potato

Skillet Roasted Potatoes with Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions and Parmesan

26.02.2013 20 Comments

I fell in love with side dishes during the three years I spent as a vegetarian. When you don’t eat meat, you tend to go into any holiday celebration or dinner party knowing that your meal will be made up of side dishes and you just hope to end up with more than a garden salad and a dinner roll.

Even though I now eat meat, I want hearty side dishes that can be meals all on their own. I still eat vegetarian food regularly (of the 13 recipes I’ve posted this year 11 have been vegetarian and 7 of those have been vegan) and I want the side dishes I serve to be as important and well crafted as the main dish. Vegetables tend to be the star of the side dish, and being a veggie devotee for three years gave me profound respect for what produce can bring to the table. If you’ve never been a vegetarian, and want to challenge yourself in the kitchen, try to go a month without meat. Even if it’s temporary, it’ll grown you as a cook.

This is a recipe that I already have plans to make again. It has an elegant comfort food vibe to it. The edges get a bit crispy, but the middle has a creamy mashed potato feel. Meat eater or not, this can be a meal or a side dish. I really hope you love it as much as I do.

Skillet Roasted Potatoes with Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions and Parmesan

Ingredients

For the onions:

1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 tbs butter
1 tbs olive oil

For the Potatoes:

1 lb red potatoes
1 tbs unsalted butter
1 tbs olive oil
salt and pepper
½ tsp rosemary, minced
¼ cup parmesan

For the Mushrooms:

8 ounces mushrooms
1 tbs olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450.
In a large skillet, melt 1 tbs butter and 1 tbs olive oil. Add the onions and cook over low to medium heat until caramelized and a deep amber color, about 30 minutes. Do not turn the heat too high or the onions will burn.
Slice the potatoes into thin 1/8 inch slices. Melt the butter with the olive oil in a 9-inch cast iron skillet. Swirl the pan to distribute evenly, and pour off into a small bowl.
Cover the skillet with a layer of the potato slices, overlapping them. Brush the potatoes with half of the remaining butter mixture, sprinkle with half of the rosemary, and then with salt and pepper. Layer the remaining potatoes in a second even layer, brush with remaining butter sprinkle with remaining rosemary, then with salt and pepper.
Heat the skillet over moderately high heat until it begins to sizzle, transfer the skillet to the middle of a 450° oven, and bake for 25 minutes, or until golden and the potatoes are tender.
Place the mushrooms on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, toss to coat. Roast mushrooms at 450 until dark and soft, about 10 minutes.
Top potatoes with caramelized onions, mushrooms and Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Potato Artichoke Bisque & Support for Sandy Victims

08.11.2012 15 Comments

As we leave the most divisive election in modern history, we need to remember that we are still a Nation. One Nation, Under God, Indivisible by politics, that comes together to help others.

(Photo, AP: Frank Franklin)

Red state or blue, that is what we are. We are also a Nation that loves to help, feels an obligation to lend a hand, lift up others when we have the opportunity. We are a Nation in which everyone of us have had the "do you give your spare change to the homeless" debate, because regardless of the answer we all have felt the a conflict in walking away without handing something over to someone in need.

We are a society of people who have even felt selfish in giving because it makes us feel good. Because we want to help others.

(Photo: AP Spencer Platt)

We are not a nation that spends our precious moments on this earth angry because of which of the good-hearted, great men was chosen to lead this amazing Nation. At least that is what I need to believe. I see so much good in you, America.

I see that huge heart that breaks when you see others in need. And no matter where your bed is tonight, remember those who are without one.

This post is dedicated to all of the victims of hurricane Sandy, from Jamaica, to Cuba, to Haiti, to New Jersey to New York.

To all of the more than 110 lives that were lost in the USA, and the 71 lost in the Caribbean.

For the more than 55 billion dollars of damage the storm did.

This post is so little, in the face of that. But like you, America, I want to help. And if I could, I would make every person affected by the storm a big bowl of soup, and listen to their story and hope that I did someone some good.

Click on the picture to give to Red Cross to assist in their efforts to help:

This post was part of a blog event put on my Creative Culinary.

