Category — Vegetables

I grabbed a little sack of these itty bitty potatoes at the store the other day. They were so cute and I couldn’t wait to take them home and use them right up. I wasn’t really sure what in the world I was going to use them for, but I knew I would figure something out. I mean, when a bag of potatoes says “Buy Me!” who am I to ignore the voice of spuds?

I came home and decided on a nifty little recipe from Kraft Kitchens called Potato Smashers. By the way, do you subscribe to their free magazine? It’s truly loaded with a lot of good and family friendly recipes. I do have to comb out some junk and convenience items, but I still come away with several great ideas from each issue.

Potato Smashers are small potatoes boiled, smashed flat, and sauteed. They turn out like a cross between a twice baked potato and a potato pancake. And good golly gosh they’re good.

So, I’ve been forcing my oldest daughter, Katie, to work in the kitchen with me. She just doesn’t have any interest in cooking - except an occasional cake, cobbler, or pie - otherwise it’s just a chore to her. But, she’s 14 1/2 now and can barely boil water. Her sister, Babs, who is 7 has more kitchen savvy. I think that’s just sad and I’ve decided she must learn to cook. Her future family will thank me for it someday.

So, I put Katie to work on these potatoes. Boy was she pissed. She was all like, “Why do I have to cook them twice?” Teens can be so lazy. Oh, what’s that? You don’t have a teen? Well, I’ve been thinking of setting up a loan system . . .

Now don’t get too anxious, thinking you might see a picture of Katie cooking potato smashers, because if I wield a camera anywhere near Katie (or her friends for that matter) they run in terror. What is that about?

But, getting back to the potato smashers, they turned out good! As much grief as I give Katie, she did a wonderful job. And, gosh I love that bratty kid. She’s my sidekick these days, and even if it isn’t hanging out in the kitchen, I suppose that’s o.k., right?

Anyhow, here’s the recipe:

Potato Smashers

Adapted from: Kraft Food & Family Magazine

8 small potatoes, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter
1/4 cup crumbled bacon
2 Tbsp Italian dressing
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Place potatoes in a large pan enough water to cover the potatoes. Boil for 15-20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Drain well.

On a cutting board, press each potato with the bottom of a small dish to flatten. Potatoes should be about 1/2 inch thick when done.

Heat dressing in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Turn the potatoes over gently - because they will come apart easily - and sprinkle evenly with cheese and bacon. Put the lid on the skillet and cook for about 2 more minutes, or until the cheese is yummified - otherwise known as melted. Serve topped with sour cream, if desired.

[Saturday Sides is a weekly feature I run to help you combat the side dish blahs. Check here Saturdays to see what’s new and different you can add to your dinner table. Or, you can subscribe here so that you never miss a Saturday Sides Recipe.]

Oy VEY!

This week. Well. Yeah. Where to begin?

This week hasn’t been anything like I expected it to be. As a matter of fact, I actually already had a post written for today and I pushed it to the side and decided to save it for another day. Because when I wrote that post I thought my week was going to be a lot different than it actually was.

My girls went to camp this week! Yay!! All three of them. At the same time. Together. No one was home but me, Bob, and the animals. Which I faithfully fed, just like I promised the girls I would. It was crazy quiet here, in case you were wondering. Bob and I spent two full days being uber productive.

Bob and I had planned a week of eating nothing but potato chips, ice cream, and turkey sandwiches on plain white bread. Seriously. We were. It’s true!! I wasn’t going to cook anything.

Then, well, as an online friend of mine likes to say; it became a plan “B” week since camp called on Tuesday night. Babs had fallen and was hurt.

We drove through the night to meet camp staff and Babs at the hospital and this morning, after meeting with the orthopedic surgeon, this is how the week ended.

Can you believe her? Smiling like that?!? Meh.

Well, anyhow, I couldn’t very well feed Babs potato chips, ice cream, and plain white bread all week. I mean, I could have, except Bob and I had already eaten it all by Wednesday afternoon (we’re nervous eaters, do you know stressful a call like that is?).

So, I had to cook. Good thing too, cuz I was itching to get back in the kitchen and pretty darn sick of crappy bread. Unfortunately, Bab’s arm hurt a lot and she wasn’t really up for running all over the place to get groceries, so I had to make due with what I had on hand.

These rustic smashed potatoes are great for days (or weeks) like this. They don’t use anything particularly special in the ingredients, although adding crispy bacon and shredded extra sharp white cheddar makes them scrum-dilly-icous. Hey, does that word have a copyright on it? Well, no matter, what I mean to say is . . . YUM. All you need is a few potatoes, some butter, sour cream, and a little milk. They take all of 30 minutes from start to finish, so if you have a sick kid who wants your attention (as mine does now) they’re ideal. So, since Babs is wanting my attention, I guess I should get on to the recipe and get out of here. Have a great weekend everyone!

