Tag: potatoes
Corned Beef & Cabbage (Let’s Hash It Out)

Corned Beef & Cabbage (Let’s Hash It Out)

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I feel if I am going to eat a meal that is associated with a holiday I ought to learn a little bit about that particular holiday and its significance to the culture or country of origin.  The extent of my knowledge regarding St. Patty’s Day is corned beef and cabbage.

So Friday as I was pulling my corned beef out of the fridge, I googled St. Patrick’s Day.  In a nutshell, Patrick, before he became a saint, is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland.  St. Patrick’s Day is the day of his death.  A folktale credits him with driving the snakes out of Ireland, symbolism for pagan religions as there are no snakes in Ireland.

Corned Beef and Cabbage is not the chosen celebratory meal in Ireland but rather came about here in America.  Corned beef and cabbage were both relatively cheap and out of necessity became the meal of choice for the poor Irish immigrants striving to make a new life here.  In Ireland, you are more likely to have Irish Stew and Soda Bread.

Shortcut Corned Beef

I will admit, I make this once a year.  Don’t get me wrong, I love Corned Beef, I just don’t make it at home…except on Saint Patty’s Day.  As a kid, my favorite breakfast was Corned Beef Hash by Mary’s Kitchen.  Yep, hash out of a can, I thought it was delicious.

Two things I did differently this year.  On a whim, I splurged on Wagyu Corned Beef Brisket from Costco.  Second, we pulled out the Instant Pot.  With two unknowns it’s hard to know if the Waygu or the IP was responsible for just how delicious the corned beef came out.  It was tender, moist, and delicious.  A variety of recipes found online served as my guide with a shout-out to Simply Recipes.

  • Various recipes I looked at called for a 2.5-pound chunk of corned beef. I don’t know about you, but after cooking,  it shrinks quite a bit and that wouldn’t be enough, not in my family at least. There would be little left for my fav breakfast hash (not acceptable in my book).  The piece I bought was 4 pounds and fit nicely in my 6-quart Instant Pot.  This was enough for dinner, the next day’s lunch, and a generous skillet of hash for that leisurely weekend breakfast.
  • Rinse corned beef thoroughly before placing it in the pressure cooker, helps keep the salt at bay.
  • Place the corned beef on the metal trivet that comes with the Instant Pot, makes it much easier to lift out when it is done.
  • Add 1 quartered yellow onion and a couple of cloves of garlic to the pot.  Sprinkle the seasoning packet that comes with the corned beef and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar on the surface of the meat.
  • Add 4 cups of liquid to the pot.  It may not completely cover the meat, and that’s okay.  The liquid can be all water, water, and beef stock 1:1, or a can of stout and water.  The Wagyu beef was on the salty side.  So be careful with the stock, use low sodium or homemade.

Let’s Get to the Easy Part

Seal your Instant Pot and set it to high pressure for 85 minutes and go relax, but tell everyone you are making dinner, they’ll never know.

Once the cycle is complete, turn off the Instant Pot and allow the corned beef to natural-release for 15 minutes before taking it out.  If it has not completely depressurized, vent the pot before taking off the lid.  Add your potatoes, carrots, and cabbage (that you prepped while it was cooking, oops, forgot to mention).  Place potatoes and carrots into the pot first, then the cabbage on top. Seal the pot and set a timer for 5 minutes.  Quick release when it is done.

Slice corned beef against the grain.  Serve with honey mustard and veggies on the side or if you are like the Hubster, make a sandwich…yum.  Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

But What About Breakfast?

I like corned beef, I LOVE corned beef hash.  The remaining corned beef became Sunday breakfast.  I pulled out my cast iron skillet, the remaining beef and potatoes, chopped some onion and bell pepper, bada-bing-bada-boom, hash.

Feel free to add other vegetables or change the proportions.  This can easily be a veggie-focused hash, more potatoes, throw in the leftover cabbage, add some mushrooms…it will be delightful and perfect for a weekend relaxing breakfast.

Beautiful board made by 3jamigos woodworking.