Other ways to give:

Potato Artichoke Bisque

Ingredients

2 tbs butter
1 leek, chopped (white and very light green parts only)
1 shallot, minced
1/4 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbs white wine
4 cups broth (either chicken or vegetable)
4 cups red potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 cups artichoke hearts, divided
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 cup cream

Instructions

In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and shallots, sautee until soft and slightly caramelized, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and stir. Add the wine, scraping to deglaze the pot.
Add the broth, potatoes, and only 1 cup of the artichoke hearts. Cover and allow to simmer (adjust heat if necessary) until potatoes are fork tender, about 20-30 minutes. Remove from heat. Using an immersion blender, belnd until smooth.
Add pepper chili powder and cream, stir until combined. Salt to taste.
Chop remaining artichoke hearts.
Pour into 4 bowls, garnish with chopped artichoke hearts.

(Yields 4 servings)

Skinny Baked Potato Soup 210 Calories

24.09.2012 21 Comments

Raise your hand if you ate way to much this weekend.

I finally found pie pumpkins in my city wide search and participated in hours of pumpkin glutton. Those posts will be up later, but I needed a bit of a pumpkin detox before jumping back in for more. I have no plans to stop my fall pumpkin worship, but I needed a break.

I am also preparing for October Unprocessed. Have you taken the challenge? I signed up. Andrew of Eating Rules has asked if we could all go just one month without eating processed foods. I did it last year and found that it was both easier and more challenging that I had thought. What is processed food? That’s quite the debate, but it gets you thinking. It was, more than anything, a great reminder to read every single label on every single package I buy. Why am I buying a jam with ingredients I don’t recognize when I can just buy the one with only two: Strawberries, sugar.

Why don’t I just buy my bread from the baker down the street, with his 4 ingredients rather than the package from across the country with 17 ingredients?

More produce, less cans, no Doritos. You can do it.

There is no fixed answer to the question, "What is unprocessed?" but the simple answer is: do you have (or could you have) all of those ingredients in your kitchen and could a person reasonably make it themselves.

For instance, I have lots of friends who are home brewers and they make beer themselves. So that makes beer OK to have, it passes the Kitchen Test. If you could reasonably assume you COULD make it, it’s OK.

However, I have no idea how to pronounce half of the ingredients in Oreos, I don’t have those in my kitchen, I could not make that product, with those exact ingredients, so sorry, no Oreos for me. For more in depth answer to the questions, you can read this.

The best thing about this challenge, is that it gets us thinking. About what we eat, who we "vote for" with the dollars we spend, and what we are training our bodies to crave.

And if you can’t go a month with eating just real whole food, then why not? Why is that hard for you?

I encourage you sign up, even if you know you can’t be perfect. Can you do Unprocessed Wednesday Night Dinners? Sign up and give it a try. It will get you thinking about what you’re eating, and what you are feeding your family.

This soup recipe could even be debated (although it is not yet October). While some ingredients easily pass the kitchen test, it reminds you to read the labels on the brands of sour cream and cheese you buy. Some will only have three or four easily recognized ingredients while some brands will have several more. It’s just about being mindful of what you buy.

Skinny Baked Potato Soup 210 Calories

Ingredients

1 tbs olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 leek, chopped (only white and light green part)
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups fat free chicken broth
4 cups cauliflower, chopped
1 large russet potato, peeled and chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/2 cup milk

Garnishes:

1/2 cup light sour cream
1/4 cup shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese, 1 large tomato, chopped
1/2 cup green onion or chives, chopped

(Makes 4 servings)

Instructions

In a pot over medium high heat, add the leeks and onions, cook until softened, stirring frequently. Add garlic and stir. Add the chicken broth, potatoes, and cauliflower and allow to boil until vegetables are softened, about 15 minutes.
Remove from heat. Using an immersion blender or a food processor, puree until smooth. Stir in the spices and milk, return to heat and allow to simmer until thickened to desired consistency (the longer you simmer, the thicker the soup will become).
Divide among 4 bowls, top each one with 2 tbs sour cream and stir. Top with remaining garnishes and serve.

Cheesy Potato Pancakes with Jalapeno Sour Cream

12.09.2012 23 Comments

I like to throw parties, invite people over and make them feel at home. I like to make more than enough food, and for everyone to leave very full and with a take away bag of goodies. But the last time I had a little gathering at Casa De Dodd, I had overlooked my Gluten Free friends. I had remembered the vegetarians, and the vegans, the people who don’t drink beer, but for the ones who are allergic to gluten there wasn’t much. I felt terrible.

