Potato & Goat Cheese Pizza

Printable recipe

Prep time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 10-12 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 pizza crust (when I'm in a hurry to too pooped to make my own, I buy ready baked pizza crusts and keep a few in the freezer)
1/4 cup good extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed or crushed
1 medium potato, very thinly sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
soft goat cheese ( how much is up to you)

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450F/220C and place a pizza stone in the middle of the oven ... better if you have one but no worries if you don't just heat a baking sheet.

2. In a small dish or the measuring cup you measured the oil, combine olive oil, rosemary and garlic.  Set aside.

3. Very thinly slice one medium potato.  I use a mandolin and then let the potato slices sit in cold water for 5 minutes.   Dry the slices and set aside.

4. Once the oven is preheated, if you're using the pizza stone, let it stay in the oven for another 10 minutes before baking the pizza.

5.  Pizza assembly:  place the pizza crust on a pizza paddle or bottom of a baking sheet so that you can slide the pizza directly on to the stone.    Brush the pizza with the olive oil mixture,  place a layer of potatoes, sprinkle with onions and dollops of goat cheese.

6.  Slide onto the pizza stone and bake for 10-12 minutes, until potatoes are cooked and goat cheese melted and a little golden.

Lemon Zesty Grilled Potatoes

Adapted from Canadian Living: The Barbecue Collection
Printable Recipe


Hands-on time: 5 minutes
Par-boiling time: 10-15 minutes (depending on the size of the potatos)
Grilling time: 5 minutes on a hot grill (or sauteed over high heat on top of stove)
Serves 4


Ingredients:
2lb/1kg baby new potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled
2-3 tbsp olive oil
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper to taste


Directions:
1. Boil potatoes in salted water until tip of knife makes it almost to the center of the potato before meeting resistance.   Drain and pat dry.


2. In a bowl, whisk the olive oil, lemon zest, salt & pepper. Add the drained potatoes and toss to coat well.


3. Use a BBQ vegetable basket (has holes so vegetables can char a bit without falling through the BBQ grate)


4. Grill over medium high heat until the potatoes are golden and tender.  If you don't have a BBQ you can saute in a skillet over high heat until the potatoes are done.  

New Potato & Black Olive Salad

Adapted from Martha Stewart via Pinterest


Printable Recipe


Prep time: 5 minutes
Boiling time: 5-15 minutes depending on the size of the potatoes - keep checking, you don't want them mushy

Serves 4

Ingredients
1/2 kg/1 lb new potatoes, cut in half unless they are very small

• 1 tablespoon coarse salt, plus extra for seasoning
• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 1/3 cup cured Kalamata olives,  pitted & coarsely chopped
• chopped chives - as much or little as you like
• salt & freshly ground pepper to taste.

1. Boil the potatoes in salted water until they are almost tender .  Always start with cold water.

2. Drain and quickly immerse in ice cold water for 1-2 minutes to stop the cooking.  Drain well and pat dry with paper toweling.  Wet potatoes won't absorb the dressing.

3. Put potatoes in a large bowl and add the olives, olive oil and vinegar, chives and salt & freshly ground pepper   Toss well and taste - too subtle, add more vinegar, too vinegary - quickly add more oil.  

Rosemary Potato & Beet Rosti

Printable Recipe


Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 10-15 minutes


Serves 4 


 Ingredients: 1lb/450g new potatoes, rinsed
1 large beet, peeled
1 large clove garlic, shaved or very thinly sliced
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil

  Directions
1. Grate the potatoes and beets SEPARATELY in a food processor.

 2. In a large mixing bowl, place the grated potatoes, then the grated beets and gently toss.

 3. In another bowl, beat the eggs and add the rosemary, shaved garlic, salt and pepper and combine well. Add to the beet and potato mixture and thoroughly mix.

 4. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a medium skillet over medium high heat. When hot (one shred of potato will sizzle) add the rosti mixture and flatten.

 5. Cook for 4 minutes over medium high heat. When golden underneath (a quick peek with a spatula will tell the tale), flip. The easiest way to flip so the rosti pancake does not turn into scrambled eggs is to place an inverted plate over the rosti and flip the entire pan upside down. The golden bottom should now be on top and can easily slide back into the pan. You might want to add a touch more oil before you do.