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Corned Beef Hash and Eggs

What to do with leftover corned beef? Hash of course!
Course Breakfast, Brunch, lunch
Cuisine American, Irish-American
Keyword cabbage, Corned beef, corned beef hash, potatoes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 4 servings

Equipment

  • cast iron skillet

Ingredients

  • 2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 small onion finely chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 1/4 green or red bell pepper or pepper of choice!, chopped
  • 2 to 3 cups cooked corned beef finely diced or chopped
  • 2 to 3 cups chopped cooked potatoes from dinner 🙂
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Chopped fresh parsley or scallions
  • Eggs one per serving

Instructions

  • Heat butter in a large skillet (preferably cast iron) on medium heat. Add the onion and pepper and cook a few minutes, until translucent.
  • Add corned beef and potatoes. Spread out evenly over the pan. Increase the heat to medium-high and press down on the mixture with a heat-proof spatula.
  • Do not stir the potatoes and corned beef, but let them brown. If you hear it sizzling, that's a good sign.
  • Use a spatula to peek underneath and see if they are browning. If nicely browned, use the spatula to flip sections over in the pan so that they brown on the other side. Press down again with the spatula.
  • If there is too much sticking, you can add a little more butter to the pan. Continue to cook in this manner until the potatoes and the corned beef are nicely browned.

Egg-a-licious: Your choice, hash is good with eggs cooked any style

  • Or cook eggs like Shashuka. When hash is close to being done, create depressions in the hash and crack an egg into each spot. Cover skillet for a couple minutes until egg is cooked to your liking.
  • Remove from heat, top with chopped parsley or scallions. Season with freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste.
It’s Raining, It’s Pouring the Instant Pot is Not Snoring, it’s Cooking Pot Roast

It’s Raining, It’s Pouring the Instant Pot is Not Snoring, it’s Cooking Pot Roast

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It’s chilly, it’s raining, it’s just downright dreary.  How to combat this scenario?

Couch potato:  Snuggle on the couch and watch a movie or read a book. What, couch too far? Ok, stay in bed with a good book and a cup of tea.

Kitchen Diva: It’s the holidays, you’re supposed to be filling the house with the aroma of butter, cinnamon, sugar and all things delicious.  Let’s get ready to BBAAAKKKKEEEEE.

Outdoor Warrior:  Put on those stomping boots and raingear and hit those puddles!

Ok, I’m only feeling Option 1 or 2.

So, I decided on doing a combo, I spent the day baking cookies, cruising the internet and watching Netflix.  Right around 5pm my stomach grumbled and sent a signal to my brain “what’s for dinner?”

Here is the criteria for today’s dinner:  it should be easy to make, comforting and of course delicious. I pull out my Instant Pot, check off easy.  Take out the chuck roast I had bought the day before, check off comforting. Rummage through my crisper and pantry and pull out onions, carrots, potatoes, check off delicious.

Yep, pot roast on a rainy, dreary day…sounds like a plan, Stan. Sitting down at 6:30 to dinner.  Yahoo, thanks Instant Pot.

Instant Pot Pot Roast

What’s better than pot roast for dinner? Pot roast the next day!

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Pot Roast a la Instant Pot

Decide at 5pm to have Pot Roast for dinner. I know, what am I thinking? Pull out the Instant Pot and damn, by 6:30 I'm sitting down to a delicious bowl of meltingly tender chunks of beef, carrots, and potatoes over steaming hot white rice.  Adapted from Damn Delicious.
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 4 people

Ingredients

  • 1 3-pound chuck roast
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 1 yellow onion chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup dry red wine
  • 3 cups beef stock
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 4 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 1/2 pounds baby red potatoes
  • 4 large carrots cut diagonally into 2-inch pieces
  • 1/2 pound fresh assorted mushrooms sliced, optional
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1-2 tablespoons soy sauce or fish sauce optional kicks up the flavor, check for saltiness before adding