Gluten Free isn’t a fad diet. It isn’t Paleo or Raw or Weight Watchers. It isn’t a choice. It’s a medical condition and a food allergy that is one of the fasted growing diagnosed food allergies in the United States.

Gluten Free (Celiac’s Disease) people don’t want to give up bread. And regular pizza, or hamburger buns and flour tortillas, they don’t have much of a choice. Eat gluten free or become debilitatingly ill. Have you ever had food poisoning? In away, it’s like that.

And with over 3 million American’s allergic to gluten, chances are your next party may have one. It might even be you, Celiacs is most often diagnosed in adulthood. Because we want everyone who walks into our parties to feel at home, we all need to have a stock pile of appetizers to accommodate. Because unlike other diets, this isn’t a choice.

Because gluten is used as a thickener in tons of processed foods, it can easily hid in obscure places like canned soup, pre-made salad dressing, imitation crab, cheese spread and some brands of soy sauce.

At each party I need to have a few Celiac Friendly dishes that I made from scratch so that I can be sure there isn’t any rogue gluten waiting like a digestive ninja to attach my friends insides. Potatoes are a great place to start. Because who doesn’t love potatoes? It’s like not liking puppies or The Beatles.

So when you come across Gluten Free appetizers and dishes that you love, bookmark for them for gatherings. Because your friends would do it for you.

Cheesy Potato Pancakes with Jalapeno Sour Cream

Ingredients

1 cup red potatoes, grated with a cheese grater
1 egg
1 tbs masa (corn flour used to make corn tortillas)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
pinch cayenne
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (if using pre shredded, check to make sure it does not contain gluten)
1 cup sour cream
1 jalapeno, diced, stem and seeds removed
1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Instructions

Place grated potatoes between several sheets of paper towels, press to remove some of the moisture. In a bowl, combine the grated potato, egg, masa, salt, pepper, cayenne and onion powder, mix until combined.
Heat olive oil over medium high heat until hot but not smoking. Form potatoes into silver dollar sized pancakes about 1/4 inch thick. Add to the pan and cook until browned, about 2 minutes, then flip pancake. Top the pancakes with a small amount of cheddar cheese, cook until cheese is melted and underside of the pancake is browned, about an additional 3 minutes. Remove from pan and allow to drain on a paper towel.
In a bowl, combine the sour cream, jalapenos and smoked paprika, mix. Top the potato pancakes with sour cream. Serve warm.

Skinny Potato Skins: 62 Calories

27.03.2012 18 Comments

I’m not going to sit here and pretend that these are as good as the real thing. Those potato skins loaded up with bacon, sour cream and cheese that are somewhere around 62 calories per bite. But these make a great lunch durring my "I am GOING to lose those final 3 pounds" week. And they reheat really well, so you can make a batch on Sunday, and reheat them through out the week for lunch. With a side of this salad.

I’ve run the numbers and have come up with 62 calories each potato half, but that completely depends on the size of your potato and the amount of flesh you scoop out of it.

My Husband added fat free sour cream and shredded cheese. If you add a tbs of fat free sour cream and a tsp of shredded part skim mozzarella cheese, it will about double the calories in the potato. But, if you like it more and that will make you eat less, it may be worth it.

Also, this dish is:

Gluten Free

Vegan

Kosher for Passover

Skinny jeans friendly

Skinny Potato Skins

4 large red potatoes

1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced, stem removed

1 large yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced, stem removed

2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

olive oil cooking spray

2 tbs Smart Balance Light, melted

1 1/2 tbs or Fajita Seasonings

(Or: 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp chili powder)

1/2 cup Pico De Gallo (or you fav salsa)

Preheat oven to 400.

Pierce the potatoes a few times with a fork and microwave on high for 5-7 minutes or until cooked through. Remove and allow to cool until enough to handle. Cut in half and scoop out most of the insides, leaving about 1/4 inch of the walls in tact. You can save the potato middles for mashed potatoes or potato cakes.

Place thinly sliced bell peppers, mushrooms, and garlic on a baking sheet. Spray lightly with olive oil cooking spray and sprinkle with fajita seasoning (or the homemade blend) and toss to coat.

Roast the vegetables in the oven for 15 minutes or until soft and the mushrooms have browned, tossing every 5-8 minutes with a heat safe spatula.

Place the skins on a baking sheet and brush the insides with melted smart balance light, sprinkle with salt. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, allow to cool slightly.