Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

I haven’t been inspired by my cooking lately.  We have been eating well and I’ll admit sometimes not so well.  So that is why I was glad when David volunteered to do a guest post for me.  I think I will hire him on to do more food related posts.  He actually has a blog of his own;  Riding with Dave.  Whenever he goes on one of his bike trips he chronicles his adventures on his blog.  It will be interesting to follow his triple D tour this Fall.

To get inspired to cook again I do three things.  I read my cookbooks, I read magazines, especially my Gourmet collection and I read your blogs.  I visited Susan of Schnitzel and the Trout last week and she had posted a recipe for the best potato dish.  She got the recipe from Cathy at Wives with Knives  who got it from Barbara at Moveable Feasts who got it from Donna Hay, the famous Australian chef and writer.  I love the way that great recipes get shared in the blogishere!  So thank you ladies for inspiring me!  You need to check out the recipe from one of their blogs.  The potato dish is cooked in a cast iron skillet and includes sliced potatoes, Walla Walla onions, and Gruyere and mozzarella cheeses.

It was an “A ha” moment for me.  There was a similar recipe that I used to make in my cast iron skillet with potatoes that I haven’t made in a long time.  But first, about my cast iron skillet.

I have had this skillet for years.  I think it was a wedding present.  I remember that it needed to be seasoned before using it for the first time, but after all of these years of use, there is no fear of it rusting ever again.  It is a thing of beauty in my estimation and although I have beautiful blue and green Le Creuset pots that cost me an arm and a leg, my humble cast iron skillet is worth it’s weight in gold.

Making and baking scalloped potatoes can be messy and time consuming.  Sometimes the casserole runs over in the oven.  This easy recipe requires stove top cooking and a quick run under the broiler.  It does not have as much cheese as the Donna Hay recipe, but is flavored with chicken stock and sprigs of thyme.  It is something a little different and a recipe that I will make often now that I have found it again.  Thanks Susan for the nudge I needed to remember it!

SKILLET SCALLOPED POTATOES

2 tablespoons oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, diced
2 large or 4 to 5 smaller potatoes, peeled and sliced (I used Idaho potatoes)
1 teaspoon freshly chopped thyme or dry to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 can low sodium chicken broth or 1 3/4 cups homemade stock
1/2 cup grated Swiss cheese
1/2 cup fine dry breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon olive oil

In a large iron skillet over high heat, heat the oil until sizzling.  Saute the onion until it begins to color, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and stir, and then add the potaotes.  Stir to combine.  Add the chicken broth, salt and pepper and the thyme.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil, reduce the heat to medium and cook until all the liquid has evaporated and the potatoes are glazed, 15 to 20 minutes.  Preheat the broiler.  Combine the bread crumbs and the cheese and sprinkle over the potatoes.  Drizzle with olive oil and place under the broiler until the topping is browned.

Printable recipe

There are so many recipes for potato salad. The recipe I usually use is the one my Mother always made. It incorporates hard boiled eggs and pickle relish. She always used Miracle Whip as opposed to mayonnaise. You are either a mayonnaise or a salad dressing household. I always made my Son’s sandwiches with Miracle Whip until he ate a sandwich in a mayonnaise household. He came home and told me that Kathie made a much better sandwich than I did. He broke with tradition.

This potato salad recipe does not rely on Miracle Whip or jarred mayonnaise. Instead you make your own salad dressing in the food processor. The recipe appeared in a 1985 issure of Gourmet magazine. I love it for a change of pace and because it has lots of bacon in it. Because the egg is not cooked in this recipe be sure to use a pasturized egg to avoid the possiblity of salmonella.

I halved the recipe this time and it made enough for a small get together. I hope all of you are having a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.

BACON AND POTATO SALAD

4 pounds baking potatoes, peeled, halved lengthwise, and cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slices
3 cups sliced celery
1/2 cup chopped scallions
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1/2 pound sliced lean bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large egg
5 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon style mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil

In a kettle cover the potatoes with cold water, bring the water to a boil, and add salt to taste. Simmer the potatoes for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they are just tender when pierced with a fork, and drain them. Transfer the potatoes to a serving bowl and add the celery, the scallions and the parsley. In a skillet cook the bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until it is crisp and transfer it with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain. Reserve 1/4 cup of the bacon fat and let it cool for 15 minutes. In a blender or food processor blend the egg, the lemon juice, the mustard, the salt, and the pepper for 5 seconds, with the motor running add the oil and the reserved bacon fat in a stream, and blend the mixture until it is emulsified. With the motor running add 1 1/2 tablespoons warm water. Pour the dressing over the potato mixture, add the bacon and toss the salad until it is combined. Sprinkle the salad with salt and pepper to taste and serve it at room temperature. The salad may be made up to 3 days in advance and kept covered and chilled. Serves 6.

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This plate of food makes me smile. It is a happy plate. It is happy because David did most of the cooking. And it is happy because it is full of good tasting and good for you foods. David is a terrific grill cook and he is great with both salmon and vegetables. I love the vibrant colors of grilled vegies. He brushed them with a little olive oil and let the grill do it’s work. I love the char on the onions and the grill marks on the zucchini.

The only thing I cooked were the mashed potatoes. I tried a new recipe from Ellie Krieger. It came from her new book So Easy. She is known for her healthy cooking and is a nutritionist and host of Healthy Appetite on the Food Network, when looking for ways to boost your nutrition, here you can find out about where to get supplements to boost your body. I was a little skeptical of these garlic mashed potatoes at first. There is no butter, cream or milk in them. But according to Ellie, Yukon Gold potatoes have a luxurious texture and a natural creaminess on their own. She is right and these are now one of my favorite recipes for garlic mashed potatoes. Give them a try and get happy.

GARLIC MASHED POTATOES

1 1/4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, left unpeeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

4 large cloves garlic, peeled and quartered

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

Place the potatoes and garlic in a steamer basket fitted over a large pot of boiling water. Cover and steam until the potatoes are knife-tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Warm the chicken broth in a small saucepan on the stove or in a glass container in the microwave. Remove the steamer basket and drain the water from the large pot. Transfer the potatoes and garlic to the pot, add the oil, salt, and broth and mash until smooth.

Printable recipe

Happy New Year everyone. We started New Year’s Day in the traditional way that we have followed for the last ten years. We have a group of friends who spend New Year’s Eve and Day together. We are a motorcycle gang. Don’t laugh. We are tougher than we look. We’ve ridden the Canadian Rockies and the Beartooth Pass, the Million Dollar Highway and the Grand Tetons. The guys have been to Sturgis. What more credentials would you need? We are also good cooks and our gatherings always include fabulous food.

The New Year’s Day menu has always been a traditional Southern spread and each of us has a specialty. Pork has to be on the menu. Pigs forage forward with their noses so eating pork represents moving forward in the new year. For years I have been making my Fall-Apart Tender Slow Roast Pork. The recipe came from Shirley Corriher. We also have collard greens and blackeyed peas which represent wealth and good luck. Barbara is the collard greens queen, but she couldn’t be with us this year so, shhh, don’t tell anyone but we fixed Glory brand canned seasoned collard greens. Jackie makes the black eyed peas and Rosa’s cornbread which is rich with butter and absolutely decadent. Rosa was David’s secretary for many years and a talented Southern cook. We always have a potato casserole and Cynthia made a rich and luscious Gouda and Asiago scalloped potato with a panko crumb crust. Karen makes wonderful coleslaw and a refreshing Pea salad. Our dessert this year was compliments of the Cheesecake Factory.

Since I am always taking pictures of food, everyone got into the act this year. This obsession is catching.

Here are few of our favorite recipes.