Zucchini, Potato and Scallion Pancakes. Photo: Rec(ession)ipes.
As we transition from summer to fall, it's the perfect time to pair prime vegetables from each season.
And these zucchini, potato and scallion pancakes from Rec(ession)ipes beautifully capture the colors of autumn, while sneaking in the last tastes of summer. Pan-fried and topped with a dollop of chive sour cream, a glimpse at these almost makes up for the fact that we'll be seeing a lot less of the sun for a while. Almost.
And by "home" fries, we don't mean chunks of potatoes fried in butter on the stove top (though those do sound delicious). No, we mean slim, julienned slices of the root vegetable roasted in a home cook's oven.
These slivers of salty heaven are from Flickr user Gudlyf, who used three large Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced with a mandoline, tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with the simple but always satisfying combination of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. And, wrote Gudly, they are "as crunchy -- sometimes crunchier -- than the deep-fried versions at your local watering hole."
Pass a bit of ketchup and we would gladly trade a serving of soggy restaurant fries for this tray of golden goodness, stretching as far as the eye can see.
In this weekly series, home cook Bruce Watson works his way through a decades-old family cookbook, adapting the best recipes exclusively for Slashfood.
My father loved to cook, but few of the recipes in his regular repertoire could really be described as "gourmet." The major exception was his vichyssoise, a cold potato-and-leek soup that he would pull out when the weather got hot and he was in the mood for something refreshing.
Of course, "refreshing" is a relative term; after eating a bowl of his rich, cream-laden soup, I would usually feel like I'd covered my lips in a thick layer of grease. While my version could hardly be described as "low fat," it uses a fraction of the heavy cream that his required and is a lot lighter on the palate. Best of all, it really lets the flavor of the leeks and potatoes shine through. Although this requires a lot of advance time, it refrigerates beautifully and makes a great summer soup!
Fritattas -- those remarkable hybrids of potatoes and eggs -- are a bit like the girl with the curl in the center of her forehead: When they're good, they are very very good, and when they are bad, they are awful.
The dull, lifeless, underseasoned frittata is kept at bay by Tim at Lottie + Doof, who took advantage of the abundance of scallions and chives at his local farmers market. His creation is so vibrantly green, in fact, you might swear this is a closeup of a salad. It puts the "victory" in "victory garden." Note the ratio of greenery (there's also plenty of chard packed in here) to egg: this is one of the scant few dishes that could double as breakfast and salad.
By now, we're all familiar with the wonder that is garlic and mashed potatoes. It's so prevalent these days that I'm almost surprised when I get the option to have garlic-free taters. (Not that I'm complaining -- potatoes and garlic are always welcome in this mouth!) But sometimes it's nice to change things up -- especially with something as friendly as potatoes. They go with almost anything!
So another easy way to amp your taters is to add a nice cup of sauteed mushrooms. It's simple -- dice up some of that tasty fungus, and saute it while your potatoes boil. Since the shrooms are diced, they won't take very long to cook and should be fragrant, brown, and delicious by the time you're ready to mash. Just throw them in with the milk, butter, and anything else you add to your mashed potatoes, and mash away.
It gives your potatoes a wonderful earthy flavor, and is an excellent way to use up leftover mushrooms before they dry up.
As you've no doubt noticed, food mags and websites are dropping the references to expensive sea salts and pricey, hard-to-find spices in favor of extolling the virtues of the simple potato and the joys of buying lentils in bulk. Epicurious has a new "Top 10 Money-Saving Ingredients" article online now, which is quite useful as it calculates price-per-pound and links to various different recipes which utilize the ingredients.
Potatoes, unsurprisingly, are number one. We probably all could have figured that out on our own. But would you have thought to put those 73 cent a pound potatoes in a New England-style potato and cod cake? Not me. But it sure sounds like a good idea. Rice, pasta, chicken, beans, apples, canned tuna, eggs, cheese and flank steak round out the list, each with three or four recipe links. I'm particularly keen to try the spinach and carrot stuffed flank steak and the scrambled egg, potato and bacon tostada (double score for two cheapie ingredients).
There's just something about the crispy allure of the latke that makes it the perfect holiday side-dish. It's crisp, delicious, and a wonderful comfort food. For years they've graced holiday tables, but is everyone making them the right way?
Chow has posted a video where Leslie Jonath covers the ins and outs of latke making. Her biggest point: Don't strain the heck out of your potatoes -- you want to keep the starch in to maintain the creamy texture. But even if you ignore that controversial statement, she offers other great tips for whipping them up in a food processor, and adding crushed Vitamin C tablets to maintain color. I can't comment on their taste, but her finished product sure looks delicious.
Still, there are other ways to whip up delectable latkes, and if you want a classic strained version, check out Marisa's latke lesson from last year. I can also vouch for the sweet potato version she mentions -- tres delish!
I love potatoes. It's the sort of love that pulls me to taters of all form, and employs a devil that sits on my shoulder and convinces me to have second servings -- fried, smashed, baked, you name it.