 6. Cook for another 5 minutes and then check to see if the potatoes are actually cooked through. If not, lower the heat and cover for another couple of minutes.

Sprinkle with a little more salt & pepper and serve.  

Grilled Italian Potatoes

From Food & Drink, Summer 2011

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Grill time: 20-25 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 ½ lb/750g small new potatoes, scrubbed (if larger than 1” in length, cut them in half)
12 cloves garlic, peeled (I also whacked them with the side of a large knife)
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup grated Parmesan
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped

Directions:
1. Preheat grill to high.

2. Place potatoes in a metal baking dish. Add garlic and toss with olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Cover baking dish with foil and grill for 20-25 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and lightly browned, shaking occasionally. If you don’t have a bbq, you could do them roasted in the oven at 425°F/220°C on a foil covered baking sheet.

3. Remove from heat, sprinkle with Parmesan and basil and toss until the cheese is melted and well combined.

A Very Different NS Stir Fried Potato

Nova Scotian Stir Fried Potato Slices
From Anita Stewart's Canada: The Food/The Recipes/The Stories

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 8-10 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
4 potatoes (I like Yukon Gold), peeled & thinly sliced
2 tbsp canola oil
2-3 green onions, chopped
3 slices fresh ginger, minced
2 tsp light soy sauce
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 tbsp water
1 clove garlic, minced

Directions:
1. Place sliced potatoes in a bowl of cold water, rinse, add more cold water to cover the potatoes and let stand for 2 minutes.

2. Get all the other ingredients ready and heat oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat.

3. Add the green onions and ginger to the oil, stir fry for a few seconds and add the potato slices. Toss about and stir fry for 1-2 minutes. Add the soy sauce, pepper and water. Cover and reduce heat to medium to simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic when the potatoes are tender and stir over heat for 30 seconds or so… just long enough to lose the bitterness of the garlic.

This is great as a side for steak and make enough for leftovers because the potatoes along with some crispy bacon or pancetta will make an awesome frittata.

Potato, Rosemary & Cured Sausage Pizza

Potato, Rosemary & Cured Sausage Pizza
Inspired by The Southern Italian Table

Printable Recipe

Hands-on time: 15 minutes plus the time to actually make the pizza dough (see California Style Pizza for my favorite recipe) or buy ready to use pizza dough – lots of supermarkets carry it.
Total Cooking time: 10 minutes + 30 minutes to preheat the oven and the baking stone.
Serves 2-4 depending on what else you’re serving. One pizza in my house covers a pizza peel (about 12”) and feed the two of us with a salad.

Ingredients:
California style pizza dough
Extra virgin olive oil (just enough to brush the surface of the pizza
2-3 small potatoes (I like Yukon Gold) boiled and thinly sliced
Handful or so of your favorite cured Italian salami like sopresseta, (for this dish I prefer ones cured in sausage form)cut into thin slices
1 tbsp garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
Cornmeal for preparing pizza peel
Handful fresh bocconcini/mozzarella, shredded (optional)
¼ - ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions:
1. Prepare pizza dough as directed.

2. Preheat at 450-500°F/230-260°C for at least 30 minutes (and since my oven is slow to reach the optimal temperature, I give it even more time) so timing is everything. If you’re not using a pizza stone, I would still preheat the pizza pans to give the crust a really good crispiness, but you probably only need 10-15 minutes. Lay the stone or baking sheet on the lowest rack for electric, on the floor of your oven for gas ranges.

3. Roll out the pizza dough (as per instructions) and shape as desired. Place on a pizza peel that’s been sprinkled with coarsely ground corn meal which acts as ball bearings and makes for easy sliding onto the pizza peel.

4. Brush all over with olive oil. And either…top with fresh mozzarella , or omit the cheese and just place a layer of cooked potatoes over the oiled pizza dough leaving ½” border around the edges. Sprinkle with rosemary and garlic and distribute sausage coins evenly. Do remember to only do single thin layers of potatoes and sausages or the pizza will be too heavy too heavy to slide onto the pizza stone. Brush the edges with a little more olive oil.

5. If you’re using a pizza peel, give it a quick shake to make sure it’s not stuck anywhere and then transfer to the preheated pizza stone with a good, quick jerking motion. Bake until the crust is golden –about 10 minutes in total. Sprinkle with some Parmesan and return to the oven for 2 minutes or just until the cheese melts.

