Hash Brown Potato Cups

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Let's face it, anything in muffin tins or individual cups are more fun! These hash brown cups are so versatile you can make them the way you like it. I added spinach and small diced tomatoes to mine. Here is the guideline of ingredients and method...of course do what works for you.

• 1 20 oz bag of refrigerated shredded hash browns, (or 3 cups shredded potatoes, or frozen hash browns thawed)
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, (or more to taste)
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1 cup fresh spinach, then I shredded it
• 1 small tomato, diced 
• 1 tsp seasoning (I use a Tuscany blend, Costco's Organic No-Salt Seasoning is good for this too)
• salt and pepper to taste
• Cheddar cheese (to top after it bakes)
• Now here is where you can use what you like...a little spicy add some red pepper flakes, or add some green onions, onions, or onion powder....or sausage! Chopped chives or any fresh herbs for garnish.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Prepare a 12 cup muffin tin with cooking spray.

Mix all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Press into the prepared muffin tins. If you are adding a lot of toppings or an egg save some room for that. If adding and egg you can crack an egg and add it to the top before baking.

 

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and add some cheddar cheese and place it back in the oven until the cheese melts and is bubbly.

Remove from the oven and let them rest a little. Slide a knife around the edges to make sure they will come out of the tins.

Top with your choice of topping, bacon, scrambled eggs, sour cream, chives....we actually liked them like this...except my daughter who puts sour cream on everything!

Coconut Oil and Rosemary Mashed Potatoes

Funny, when I was a kid I didn't really like mashed potatoes....I wasn't a potato fan at all. I had to stay at the table until I finished everything that I took on my plate. Needless to say it was often potatoes...Now my mom wasn't that strict about eating...she just never made anything different for you if you didn't like something, and she made you at least try it...even if it was a tiny bit. So if you took a helping you had to eat that helping.

Today I do like potatoes and they are so fun to make them your own, you can add many things like wasabi, cream cheese, Parmesan, herbs, butter and much more...

This time I decided to try making a vegan mashed potatoes, using coconut oil and coconut milk. I get my coconut oil from Tropical Traditions, the first time I had it I won it on a blog giveaway, and now I Buy it regularly. It is good for skin, hair, ans well as cooking. They often will have free shipping or buy one get one free, so it's a good deal for a good quality product.

Ingredients:
3 potatoes cooked (peeled and boiled like you would for any mashed potato)
1/2 cup  coconut milk
1/3 cup coconut oil
1-2 clove garlic (cooked with the potatoes)
1 teaspoon fresh chopped rosemary or any fresh herb that you like or have to taste
sea salt to taste

After potatoes are cooked, drain and mash while still warm add coconut oil if it is in it's hard form it will melt quickly, add coconut milk until desired texture. You can leave the skins on the potatoes if you prefer, make sure the garlic is mashed along with the potatoes, it should be very soft by now. Last add the sea salt and stir in the fresh herbs.


I am sharing this and linking to My Meatless Monday's hosted by Cheah.

Japanese Sweet Potato Chips

A quick post of a yummy snack that I can't seem to get enough of...
My husband like plantain chips and I have to go out and buy the green plantains the day I make them othewise I end up putting it off and before you know it the plantains are ripe and then I have to make a sweet dish with them. Either way they are good!


Anyway the last time I made plantain chips I had Japaneses sweet potato left from another dish...since I already had my mandolin out, I sliced it up and fried the sweet potato too...




...and I liked it better! So now, I often get the Japanese sweet potato just for making.
chips! Boniato - Cuban sweet potato works good in chips too. The texture is drier than an orange regular sweet potato....


...which makes them crisp up nicely. I love crispy potatoes!!


I don't have a deep frier so I use what I do have, a wok and shallow pan fry them.



You have to make them in batches so they won't stick together, then place them on some paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with sea salt or season salt. I supposed you could add some cinnamon, but I love them with just a pinch of salt!

A word of caution, BEWARE they are addictive!!!