Instructions

  • Set a 6-qt Instant Pot® to the high saute setting.
  • Season beef with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Heat oil; add beef and cook until evenly browned, about 2-3 minutes per side; set aside.
  • Add onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in garlic and tomato paste until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  • Stir in red wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
  • Stir in beef stock, Worcestershire, thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, potatoes, carrots and mushrooms. Top with beef. Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 60 minutes. When finished cooking, quick-release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions.
  • Remove beef, potatoes and carrots from the Instant Pot®; shred beef, using two forks.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 1/4 cup cold water; set aside.
  • Select high sauté setting. Bring to a boil; stir in cornstarch mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened, about 2-3 minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add more beef stock as needed until desired consistency is reached.  If using mushrooms, sauce may be a bit thin, reduce before adding cornstarch slurry.
  • Serve beef, potatoes and carrots with juices immediately accompanied by rice or buttered noodles or a nice crusty bread to sop up the sauce.

 

 

 

 

 

 
Smashed Potatoes, A Smashing Success

Smashed Potatoes, A Smashing Success

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Jamie and I love happy hours so whenever she comes home we usually throw together a couple impromptu gatherings.  Drinks and finger foods are part of our MO. Half the fun is perusing cookbooks or the Internet looking for yummies for our casual soirees. Jamie came across a recipe for Smashed Potatoes on the site Damn Delicious…uh-oh, boil em’, mash em’ stick em’ in a stew.  It’s like Pavlov’s Dogs, mention potatoes and I immediately parrot Sam-Wise Gamgee.  Drives my family crazy.

Back to the recipe, very easy and very tasty.  We like getting a variety of potatoes, reds, golds, purple all about 2 inches, you know, not too big, not too small. but just right The potatoes are boiled until tender. Removed and smooshed with a potato masher (you could probably use a fork) until flattened.  The spuds are seasoned with garlic, thyme, salt and pepper then drizzled with olive oil.  Place in oven for about 20 minutes to crisp and voila’, potatoes with soft and creamy centers and crispy edges.  Serve with sour cream if you like.  So, so, good.  So, so, simple.

We had pancetta in the fridge, so we added a generous sprinkle of it over the smooshed potatoes before baking. You can use rosemary in place of thyme, bacon instead of pancetta, butter instead of olive oil, sprinkle with parmesan, whatever your imagination dreams up. A combination I plan to try includes smoky paprika and rosemary with a squeeze of lemon,  Damn Delicious posted a new riff, Crispy Dijon Smashed Potatoes.  Can’t wait to try it!

Smashed potatoes with Garlic and Thyme

So next time you need a tasty bite, try these smashed potatoes.  Added bonus, they’re gluten free, dairy free if you don’t use cheese and a perfect vegetarian dish if you skip the pancetta/bacon.  Delicious!

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Smashed Potatoes, with Garlic and Herbs

Course Side Dish, Vegetable
Cuisine American
Keyword fingerling potatotes, Roasted potatotes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 18-24 small potatoes yukon, reds, purples or a mix washed and scrubbed clean
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
  • Finely diced pancetta or bacon optional
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
  • Lightly oil a baking sheet or line with parchment. Put a couple of squeezes of oil on the parchment
  • In a large pot of boiling water, cook potatoes until tender, about 15-20 minutes; drain well.
  • Place potatoes onto the prepared baking sheet. Using a potato masher or fork, carefully smash the potatoes until flattened but still in one piece.
  • Top with olive oil, garlic and thyme. (Combine minced garlic and thyme with oil and drizzle on potatoes)
  • Sprinkle with salt and pepper and pancetta!
  • Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp.
  • Serve immediately.