6. Remove pizza to a wire rack (we just put it directly on the cutting board) and let stand for 2 minutes and then transfer to a cutting board or tray and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Slice and serve.

Chorizo Cheese Potato Wraps

Chorizo Cheese Potato Wraps
From Fresh with Anna Olson: Seasonally Inspired Recipes to Share with Family and Friends

Printable Recipe

Hands on time: 10-15 minutes
Oven time: 25 minutes

Makes 12-15
Serves 4 (or in my house …2)

Ingredients:
3 large russet potatoes
12 thin slices of cured chorizo sausage (already cooked), sliced across
1 cup old cheddar cheese, grated

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. You will need a second baking sheet the same size and another sheet of parchment as well.

2. Peel the potatoes and thinly slice them lengthwise into ¼” slices . The book suggests that each potato will turn out 24 slices, but I used my mandolin and made more. I can’t imagine using a knife to get them that thin.

3. Once the potatoes are sliced, line them up on a baking sheet (Anna brushes the parchment with vegetable oil, but I didn’t find it needed any). Place a thin slice of chorizo on the center of each potato. Sprinkle some grated cheese over top, keeping the edges of the potato clear. Top with another slice of potato.

4. Place a second sheet of parchment over the potatoes…don’t miss this step or they will stick to the bottom of the top pan. Place another baking pan over top and bake in the center of the oven for 15 minutes. Remove the top baking pan and parchment that is covering the potatoes and continue to bake for 8 minutes or until golden and crisp.

Serve them warm or at room temperature…and be prepared to make another batch!

Potato & Garlic Omelet

Potato & Garlic Omelet
From The Provencal Cookbook

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes

Serves: 2 - 4

Ingredients:
4 small new potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 spring/green onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp flat leaf/Italian parsley, chopped
6 medium eggs (I used 5 large)
Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ tbsp unsalted butter

Directions:
1. Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water. Ruth’s note: the book calls for cooking the potatoes whole and peeling them once cooked and slightly cooled. To speed up the process… I was hungry, I quartered the potatoes to cook them and left the skins on. Once cooked (tender to a fork), drain and coarsely chop.

2. In a 8-9” non stick skillet, cook the potatoes, garlic, green onion and half the parsley over medium heat until the potatoes turn golden and crispy around the edges (about 5 minutes).

3. In the meantime, in a bowl, whisk the eggs with salt and pepper until well blended. Add a little more oil in the pan and spread the eggs over the cooked potato mixture, spreading evenly in the pan and raise the temperature to medium high. Cook without stirring but shaking often so that the omelet doesn’t stick, until the omelet is set.

4. Remove from the heat. Swirl the butter over the omelet to make it shine and sprinkle with the rest of the parsley. Slip the omelet onto a serving plate and cut into wedges.

Serve at once. It makes a wonderful supper or lunch/brunch and great with a mixed green salad.

Lemon Roasted New Potatoes

Lemon Roasted New Potatoes
From New Vegetarian

Printable Recipe

Hands-on time: 5 minutes
Par-boiling time: 5-10 minutes (depending on the size of the potatos)
Roasting time: 20-30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2lb/1kg baby new potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled
¼ cup olive oil
2 lemons, grated zest of both and juice of one
1 tsp sugar
Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C

2. In the meantime, parboil the potatoes in salted water for 5 minutes or until a fork or knife tip makes it almost to the center of the potato before meeting resistance.

3. In a bowl, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice & zest, sugar, salt & pepper. Add the drained potatoes and toss to coat well.

4. Roast in an ovenproof pan with all the juices, turning and basting several times until the potatoes are golden and tender.

Wild Mushroom Potato Kugel

Wild Mushroom Potato Kugel
From The Gefilte Variations

Hands on time: 20-30 minutes
Baking time: 1 hour
Rest time: 10 minutes

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
1oz/28g dried wild mushrooms
4 tbsp olive oil plus enough to grease the pan
12oz/340g onions, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp garlic, chopped
6-8 medium russet (baking potatoes) peeled
4 large eggs, beaten
Excellent quality extra virgin olive oil to drizzle over the kugel
Sweet Hungarian paprika to sprinkle over kugel

Directions:
1. Soak the dried mushrooms in 2 cups of very hot water for 1 hour or until soft. Drain the mushrooms through a sieve and reserve the soaking liquid. Drain the soaking liquid through a strainer lined with paper towels or coffee filter paper. Rinse the mushrooms under cool water, squeeze dry and coarsely chop.

