Tag Archives: potato recipes

Cauliflower and Arugula Soup

Here is a soup that is perfect for this time of year, The evenings are cooler , the variety of local produce  is not quite so robust, but there are beautiful heads of cauliflower. Gorgeous to look at and delicious to eat. It’s just a few simple steps to having a warming bowl of cauliflower soup, balance with peppery arugula. This is definitely a recipe you will want to make over and over again during the cold season.

From by the bay, wishing you warm white soup memories!

Maryann

Cauliflower and Arugula Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds cauliflower ( 1 medium head) florets broken off and stalk chopped
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 1 large potato , peeled and chopped
  • 2 cups half and half
  • 1/4 cup scallions chopped, white part only
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 cup arugula leaves
  • 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Directions

Place all ingredients ( except arugula, salt and pepper) in a large pot over high heat and bring to a  boil. Turn down heat and bring to a simmer for 10 to 15 minutes until cauliflower starts to soften. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add arugula and mix and serve. Or place in the container and refrigerate until ready to use. Heat and serve.

Homemade Potato Chips

farm potato

The perfect comfort food treat- homemade potato chips – make it interesting by using different varieties of potatoes, I  tried purple fingerling potatoes and just loved the deep violet color. The skin is smooth and edible so no need to peel. This is perfect along side your favorite champagne, wine or well with almost anything.

From by the bay wishing you vivid homemade food memories!

Maryann

blog blue potato chips

 

Homemade Potato Chips

Ingredients

28 ounces canola  oil
3-4 medium russet potatoes (about 1-1/4 pounds) or Blue Yukon
Fine sea salt

Directions

Pour oil  into 4-quart saucepan  about 3 inches deep. Use a thermometer and heat oil to 375º F. Scrub potatoes, remove deep eyes and blemishes from skin. Slice potatoes thinly, about 1/16-inch using a mandoline (manual slicer) . Place slices into a large bowl of ice water covering potatoes and let soak for 30 minutes. Drain water from potatoes and repeat placing potato slices in another bowl of ice water for 30 more minutes. Remove excess water by processing in salad spinner and then blot with paper towels to prevent spattering while frying. Line two baking sheets with paper towels. Deep fry potatoes in 2 to 3 batches, stirring potatoes occasionally, until light golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle hot chips with sea salt to taste; toss to coat evenly. Repeat with remaining potatoes. Before serving you can reheat the chips on an unlined baking sheet in a single layer in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes.

Old Bay Baked Fries

Old Bay Seasoning is a favorite seasoning mix here by the bay, I’d like to say its’ the name, but that is not quite true. Old Bay is a wonderful combination of 12 spices including ginger, cinnamon, clove, mace, bay laurel, just to name a few. It adds a lot of flavor making these baked oven fries both delicious and easy!! This is a great easy side dish to add to almost any meal!
From by the bay wishing you yummy old bay food memories!
Maryann
blog fries
Baked Old Bay Fries
Serves 4 
Ingredients
2 pounds Idaho potatoes, cleaned with skin on and cut into wedges
non stick olive oil spray
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
extra coarse sea salt such as Maldon to season after baking
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  In a large size bowl add potatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil, Old Bay Seasoning and fine sea salt. Mix well. Spray 2 non stick baking sheets with the olive oil spray. Place seasoned potatoes onto the baking sheets in a single layer. Spray again lightly with olive oil spray so the potatoes will brown in oven. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes until brown, do not turn while cooking. When browned, remove from oven and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Serve immediately.

Great American side dishes

Article first published as Great American Side Dishes on Technorati

OK, why side dishes?  When I’m planning  the menu for an all american  barbecue that menu will include one of these classic side dishes:  macaroni salad , potato salad or coleslaw. I think it’s essential to have favorite versions of each at the ready to prepare. They need to be delicious, yet simple. My first 4th of July on the Bay was such a meal. Coleslaw was not a problem, I fortuantely had my grandmother’s coleslaw recipe, which I have enhanced along the way with additional herbs and lemon juice. I developed a great potato salad recipe one day, really by accident when I had leftover roasted baby yukon potatoes. I have been serving it ever since with raves from all my family and friends. For me, macaroni salad was the side that I didn’t have my go to recipe.  I spent hours looking for the perfect macaroni salad recipe. It sounds silly but so many had too many extra ingredients : ham, relish , eggs etc.   So many versions but none really appealed to me, so I needed to come up with my own. This recipe is light on the mayonnaise and refreshing with the lemon juice, celery and dill. Hope you will make these your great american side dishes too!