Notes

To microwave potatoes.  Wash and place in a microwavable. Cover with a vented lid of plastic wrap with a few holes punched in it. 
Microwave at full power for 8-10 minutes, stopping halfway to stir.  I have a 700 watt microwave so if your microwave's wattage is higher, try 7 - 9 minutes.  Test by piercing with a fork.  
Sheet Pan Magic (Chicken Tikka)

Sheet Pan Magic (Chicken Tikka)

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Miss me?  I have been on an extended break from the blogosphere.  Knocked down by the flu during the holidays, my post-election blues (I promise to refrain) and the wet dreary weather kind of got the best of me.  But I’m back!  Ready to tackle 2017. This year’s theme will be comfort food from soup to dessert, food for the soul.  Food for family and friends-dishes to share, meals that bring us together and make us happy. Nothing better than sitting around the table eating, talking and laughing.  What better buffer to our crazy mixed-up world right now.  If you have a favorite recipe I would love to share it on my blog and if there is a story behind your dish, I definitely want to hear it.

This first post was going to feature soup.  You know how much I love soup, yep I could live on just soup.  Not to mention soup is the perfect antidote for cold wet weather and when you’re not feeling 100%.  In fact, I had an easy soup recipe in mind, a family favorite that I make whenever my kids are home but a recipe for Chicken Tikka from one of my favorite blogs, Smitten Kitchen caught my eye.  I had to try it.  It is a one pan meal loaded with flavor from spices like garam masala, chili, cumin, paprika and garlic.

Sheet Pan Chicken TikkaThe hard part maybe rounding up the different spices used in this recipe.  Fortunately quite a few markets now carry Indian and Asian spices.  Try Whole Foods or there is always Amazon or online spice stores like Penzey’s.  If you have an Indian market or Middle Eastern market in your area, definitely check them out.  Spices are usually very reasonable.  Once you have the spices the rest is easy peasy.

Marinate the chicken pieces in the yogurt, cut cauliflower and potatoes into chunks, season and scatter them on a sheet pan. Place chicken pieces in between the vegetables and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes. Voila’ dinner is ready to be served.  With my first bite, I could taste the tang of the yogurt and the kick from the chili and jalapeño. The cauliflower and potatoes, with their crispy edges and smooshy (is that a word?) centers, were the perfect foil to the chicken.   I can’t wait to make this again.  Added bonus, JUST ONE PAN to wash, uh-huh, uh-huh.

Sheet pan Chicken Tikka

 

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Sheet Pan Magic (Chicken Tikka)

Ingredients

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

    For the chicken

    • 1 3/4- inch piece of ginger peeled and minced
    • 4 cloves of garlic minced or pressed
    • 1 fresh green chili jalapeno, seeded and minced
    • 1/2 cup whole-milk yogurt
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder or cayenne or adjusted to taste
    • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
    • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
    • 3/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
    • 1 teaspoon paprika
    • 1 teaspoon garam masala
    • 2 pounds chicken thighs drumsticks or halved chicken breasts (skin-on, bone-in)

    For the vegetables

    • 3 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 1/4 pounds about 4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled if desired, cut into 3/4-inch chunks
    • 1 3/4 pounds 1 small or half a very large head cauliflower, cut into 3/4-inch-wide florets
    • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

    To finish, if desired

    • A few thin slices of red onion
    • Lemon wedges
    • Salt
    • Dollops of yogurt optional
    • A few tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro parsley or mint, or a mix therof

    Instructions

    • Combine ginger, garlic, fresh chili, yogurt, salt, spices and sugar in a bowl. Add chicken pieces and toss to coat evenly. Let marinate for 15 minutes or up to a day in the fridge.
    • Heat your oven to 425°F.
    • Line a half-sheet (13×18-inch) with foil and coat it with 1 T of olive oil or use parchment paper.
    • Add potatoes, cauliflower, salt, cumin and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and toss together until evenly coated. I like garlic so I added a minced glove of garlic as I was tossing the vegetables.
    • Remove chicken from marinade and leave excess behind.
    • Nestle the chicken pieces among the vegetables throughout the pan.
    • Roast in oven for 20 minutes, then toss the potato and cauliflower to ensure they’re cooking evenly
    • Return the pan to the oven for 10 to 20 minutes more (i.e. 30 to 40 minutes total roasting time) until chicken and vegetables are cooked through.
    • If necessary remove chicken from pan and turn broiler on to crisp the potatoes and cauliflower
    • While it roasts, if you’d like to use the lightly pickled onion rings that we did on top, which added a nice tangy fresh zip to the dish, separate the rings and toss them in a small bowl with a squeeze of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Set aside until needed.
    • When chicken and vegetables are cooked, top with garnishes of your choice.
    • I used thinly sliced red onions, cilantro, mint and diced scallions to garnish.
    Caldo Verde: Post-Election Comfort Food