2. Heat oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until crisp and golden (about 15 minutes….don’t rush this step…the caramelizing of the onions makes them sweet). Transfer to a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

3. In the same pan (no need to wash) add the chopped mushrooms, garlic and reserved soaking liquid. Boil over high heat, stirring occasionally until all the liquid evaporates and remove from heat.

4. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Grease a 13” x 9” large oven proof lasagna dish, (the book recommends enameled cast iron or metal not glass) with olive oil and place in the oven. This makes for a crispy crust when you finally add the potato mixture.

5. Grate potatoes in a food processor or large holes of a hand grater (I always take the easy way). Transfer to large bowl of cold water through this process to keep the potatoes from turning grey. Change the water once and then drain the potatoes. Squeeze out as much water as possible. Dry the bowl and then return the potatoes adding the eggs, fried onions and more salt & pepper.

6. Remove the hot pan from the oven and pour out any extra oil into the potato mixture. Pour half the potatoes into the pan, spread the mushroom mixture evenly over top and then cover with the rest of the potatoes, adding any of the liquid.

7. Drizzle with a little good quality olive oil and sprinkle with some sweet paprika.

8. Bake for about 1 hour or so until golden Remove from the oven and let it stand for 10-15 minutes.

Lamb & Eggplant Shepherd's Pie

Lamb & Eggplant Shepherd’s Pie
From Bon Appetit
This is not my usual, quick supper. It's the kind of thing you do on a day you'll be around. It's not difficult, just time consuming. The end result is well worth the effort though.

Prep time: 1 hour
Stove top cooking time: 2-2½ hours
Baking time: 45 minutes
Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
Filling:
1 large eggplant (1.5lb/680g), unpeeled & cut into ¾ -1” pieces
Coarse kosher or sea salt
Extra virgin olive oil (BA says 7 tbsp divided, but I just used a little at a time as I felt it needed through the recipe)
2lb/1kg boneless lamb cut into 1” cubes
All purpose flour (just enough to dredge the lamb)
2 large onions, chopped
1 cup dry white wine
1 tin (28oz/796ml) diced tomatoes in juice
3 cups beef broth
8 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp dried oregano
Topping:
2.5 lb/1kg russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1” cubes
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled
¾ cup milk
1 ¼ cups (5-6 oz/140-170g) kasseri cheese (BA suggests Provolone as a substitute and it tasted delicious), coarsely grated
Sweet Paprika (smoked would be delicious too) to sprinkle over the potatoes before baking.

Directions:
Preparing the filling: (about 30-40 minutes)
1. Place cut up eggplant on a large rimmed cookie sheet and sprinkle with coarse salt. Leave for about 1 hour, tossing occasionally. Rinse well and pat very dry.

2. Heat some olive oil in a large, heavy bottom large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the eggplant and sauté until tender, adding a little more oil if needed, but sparingly…remember that eggplant is like a sponge and will absorb everything you give it. (about 12-15 minutes). Transfer to a medium bowl.

3. Add more oil to the same pot and sear the lamb on all sides in batches. Over crowding will just give you boiled meat and the juices will escape, leaving dry lamb. Remove lamb as it’s browned and set aside in a large bowl. (about 15 minutes – the meat should be well browned and crusty on the outside, but still quite raw inside).

4. In the same pot (with all the lamb removed), add a little more oil and the onions. Toss, cover and lower the heat to medium-low until the onions are tender and translucent (about 10-15 minutes). The bottom of the pot should be very dark brown by this time, don’t worry. Add the wine, increase the heat to high and boil until the wine evaporates, scraping the bottom of the pan (about 5 minutes).

5. Add the tomatoes with their juice, the broth, garlic and oregano and bring to a boil. Add the lamb and any juices in the bowl. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 1 hour and then uncover and continue to simmer until the lamb is very tender and the gravy thickens (about 45 minutes longer - Note: I found it very soupy, so I added a slurry of 1 tbsp cornstarch to 1-2 tbsp water to dissolve the cornstarch).

