Casserole: REC: A Mediterranean potato casserole
Subject: REC: A Mediterranean potato casserole
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: Arthur Simon (aasimonjr at earthlink.net)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 00:05:57 GMT
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Will wonders never cease? If this dish already exists, I guess I can still claim independent discovery rights.... or something....
Noting that I had some Yukon Gold potatoes that were getting a bit *iffy* ( sprouts starting, etc) I decided to make a virtue of necessity. At first I thought _potato salad_, but a Mar2Ni set me right. The result follows.
1. Take two healthy springs of sweet basil, maybe 16 small leaves. Ditto flat-leaved parsley. Two cloves fresh garlic, smashed to peel them and then smashed again. 1/2 tsp Kosher salt. Mince the herbs, put all in a mortar and grind well to release the oils. Transfer to a small bowl and add 1/3 cup olive oil. Let sit for 4-6 hours.
2. Peel the potatoes and gently boil them whole until tender. Drain and pat dry. Put into a large workbowl (I used a large Corning casserole) and mash a little. Do not overmash, as you need the texture to be preserved. Gently fold in 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan or Asiago (I happened to have Parmesan available) and 12-15 Calamata olives, pitted and minced.
Take 1/3 cup room temperature sour cream and whisk in a like amount of chicken broth. Place in blender. Add 4 cloves mushy roasted garlic and 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt. Add 1/3 stick unsalted butter, melted. Blend until smooth.
Fold this liquid into the potatoes. If it seems too wet, add a tsp or two of Italian Style Bread Crumbs (available under the Progresso brand). This should be the consistency of mashed potatoes.... not to creamy, not too thick.
Press this into a cast-iron skillet ( a 7 incher should be about right, depending on the size of the potatoes) pre-greasing with a little olive oil.
Bake as you would potatoes Jannsen, finishing by turning on the broiler toward the last to brown the top.
Serve. Drizzle the olive oil (section 1) onto the potatoes at the table.
Also good cold. I ate this for breakfast this AM when Ari and Holly wanted to go outside. Incredible!
Enjoy!
A-
OBFood: For dinner tonight..... Chicken thighs pan roasted with rosemary, roasted garlic and white wine.
FWIW: Did you know that Carbonnade de Boeuf Flamande makes a *dynamite* filling for omelets?
Tis true.
From: lurline4 at earthlink.net
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 00:27:29 GMT
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Arthur Simon wrote:
> Noting that I had some Yukon Gold potatoes
> that were getting a bit *iffy* ( sprouts starting,
> etc) I decided to make a virtue of necessity.
I was always told not to eat any potato that had sprouts on it or that were green as they could make you very ill. If i ever see them just through them out.
From: Arthur Simon (aasimonjr at earthlink.net)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 02:16:15 GMT
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lurline4 wrote:
> I was always told not to eat any potato that had sprouts on it or that
> were green as they could make you very ill.
> If i ever see them just through them out.
Well, dear reader....
There is a note of truth to this.
Potatoes are Solanaceous plants, with relates them to the deadly nightshade, the belladonna, and the tomato.
The leaves are loaded with toxic alkaloids, indeed the nightshade was used (in a rub in fat) to induce visions for witches in earlier times.
When potato skins turn *green*, they are beginning to become photosynthetic, and therefore begin to produce toxic alkaloids.
The alkaloids are in the skin.
Peel this off, and you're ok. It's a good idea to do this early on, for safety's sake. As I see it, the conversion does not begin until the sprouts are well into development.
Catch it early.
My casserole was absolutely delicious, and I am still here, and I am *not* hallucinating..... <G> Am I?
BTW: Made that puppy last night, and wrote the recipe today. I am *not* dead, as far as I can tell. But then, maybe the Mar2Ni made the difference. <G>
My grandmother used to say that one could *never* put tomatoes into the refrigerator in the original can/tin. She always told me that it would be poison. I queried her, but that's the only answer I *ever* got.
From: Ranee Mueller (raneem at harbornet.com)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 10:12:52 -0800
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Arthur Simon wrote:
> My grandmother used to say that one could *never* put tomatoes
> into the refrigerator in the original can/tin. She always told me that
> it would be poison. I queried her, but that's the only answer I *ever*
> got.
My mom says the same thing. So, I always put it into a new container. DH, OTOH, covered the can and thought nothing of it. I told him not to do that anymore, and now he doesn't, but there's no reason I know of, except that that was what my mom said to do.
Regards,
Ranee
From: R.D. Young (rdyoung at wcc.net)
Date: Sun, 01 Apr 2001 14:09:30 -0500
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Ranee Mueller wrote:
> My mom says the same thing. So, I always put it into a new
>container. DH, OTOH, covered the can and thought nothing of it. I told
>him not to do that anymore, and now he doesn't, but there's no reason I
>know of, except that that was what my mom said to do.
Probably goes back to the days when the seams of tin cans were soldered using lead solder. The acid in the tomatoes would leach the lead out of the solder and into the tomatoes/juice. And we all know how good lead is for you.
Bob Y.
From: ndooley at blue.weeg.uiowa.edu (Nancy Dooley)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 19:40:14 GMT
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>My grandmother used to say that one could *never* put tomatoes
>into the refrigerator in the original can/tin. She always told me that
>it would be poison. I queried her, but that's the only answer I *ever*
>got.
I don't know about the cans they use today - some are coated inside with white enamel or something. BUT, in the "old days," anything acidic like tomatoes - or even not acidic - would react with the inside of the can once it was opened, and the stored food would get a metallic taste.
N.
Subject: Re: A Mediterranean potato casserole
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: Cowdrey (rcowdrey at REMOVEtelusplanet.net)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 03:00:49 GMT
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Arthur Simon wrote:
> Noting that I had some Yukon Gold potatoes
> that were getting a bit *iffy* ( sprouts starting,
> etc) I decided to make a virtue of necessity.
> At first I thought _potato salad_, but a Mar2Ni
> set me right. The result follows.
Sounds good and has been saved for reference. But is it essential that the potatoes are Yukon Gold and sprouting??
Robin ( :) just kidding!!)
From: Arthur Simon (aasimonjr at earthlink.net)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 03:20:02 GMT
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Yeah, got to be! <GGGG>
Thinking about making this the next time with a litte bit of minced shallot, in with the gartlic.
Just a little, mind you..........
Use it, cook it, and claim you made it... <G>
A -