil 
3 tablespoons unsalted butter 
5 to 6 shallots, peeled and sliced into thin rings 
2 large rutabagas, about 4 pounds total 
Kosher salt 
1 cup whole milk 
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) salted butter 
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Method:
Heat the oil and unsalted butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat until it reaches 220 degrees F. Reduce the heat to low, add the shallots, and cook until they are a rich golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. The temperature should stay below 260 degrees F. Stir the shallots occasionally to make sure they brown evenly. Remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon, drain well, and spread out to cool on paper towels. Once they have dried and crisped, they can be stored at room temperature, covered, for several days. 
Peel the rutabegas to remove the waxy skins and cut them into generous 1-inch chunks. Place them in a saucepan with water to cover and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, until easily pierced by a paring knife, about 35 minutes. Drain. 
In a separate saucepan, heat the milk and salted butter over low heat until the butter has melted and the milk just begins to simmer. 
Puree the rutabega in several batches in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. With the motor running, add the melted butter and milk in a steady stream. The turnips should be smooth. 
Return the puree to the saucepan, season with 1 teaspoon salt and the pepper, and reheat, stirring, over medium heat. Serve piping hot, sprinkled generously with crispy shallots. 



Check out my Christmas apron giveaway HERE.

Cathy's Salt and Vinegar Potatoes

Have you ever had salty french fries in a paper cone with vinegar sprinkled on top? I still remember my first introduction to them as a kid, walking around the state fair. And I've always loved 'em that way.  

 So let me introduce you to Salt and Vinegar Potatoes. I'm not going to rave on and on because the photo says everything better than I ever could. I'm just going to post the photos and the recipe, nothing more needed....these are such a delight. What else would you expect from Cathy atNoble Pig? 

Salt and Vinegar Potatoes with Rosemary
From Noble Pig

Ingredients: 

2 lbs small potatoes, new or fingerlings work well

Olive oil

Kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper

Fresh rosemary, finely chopped

Cider vinegar

Method:

Place potatoes in salted water and bring to a boil; cook until fork tender.  Preheat oven to 425º.

Place the cooked potatoes on a well-oiled baking sheet and press down gently on each potato with a potato masher.

Brush the top of each potato with olive oil...be generous.  Season well with Kosher salt, pepper and rosemary.  Place in the oven for 25 minutes until browned and crispy.  Remove from oven and brush well with cider vinegar.  Taste and add more vinegar or salt accordingly.

A Lovely Potato and Asparagus Tart

Recently, uber-talented blog friend Cristina from Cristina From Buenos Aires to Paris posted an Asparagus and Orange Cream Tart. It looked like it would be light and delicious with an unusual combination of an orange-flavored cream and asparagus....very appealing. I was going to make it this weekend with the lovely asparagus in the market right now. And then I got sidetracked with another tart I watched Jamie Oliver make the other day. It had me salivating. Now to the eye, one would think the two tarts were identical. But Cristina used puff pastry and the orange creme is light in texture and contained crème fraiche.  Jamie's was crispy phyllo dough and plain old mashed potatoes, so comforting.....and perhaps appealing more to men?  You have to admit, there is just something about this combo: potatoes mashed with whipping cream, eggs and cheese....phyllo pastry....and fresh asparagus. What's not to like? I mean really. 

So I made it yesterday. What a perfect side for grilled meats or fish. Actually, I ate it for dinner, forget the protein. I hope you've worked with phyllo. If not, there are quite a few videos online that explain everything. It's really quite simple. And the soft filling of this tart balances so well with the crispiness of the phyllo.

The only changes I would make to this recipe would be to use a bit more asparagus on top AND perhaps add some sautéed scallions to the  mashed potatoes.

But I promise, Cristina, I will be making your lovely tart next weekend!  :) It will be absolutely perfect for some ladies I have coming for lunch.

Potato and Asparagus Tart
Recipe from Jamie at Home HERE.

 Ingredients:
1 pound potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Sea salt 
1 pound asparagus spears, woody ends removed, blanched
8 ounces phyllo pastry 
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup freshly grated Lancashire cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Cheddar
3 large organic or free-range eggs 
1 cup (8-ounces) heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper

Method:
Put your potatoes into a pan of salted boiling water and cook for 15 minutes. Meanwhile blanch your asparagus in a separate pan of salted boiling water for 4 minutes, and drain in a colander. 
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 

Get an ovenproof dish - I used a rectangular tart pan with a removable bottom. Layer the sheets of filo pastry in the dish, brushing them with melted butter as you go and letting about 1-inch hang over the edge. You want to get the pastry about 5 layers thick. Put a clean, damp kitchen towel over the top and put aside.

When the potatoes are done, mash them with the cheeses. In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs and cream and stir into your cheesy mashed potato. Grate in the nutmeg, season well with pepper and mix together. Spread the mashed potato (it will be looser than you expect) over the phyllo pastry, then bring up the sides of the phyllo and scrunch them together to form a rim. Take your blanched asparagus and line them up across the filling, making sure you cover it all. Brush all over with the remaining melted butter and pop into the preheated oven for around 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Serve just as you would a quiche for a quick lunch or supper, with a salad.