6. Stir in the eggplant, add some salt & pepper if you like. Transfer to a large baking dish (BA suggests glass, I used my ceramic lasagna pan. Note: they say 13”x9”x2”, but that really filled to the top without the topping, so I suggest either a larger pan or at the very least set the pan in a large rimmed baking sheet lined with foil for easy cleanup. This step can be made up to 3 days in advance.)

Preparing the topping: (about 30-40 minutes)
1.Cook the potatoes in salted water in a large pot until tender. I actually boiled the garlic with the potatoes and then mashed them to “season” the butter and oil, giving it a more mellow, but still garlicky flavor and aroma. Drain well and return to pot to eliminate any extra moisture.

2. Melt butter with the oil and add the mashed garlic in a saucepan over medium high heat. Add the milk and bring to a simmer. Add the heated milk mixture to the potatoes and mash until smooth. Stir in the cheese and season with some salt & pepper.

3. Drop the potato mixture over the filling by heaping tablespoonfuls, covering the filling completely. Note: this was when mine started to overflow and I had to ladle out some of the sauce. Sprinkle lightly with paprika.

Final Baking: (about 45 minutes)
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C

2. Bake until the filling is heated through (only really important if you’ve made the filling much earlier) and the topping is golden (about 45 minutes).

Julia Child's Rapee Morvandelle

Julia Child’s Rapee Morvandelle (Gratin of potatoes, onions & ham)
Mostly from Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
½ cup onion, finely minced
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
½ cup cooked ham, diced (Julia did say to finely dice, but I like to see little squares)
4 eggs
1 clove garlic, minced (Julia calls for ½ a clove…but seriously…)
2 tbsp fresh parsley chopped (and I added 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves too rather than the chervil…although the chives she mentioned would have been great if I had any)
2/3 cup Swiss cheese, coarsely grated
4 tbsp cream or milk (I’m living an illusion that I can make this healthier)
Pepper and salt to taste
3 medium potatoes, peeled and coarsely grated
2 tbsp butter to melt in the baking dish plus ½ tbsp butter cut in little pea sized bits to sprinkle on top
Paprika (my addition, because I love how it adds color to the baked dish)

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 375°F/180°C

1. Cook the onions slowly in butter and oil for 5 minutes or so over low heat. You want them soft, not browned. Stir occasionally.

2. Raise the heat a bit and add the ham. Stir and let cook for 2 minutes or so and remove from heat.

3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and add the garlic, herbs, cheese, milk/cream and salt & pepper and mix well. Add the ham & onion mixture and toss again. Set aside while you prepare the potatoes.

4. Peel the potatoes and cut in half. If you are going to grate them by hand, do it over a bowl of cold water to keep the potatoes from turning pink or, worse, grey. If you are using the grating blade of your food processor, you don’t need to do that…it only takes a minute.

5. Squeeze the excess water/liquid from the potatoes and add them to the egg mixture. Mix each squeezed handful in before doing more…that, too keeps the potatoes white.

6. Prepare your oven proof dish by melting an additional 2 tbsp of butter. When we (my mother, grandmother, aunts, now daughters…it’s a Jewish tradition) make potato kugel, we heat oil in the pan in the oven so that the potatoes will form its own crispy shell…I forgot to do it here, but I bet it would be great.

7. Once the butter is melted, pour in the egg, potato & ham mixture into the dish. Sprinkle with last bit of butter pieces and I sprinkled with paprika for even more color…Do you think Julia would mind?

8. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the top is nicely browned.

Roasted New Potatoes with Rosemary

Roasted New Potatoes with Rosemary
Adapted from Forever Summerand some TV show Nigella Lawson was on

Prep time: 5 minutes
Roast time: 15-20 minutes (depending on the size of the potatoes)
Serves 4

Ingredients:
4-6 new potatoes per person – I like to mix red and Yukon gold for appearance
2 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Sea or Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper
Garlic, crushed (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C

2. Score the potatoes. I know you’re probably wondering what I mean…Place a potato on a wooden spoon and make 3-4 slices almost through, but not all the way through the potato. The spoon keeps the knife from going all the way.

3. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and toss until the potatoes are well coated.

4. pread out the potatoes in one layer on a lipped (lined for easier cleanup) cookie sheet (or a pyrex or glass baking dish) and roast for 10 minutes or so. Using a spatula, turn the potatoes over so they crisp on both sides and continue cooking for another 10 minutes or until they are soft in the center when tested with a fork.

5. Taste for seasoning and serve.