    Caldo Verde: Post-Election Comfort Food

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    This week called for a very large helping of comfort and kindness.  Something to soothe our frazzled nerves and temper our anxiety and fear.  I know I could use some, I have half a mind to jump on a plane and go hug my kids.  I keep reminding myself, they’ll be home in a week, they’ll be home in a week.

    What has helped me survive this week?  Humor, thanks Sean, hugs from Grandma. Talking to friends (not ranting, that just makes me crazy but yes I have done a lot of that too).  Escape from reality movies, we saw Dr. Strange (despite my stand against using Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One). Listening to audiobooks (instead of the news) and to my favorite music.  Thank goodness for Motown and K-Pop.  Riding my bike and taking Sammy on walks (yep, lucky I live in California).  Going to bookstores.  I went to a book signing by Dorie Greenspan at Omnivore Books on Food in the City.  That deserves its own special blog post which I will get to very soon.

    And of course, Cooking and Baking

    Posed the age-old question…If you could pick only one food to eat every day for the rest of your life, (asked by my kid Jordan, the “What if? Kid” right after asking “If you could pick a superpower, what would it be) I think I would say SOUP.  I love soup. My Dad often made soup as part of our evening meal.  It was amazing, he would start with a pot of water, add slices of meat, and seasonings such as ginger and scallions, assorted vegetables, and voila’, a delicious tasty soup in minutes.

    So this week I turned to my ultimate comfort food, soup.  I found a recipe for Caldo Verde in Martha Stewart’s book Vegetables and it screamed make me, make me!  So I did.  A hearty Portuguese soup with potatoes, onions, collard greens, and chorizo or linguica.  Delicious.  It was warm and filling with a hint of bitterness (appropriate for this week) from the greens and spice from the sausage.  I loved it and I think you will too.  The recipe fills a nice-sized pot so share with a neighbor or friend…comfort and kindness.  It will help get you through rough days.

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    As always tweak the recipe to your liking.  The original recipe calls for kale or collard greens, you can substitute greens with less bite such as chard or spinach.  Russet potatoes can be replaced by Yukon Golds giving the rustic soup a smoother less starchy texture.  In place of chorizo, try linguica or any spicy sausage.  For additional smokiness, saute a couple of strips of bacon along with the sausage and add to the soup.  Serve with slices of crusty French Bread slathered with butter (we deserve it).

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    Caldo Verde: Comfort Food for My Election Blues

    Ingredients

    • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil plus some for drizzling
    • 1 large onion finely chopped
    • 4 cloves garlic minced
    • 2.5 pounds russet potatoes about 5 medium peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
    • 8 cups low sodium chicken stock
    • 8 ounces firm chorizo or linguica halved lengthwise
    • 10-12 ounces kale tough stems trimmed and leaves thinly sliced, or collard greens
    • Salt and pepper

    Instructions

    • Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring periodically until softened, approximately 4 minutes.
    • Add potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15-20 minutes.
    • Meanwhile, heat a medium sized skillet over medium heat. Add chorizo or linguine and cook until browned, approximately 3-4 minutes on each side.
    • If desired in the same pan, saute' 2 slices of bacon that have been cut into 1/2 inche pieces.
    • Transfer chorizo to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle thinly slice on the diagonal crosswise. Transfer bacon to a paper towel to drain.
    • Puree soup with a hand blender or in a regular blender in batches. Do not fill more than halfway if using a blender.
    • Return to pot and stir in greens, simmer additional 5 minutes.
    • Season with salt and pepper to taste.
    • Serve soup drizzled with oil and topped with chorizo and bacon.
    • Optional garnish with cilantro if desired.
    Call Me Old Fashion (Devon’s Mom’s Potato Salad)

    Call Me Old Fashion (Devon’s Mom’s Potato Salad)

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    Ninety degree weather welcomed us home from Nashville yesterday.  Apparently Mother Nature is giving us one last summer hurrah and it’s a doozy.  Perfect time to fire up the grill and send summer off with some classics-dogs, burgers, corn on the cob and POTATO SALAD.  Ok, all I really want is the potato salad.  The rest is just window dressing and for your benefit.  I LOVE potato salad.