From by the bay wishing you great american food memories! Maryann blog coleslaw lemon

Lemon Cilantro Coleslaw

Serves 6-8

1 head cabbage finely shredded

1 carrot finely shredded 1/4 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup white vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup fine sugar

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 cup fresh cilantro and Italian parsley , finely chopped

2 large scallions finely chopped

Directions

In a large bowl place all ingredients and mix well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill for at least 8 hours. This can be served cold or at room temperature.

Variation:

Summer Dill Coleslaw

1 head cabbage finely shredded

1 carrot finely shredded

½ cup white vinegar

1/4 cup vegetable oil

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

¼ cup fresh dill, chopped

Directions

In a large bowl place all ingredients and mix well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill for at least 8 hours. This can be served cold or at room temperature.

Hint: Use a mandolin when shredding your cabbage, the thinner the cabbage is the better the coleslaw will taste.

blog potato salad

Roasted  Potato Salad with Mixed Herbs

Serves 4

2  pounds baby Yukon Gold Potatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons fine sea salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 sour cream

1/2 chop mixed chopped fresh herbs (parsley, basil, mint, cilantro)

3 scallions chopped

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Additional salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 400F. Toss potatoes in bowl with salt , pepper and olive oil. Arrange potatoes into single layer in an ovenproof baking dish. Roast approximately 1 hour, until golden brown on outside and tender when pierced by a knife. Cool completely. Sliced potatoes ½ inch thick and place into bowl. Add mayonnaise, sour cream, herbs, scallions, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerator until ready to serve.

Variation: Roasted Dill Potato Salad

The mixed chop herbs should be parsley and dill about half of each. Remove from the above recipe mayonnaise, sour cream and lemon juice. In it’s place make a dressing with ½ cup olive oil, 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar and 1 tablespoon grainy mustard. Whisk together and pour over the potatoes and herbs. Garnish with crumbled bacon from three cooked slices.

blog mac salad
Dill Macaroni Salad

Serves 6

1 pound cooked elbow macaroni

3/4 cup sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

4 tablespoons heavy cream

1 tablespoon white vinegar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon lemon zest

3 celery ribs, chopped finely

1/2 onion ,chopped finely

3 tablespoons dill, chopped

2 tablespoon fine sugar

1 tablespoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon hot paprika

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Optional: 3-4 tablespoons water

Directions

In a large bowl add all ingredients. Combine well. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready for use. Before serving from the refrigerator  add 3-4 tablespoons of water to add a little moisture. Garnish with additional paprika and dill leaves.

Potato Soup with Small Dumplings

There is nothing better on a blustery cold day then a warm bowl of soup. I have fond memories of my grandmother taking out her dutch oven on such days and making this soup from the staples she always had in her pantry. Her original recipe didn’t include the bacon. I happened to have some bacon leftover in the fridge and decided to use it. You could just as easily not use the bacon and just throw all the ingredients for the soup into the pot and simmer away, making this about as easy as any soup you could make. If you are feeling up for it by all means take the extra steps to fry the bacon and saute your onions and celery, the results were delicious. What really makes this potato soup so magnficent to eat, is not the bacon, it’s the dumplings you simmer into the soup at the end. Again, these are no fail dumplings just stir and drop into the hot soup to simmer into yummy small white balls soaked with the flavor of the soup. It’s the perfect comfort food to warm you from the harsh cold of winter.From by the bay wishing you warm potato food memories!
Maryann
blog potato soup
 
Potato Soup with Small Dumplings
Serves 6
Ingredients for soup
4 ounces thick bacon, chopped
6 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
5 cups water
1 tablespoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
3-4 cloves
optional: chopped parsley for garnish
Ingredients for drop dumplings
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
Directions
In a Dutch oven cook bacon until crisp. Remove bacon with slotted spoon onto paper towel and set aside. In the bacon fat saute the celery and onion until softened. Add the potatoes, water, salt, pepper and cloves. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Remove the cloves out of the soup. With a potato masher, puree most of the vegetables.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. If the soup is too thick for your preference you can add some water and continue to simmer. To make the dumplings, combine the egg, water, salt and flour mixing until smooth. Drop by teaspoonfuls into the boiling soup. Cover and simmer until the dumplings are cooked through, about 10 minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley and crisp bacon pieces.