Crash Hot Potatoes

02 Apr 2014 Leave a comment

by sparksfromthekitchen in Holiday, Side Dish Tags:

These are the potatoes I made for this year’s St. Patrick’s Day dinner. I had heard about these so many times but had never made them. I thought they came out really delicous-and they couldn’t be easier to make. Boil, mash, sprinkle, bake. That’s it. I used Red A potatoes. They were perfect with the corned beef and cabbage-neither of which I cook the traditional way.

 

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Crash Hot Potatoes

Ingredients:

  • 3 lbs of red potatoes
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • kosher salt to taste
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • fresh rosemary

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 450F.
  2. Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Add the potatoes and cook until fork tender. Drain the potatoes and set aside.
  3. On a large baking sheet drizzle the olive oil. Place the potatoes a bit apart from each other. Using a potato masher gently press down to mash a bit then turn the masher 90 degrees and gently mash a bit more.
  4. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and rosemary and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and crispy.

Recipe courtesy of pioneerwoman.com

Note: one of those eating with us has a sodium intake restriction so I did not salt the water. I  made one row of potatoes with a large gap from the others and did not sprinkle any salt on them. What a convenient way of accommodating a restriction yet making the same dish for all.

Baked Parmesan Potatoes

15 Nov 2013 6 Comments

by sparksfromthekitchen in Side Dish Tags: ,

It’s time for another Blogger’s Choice Swap! This month’s theme was ‘Vegetarian’ and I was assigned Katie’s blog www.sotastysoyummy.blogspot.com.  She has some really great recipes on there.  If you’re familiar with my blog or me you know that I love Parmesan cheese (and most other cheeses really) so when I saw this recipe I chose it immediately. Baked Parmesan Potatoes? YUM!! They’re super simple to make and are really delicious. I had one potato as a side to a fantastic salad that I made one night.  They come out crispy on the outside and fluffy and creamy in the middle. The parmesan and butter make a slight crust along where the potato sat in the pan.

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Baked Parmesan Potatoes

Ingredients:

  • 2 russet potatoes, scrubbed, dried and quartered
  • 1/4 cup butter (half of a stick), melted
  • 2 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • olive oil
  • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Pour the melted butter into an 8×8 baking dish and then sprinkle the parmesan cheese and garlic powder evenly over the butter.
  3. Place the potatoes, long cut side down, onto the butter.  Brush the skins lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
  4. Bake for 30 minutes then turn the potatoes so that the short cut side is in the butter. Bake for another 5 minutes.
  5. Remove from the oven and allow 5 minutes to rest.
  6. Serve promptly.

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Thank you Sarah at http://tasteofhomecooking.blogspot.com for hosting these great swaps!!

Check out the other great recipes and blogs involved in the swap here:

Baked Yukon Gold Poatatoes

06 Jun 2013 Leave a comment

by sparksfromthekitchen in Side Dish, Uncategorized Tags:

In my opinion Yukon Gold potatoes are the best for baking because they’re so creamy and nutty tasting.  It couldn’t be easier to bake them either. I love cheddar cheese on these too.  Such a simple topping but it adds a nice extra bit of flavor.

yukon

Baked Yukon Gold Potatoes

Ingredients:

  • 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and dried and poked with a fork all over
  • vegetable oil
  • a few small pats of butter
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese (not pre-grated)

Instructions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400.
  2. Line a small baking dish large enough to hold both potatoes with foil.
  3. Rub the oil all over the potatoes and place them into the dish.
  4. Bake for about 1 hour or until fork tender.
  5. Remove, cut many times down into the potato and stick in the butter pieces and some cheddar cheese and then push it back together a bit so it melts in there.  Oh hell, sprinkle a little extra cheese on top too if you want to.
  6. Plate and serve.

I served these with One Great Steak and Roasted Green Beans

Sauerkraut Soup

13 Feb 2013 3 Comments

by sparksfromthekitchen in Appetizer, Freezer, Lunch, Main Dish, Soup, Thaw/Reheat & Serve Tags: , ,

This soup is really easy to make and very delicious!! I’d never had anything like it!!  Tart sauerkraut, yummy kielbasa, potatoes and onions-how can you go wrong?!  This is the time to go to your local Polish shop and get the best kielbasa you can. While you can use the regular supermarket ones using a great kielbasa really makes such a huge difference. Don’t forget they freeze well so you can buy a lot and keep them for later too.

Since we got a big snow storm on Friday night/Saturday I made this for lunch on Saturday and it was perfect. What a delicious meal on a snowy day.

1/13/14 Note: I made this soup this past Saturday morning.  The tomatoes at the store didn’t look very nice and I knew that I had a can of tomatoes in the cabinet at home.  The result is a variation that I think I like more than the original.  It makes more of a tomatoey broth.

  • 7 cups water/sauerkraut liquid instead of the 8 cups below
  • 15oz can crushed tomatoes and their liquid—omit both the plum tomatoes and tomato sauce below.

saursoup

Sauerkraut Soup

Ingredients

  • 1lb bag sauerkraut drained, liquid reserved
  • 8 cups water/sauerkraut liquid
  • 1lb kielbasa-the best quality you can find, cut into 1/4 inch rounds, then in quarters.
  • 1/4 tbsp caraway seeds
  • 1 tsp black peppercorns
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 plum tomatoes, seeds removed, chopped
  • 1 80z can tomato sauce
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 lb red potatoes, peeled, cut into bite-sized pieces

Instructions

  1. Add enough water to the reserved sauerkraut liquid to equal 8 cups.
  2. Place the sauerkraut, water, kielbasa, caraway seeds, black peppercorns, bay leaf, tomatoes and tomato sauce into a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
  3. In a small pan saute the onion and garlic until soft then add it to the soup pot.
  4. Place potato cubes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil then, when just before cooked fully, drain and add to the soup pot.
  5. Return the soup to a boil then reduce to simmer for an hour.

kielbasa

Here’s the kielbasa I used-just over 1lb.  If you have a little more or little less it’s fine.

Note: This soup freezes well so feel free to make extra and put it away for a later lunch or dinner.

My friend Michelle gave me her recipe and I’ve adapted it to this-enjoy!!