Smashed Potatoes

2 pounds of small thin skinned potatoes (such as red potatoes or yukon gold)
4 Tablespoons sour cream
1/4 cup margarine or butter
1/3 cup milk, half and half, or cream
1/2 - 1 tsp salt

Wash potatoes thouroghly and remove any large eyes or blemishes. If you don’t have scales, I have found that about 7 or 8 very small potatoes will make about a pound.

Place them in a heavy pot and add enough water just to cover the potatoes. Bring the water to a boil and cook until tender; about 20 minutes. If you aren’t sure if they are done, just use a sharp knife and stab into the center of the potato. It should easily move through the potato. When they are done, remove from heat and drain well.

Add sour cream, margarine, and milk to the pan and return the potatoes.

Use a potato masher, or a large fork and “squish” the potatoes roughly. Leave large pieces, but mix the milk, butter, and sour cream in well.

Sprinkle with salt and serve hot.

Without the pictures:

Smashed Potatoes

2 pounds of small thin skinned potatoes (such as red potatoes or yukon gold)
4 Tablespoons sour cream
1/4 cup margarine or butter
1/3 cup milk, half and half, or cream
1/2 - 1 tsp salt

Wash potatoes thoroughly and remove any large eyes or blemishes.

Place them in a heavy pot and add enough water just to cover the potatoes.

Bring the water to a boil and cook until tender; about 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and drain well.

Add sour cream, margarine, and milk to the pan and return the potatoes.

Use a potato masher, or a large fork and “squish” the potatoes roughly. Leave large pieces, but mix the milk, butter, and sour cream in well.

Sprinkle with salt and serve hot.

[Saturday Sides is a weekly feature I run to help you combat the side dish blahs. Check here Saturdays to see what’s new and different you can add to your dinner table. Or, you can subscribe here so that you never miss a Saturday Sides Recipe.]

As repayment for the non-posting of a Saturday Side for too many weeks I will now give you my numero uno favorite green bean recipe.

What it’s not:

It’s not very healthy.

It’s not pork free.

It’s not super-duper fast.

It’s not incredibly simple.

What it is:

It’s knock-your-panties-off good.

It’s gorgeous.

It’s something you will make for company.

It’s something you should print multiple copies of for your friends because I promise they’ll be asking. On second thought, just write “www.angiespangies.com” down on a piece of paper. It saves time. That way, you can make some more green beans.

O.k. here’s a peek . . .

These are AMAZING! This is the perfect combination of flavors, sort of like a BLT, without the “L” and with a “GB” for green beans . . . so a “BGBT”, um, well, that doesn’t really work, does it? Well, you get the picture. Bacon, green beans, and tomatoes mix together in this slightly crunchy and delicious side to make your taste buds scream - “FEED ME SEYMOUR”.

Please don’t even try to take my word for it, just go make some. Please.

Green Bean Saute with Tomatoes

Adapted from Recipezaar

3 strips bacon, cut into pieces
1 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 pint halved cherry tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

After trimming the green beans, wash thoroughly and steam over one inch of boiling water for 5-6 minutes.  To learn the vegetable steaming processing read about steaming broccoli in the Citrus Broccoli recipe.   Steam the green beans just until the color turns bright green. If you overcook the green beans, the color with become washed out and dull, and they will become mushy.

Meanwhile, cook the bacon until crisp; drain on paper towels. Did you know that bacon crumbles are much easier to make if you cut the bacon before you cut it? By cutting the bacon into little pieces the bacon cooks faster and you don’t have to try and cut hot, greasy bacon. To be a real kitchen diva, use scissors to cut the bacon. Ingenious!

Look, aren’t they pretty? Ohhh, I think I just felt my cholesterol climb while looking at these little tidbits of heaven. You could use turkey bacon, I suppose. I didn’t do that.

To the bacon drippings, add green beans and saute for 10 minutes. If you prefer your green beans a little on the crunchy side, you can saute them less time. Either way, watch your green beans carefully, and use a moderate heat level, because they can scorch and that’s not tasty at all.

Add the garlic; cook 2 minutes. Don’t let it burn! Burnt garlic is bitter and also not tasty.

Stir in tomatoes, bacon, salt, and pepper. Heat through. I just want you to look at these tomatoes. Some of us, here in the United States, have been without tomatoes more than we choose to be over the last couple of weeks. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all.

Without the pictures:

Green Bean Saute with Tomatoes

3 strips bacon, cut into pieces
1 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 pint halved cherry tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

After trimming the green beans, wash thoroughly and steam over one inch of boiling water for 5-6 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the bacon until crisp; drain on paper towels.

To bacon drippings, add green beans and saute for 10 minutes.

Add the garlic; cook 2 minutes.

Stir in tomatoes, bacon, salt, and pepper. Heat through.