    On our Houston trip our meal at Lucille’s Soul Food included potato salad.  The potato salad was vinegar based and not made with mayonnaise.  Yes, it was tasty, but for me, a good old fashion classic potato salad is made with GOBS and GOBS of mayonnaise.  When I was a kid my mom would buy the little plastic tubs of potato salad at the grocery store.  Sweet and tangy, flecks of red and green from the pimento and relish all held together with Miracle Whip aka as sweet mayo…  Yep, fond memories for me.  I also love the Japanese version of potato salad which omits pickles, has diced carrots, cucumbers, ham and corn instead and is held together by Kewpie Mayonnaise.  So good.  It’s the first thing I attack in a Bento Box.

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    For the longest time I was content with squelching my potato salad cravings by having it as a side with a deli sandwich.  Never thought of actually making my own until one day my co-worker Devon brought her Mom’s Potato salad to a potluck. I had flashbacks of those long ago summertime picnics as I shamelessly stuffed my face.  Devon, “I NEED your Mom’s potato salad recipe.”  Lucky for me she said yes.

    What’s in it?  White rose potatoes, plenty of mayonnaise, hard boiled eggs, red onions, sweet gherkins, ballpark mustard (no fancy schmancy mustard needed), celery seed, Beau Monde seasoning and salt & pepper .  Over the years I have tweaked the recipe, but, at its core, it is still a  classic potato salad.  I have substituted sour cream for a portion of the mayo, added diced celery for extra crunch or diced bell peppers for sweetness and color.  If Wes makes it he will add a dollop of sweet relish for good measure.

    The key is to boil your potatoes until they are really soft but not falling apart.  When you mix it together you want some of the potatoes to stay in little chunks and some to breakdown.

    If you like old fashion potato salad..look no further..this is potato salad heaven.

    Call Me Old Fashion…Devon’s Potato Salad

    • 7 medium white potatoes (boiled until very soft, cooled and peeled, diced)
    • 3 hard boiled eggs (peeled and mashed)
    • 1/2 medium red onion (diced)
    • 3 sweet gherkins (diced)
    • 1 tsp celery seed
    • a couple of dashes of Beau Monde seasoning
    • ~1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
    • 1 tsp ball park mustard
    • juice from the gherkins to moisten
    • salt and pepper to taste
    • milk to moisten as needed
    • Riffs:
    • 1 stalk of celery (diced)
    • 1/2 cup sour cream to replace equal amount of mayo
    • 1/2 cup diced red or green bell pepper
    • dollop of sweet relish to finish

    How to boil potatoes

    • Devon’s mom boils the potatoes whole therefore so do I. But you can cut them up and boil them which would significantly reduce cooking time.
    • Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with water (an inch above potatoes)
    • Add 1/2-1 teaspoon salt
    • Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once it boils turn heat down to keep the water at a gently simmer.
    • Whole potatoes will take approximately 40 minutes to cook. Test by piercing the potato with a knife or fork. It should be tender enough that the knife meets with little resistance.
    • Drain and rinse under cool water. Transfer to a mixing bowl.
    1. You pretty much know the drill..go ahead and make it your own! Add corn or peas or try it with fancy mustard, its up to you! I have even added diced chicken or ham to the salad.
    2. Place potatoes in a large bowl add mayonnaise and mustard first and then everything else!
    3. Mix well but gently so you don’t break up the potatoes too much.
    4. Season, stir, taste and tweak as you want.
    5. Put your salad in the fridge to chill and to let the flavors come together.
    6. Garnish with parsley or chopped scallions before serving
    Aloo Gobi (Spice Up Your Life)