It should be no surprise then, that I was quickly pulled to the farmers' market potato table last week, which boasted a ton of different types of potatoes, and picked the biggest one. The big beast above had to be mine. But what do you do with something that big? It seemed a travesty to cut the potato up into chunks when it was such a fun shape, so there was only one thing to do -- make a meal out of a twice-baked potato.
If you're also a potato fiend and want to make a meal out of your gigantic tater, here's what you do: First, cook your potato. Me, I like to nuke it first quickly, then bake it to get the outside firm. Then, I scooped out the middle, seasoned the inside with salt, pepper, and butter, and then got to work on the bowl of potatoes. Once they were mashed, and a few spoonfuls eaten, a lot of chopped brussels sprouts and fried wild boar bacon were mixed in with some garlic powder. It was all spooned back into the potato, topped with sharp cheese, and baked a little while longer.
Any traditional Thanksgiving meal must have mashed potatoes, but that doesn't mean you have to go with the plain butter variety, or even garlic. What about this recipe, courtesy of Bon Appetit and Epicurious? If you want something a little less rich, I suggest the Chive and Parsley Mashed Potatoes -- light and delicious.
Caramelized-Shallot Mashed Potatoes Ingredients:
6 tbsp of butter, divided 2 cups sliced shallots 3/4 cup whole milk 2 pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes -- peeled and quartered
Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until tender and brown, stirring often. (Approx. 20 minutes) Transfer the shallots to a bowl, add milk to skillet, and set aside.
Meanwhile, bring the potatoes to a boil, then let simmer until tender. Drain them and then stir over medium heat until dry.
Add remaining butter to potatoes while bringing milk to a simmer in the skillet. Scrap any browned bits and add the milk to the potatoes. Mash, stir in shallots, and season with salt and pepper.
The New York Times' "Recipes for Health" - a regular series of ultra-nutritious, usually veggie-heavy recipes in the Health section - are pretty hit or miss, in my opinion. But this week's recipe, which subs potatoes for seafood in a traditional French bouillabaisse, looks awesome. Potatoes, leeks, onions and poached eggs float in a rich, silky broth of tomato and saffron, served with crispy homemade croutons.
Potatoes, as the article points out, got a bad rap during the low-carb years. But skin-on potatoes are full of B vitamins, vitamin C, fiber, potassium and complex carbs. Plus, a 7-ounce potato with the skin has only 220 calories and zero grams of fat. Add vitamin C-rich tomatoes, protein-packed eggs and phytonutrient-filled onions and garlic, and you've got all kinds of goodness.
More ways to eat local -- growing your own, sharing with friends, and swapping with others to get organic boxes that fit your tastes.
Kim Honey talks about pie fear, and faking it with the special-ordered variety.
A run-down of Toronto dessert shops for a sweet-filled walk through the city ... but being someone who walks everywhere, I'm not on-board with the "Toronto is just not a walking town."
Sweet, starchy goodness -- potatoes have had an "exceptional" year!
Potatoes are, simply, awesome. Whether whole, sliced, chopped, or mashed, boiled, baked, or fried, they elicit groans of pleasure and serious love. Love for taters has even broken out of the realm of food and inspired iconic toys. But there's also potato-themed clothing.
The other day my friend, aptly named Ms. Potato, alerted me to an engrish.com picture of a child wearing a sweatshirt that says: "I feel happiness when I eat a potato." The sentiment was so cute and bang-on that it lead me to visions of cute tees with the saying, and a search of potato-themed tees.
I've been a fan of pre-bake potato microwaving for years. But in all that time, I never considered slicing the taters and trying for microwaved potato chips. I wish I had, because it's a ridiculously quick and easy way to make a healthy snack -- no oil or questionable additives, just potato goodness in the blink of an eye.
Jugalbandi suggests: "Microwave for three sets of three minutes each at 50% power, 40% power, and 30% power. Turn after every three minutes. Reducing the power of the microwave is not essential, but if operating at full power reduce the time accordingly." Then, after the 3 nukes, let the chips rest for 5 minutes to crisp more and eat.
Well, I just tried it the lazy way -- sliced the potato, spread it on a plate, and nuked it at full power for 3 minutes. I flipped it and nuked for 2 more. The chips were browned done, and already super crunchy. So really, if you have a decent microwave, you can reduce the time to just 5 min. It's SO EASY. They're just plain potato flavor, and are already dry out of the microwave, so if you want flavors, I'd suggest a quick spice or herb rub before nuking.
There's just something about the crispy allure of the latke that makes it the perfect holiday side-dish. It's crisp, delicious, and a wonderful comfort food. For years they've graced holiday tables, but is everyone making them the right way?
. 
The New York Times' "Recipes for Health" - a regular series of ultra-nutritious, usually veggie-heavy recipes in the Health section - are pretty hit or miss, in my opinion. But this week's recipe, which subs potatoes for seafood in a traditional French bouillabaisse, looks awesome. Potatoes, leeks, onions and poached eggs float in a rich, silky broth of tomato and saffron, served with crispy homemade croutons. 
More ways to eat local -- growing your own, sharing with friends, and swapping with others to get organic boxes that fit your tastes. 
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