    Aloo Gobi (Spice Up Your Life)

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    Pity the guy who doesn’t attend the “Health and Wellness” lecture presented at work but depends on colleagues to give him or her (in this case, Wes the hubby) the highlights and takeaways from the lecture.  For the last month since, Wes has gone total vegy (his colleague that went to the lecture lasted only 36 hours sans meat).  I love meat but being the loyal and loving wife (my friends are laughing heartily right now) I am also living the vegy life.  I have fallen off the bandwagon (lots, totally busted on Instagram) but usually without him present.  Hey, a girl needs her protein.

    What we have found is there are certain cuisines that lend themselves well to vegetarianism (is that a word?) like Indian cuisine.  We have had Indian food no less than once a week so it is about time we try making it at home.  Our first attempt, Aloo Gobi, well known thanks to the movie Bend It Like Beckham, is a bowl of yumminess comprised of potatoes and cauliflower, not too spicy but packed with flavor.  The starchiness and density of the vegetables gives the dish a great mouth feel and punch to suppress your carnivore cravings.  I looked at lots of recipes and the first thing I noticed was there are about a GAZILLION different spices used in Indian food, most of which I have never used. I fought the urge to give up and call our favorite Indian restaurant for take out.

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    Lucky for me I have a co-worker I can go to for Indian cooking advice.  I have peppered her with questions regarding all the different spices, how to use them, how long to saute’ the vegetables, how to prep the beans or lentils, on and on. My takeaways for newbies attempting Indian food; find a good Asian or Indian grocery store, time and patience is required to toast the spices and aromatics and have lots of cute little bowls (Thanks Snookies) to hold your spices.

    Tips for the recipe.  Its really important to toast the spices & aromatics in the oil to develop flavor.  I actually added the garam masala in with the tumeric and salt.  I also used dried coriander (1 tsp) instead of the cilantro stalks.  I personally think it was too tomato-ey, I would use 1 fresh tomato chopped in place of the canned tomatoes.  I pre-cooked my potatoes and cauliflower by steam microwaving each for 3-5 minutes.  The vegetables should be cut into bite size pieces. I used 2 potatoes instead of 3 and tossed in some eggplant for good measure.

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    Aloo Gobi from Bend It Like Beckham (food.com)

    Ingredients

    • 1 ⁄4 cup vegetable oil
    • 1 large onion peeled and cut into small pieces
    • 1 bunch fresh coriander cilantro, separated into stalks and leaves and roughly chopped
    • 1 small green chili chopped into small pieces (or one teaspoon chili powder)
    • 1 large cauliflower leaves removed and cut evenly into eighths
    • 3 large potatoes peeled and cut into even pieces
    • 2 8 ounce cans diced tomatoes
    • fresh ginger peeled and grated (1 generous tablespoon)
    • fresh garlic chopped (1 generous tablespoon ~4 cloves)
    • 1 teaspoon cumin seed
    • 2 teaspoons turmeric
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 2 teaspoons garam masala

    Instructions

    • Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan.
    • Add the chopped onion and one teaspoon of cumin seeds to the oil.
    • Stir together and cook until onions become creamy, golden, and translucent. Will take 10-15 minutes
    • Add chopped coriander stalks, two teaspoons of turmeric, and one teaspoon of salt.
    • Add chopped chillis (according to taste) Stir tomatoes into onion mixture.
    • Add ginger and garlic; mix thoroughly.
    • Add potatoes and cauliflower to the sauce plus a few tablespoons of water (ensuring that the mixture doesn't stick to the saucepan).
    • Ensure that the potatoes and cauliflower are coated with the curry sauce.
    • Cover and allow to simmer for twenty minutes (or until potatoes are cooked).
    • Add two teaspoons of Garam Masala and stir.
    • Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves on top of the curry.
    • Turn off the heat, cover, and leave for as long as possible before serving.