Celeriac and Potato Mash with Kale

This post will have a little bit of mixed info. First, I joined a buying club for organic fruits and vegetables. The first of the year is a good time to eat healthier, and I happened upon this when I was dog sitting for some friends. I always try to buy my veggies organic when possible. What is nice about this is she find different veggies, like purple carrots (which is perfect for bento boxes), heirloom variety when possible, in this basket I got kohlrabi, wheat grass and a different variety of Chinese cabbage which you don't find in stores.

I got a large amount of wheat grass, some greens, bananas, mushrooms, peppers, apples, tangerines, a large tomato, huge grapefruit , lemon, red leaf lettuce, large head of Chinese cabbage (not shown she forgot to put it with this basket) and purple kohlrabi.

I used the kohlrabi and mushrooms the first night I got it. I just oven roasted them with some onions, garlic and olive oil and served it with dinner. I didn't get a photo of it all cooked up and ready to eat. I guess we were hungry.

It was so much fun to dug in and see what I got...almost like opening a Christmas gift!


The grapefruit was so large...Maranda and I spilt it for breakfast the next morning.

Three different color peppers...she says they're called yummy peppers.

I am buying heirloom tomatoes from now on...just look at how meaty it is!

Now the the second part of my post...the recipe: Celeriac and Potato Mash with Kale(or greens)

I didn't get the celeriac in the basket but I did find some at the health food store just around the corner, so it's organic too. I used the greens from the basket though.

Celeriac or celery root is such a strange looking thing. I wanted it to be more of the star of the dish, but I only had one and so it's just a partner. I did want to try it though and this was a good way to ease it into our meal.

I was trying to research some Dutch recipes because I do so many from other regions I though I should look into some from my own heritage. Now I know why I don't make a lot of Dutch food, not really my favorite, but you sure can't beat their sweets, pastries and desserts!

In my research this is what About.com said about it:

Ask anyone from the Netherlands what they would consider the Dutchest dish of all Dutch dishes and they will probably say stamppot. This hearty vegetable mash is usually made of potatoes and/or other vegetables. It is traditionally served with a smoked pork sausage, known as rookworst, and gravy. The ultimate in comfort food!

Knolselderijstamppot (Celeriac Mash) the original recipe

My adaptation
Ingredients:
•4 potatoes, like Idaho or russet potatoes
•1 large celeriac
•3 cloves garlic
•1 cup chopped kale (or any greens)
•3 tbsp butter
•4 oz cream cheese
•1/2 tsp celery seed
•1 tsp coriander
•1 tbsp dijon mustard
•1/4 cup milk
•sea salt and white pepper
Preparation:
Peel the potatoes. Peel the celeriac, using a knife to cut the thick skin away until you are left with only creamy white flesh. Cut the potatoes and celeriac into similarly sized pieces for even cooking. In a large soup pot, boil the potatoes, garlic and celeriac for 20 minutes until tender in salted water, add the greens halfway through the cooking time, or at the beginning if you like the greens softer. Drain, shake and dry with kitchen towels before mashing. Add the butter, milk, cream cheese, and mustard. Season to taste with seasoning and salt and pepper. Sir through before serving.

It was one way of getting my daughter to eat greens...just add potatoes and cheese!

Lastly...this was my week for Cultural Connections on Our Krazy Kitchen where I posted my recipe for Indian Masoor Dal. This is a day for comfort food!

Roasted Chicken and Smashed Potatoes

My class was cancelled Monday due to jury duty for our instructor. So I had a chance to roast a chicken which would work perfect for leftovers for lunches. This chicken was so good I had to share it. I don't know if it was the chicken or spices or what, maybe I was just really hungry. I used a free range all natural nothing add to it chicken.

Wade has Mondays off so that was nice, we had a chance to go watch the sunset on the beach,(it is so early now 5:50PM) and then still eat supper together.

For the chicken I like to use my clay baker, it really cooks the chicken even and quicker. I clipped off some fresh rosemary and stuffed it in the chicken. Then seasoned it with my Bonne Herbes blend, sage, a sprinkle of perfect blend seasoning and rub for chicken and poultry and a little Penzey's Tsardust Memories. I used just a little of the Tsardust Memories because it has salt in it so I used it instead of salt. It has a wonderful warm flavor with the cinnamon and nutmeg. Then rubbed it with olive oil, and tossed in a couple cloves of garlic. Roasted it in a 350 degree oven for around an hour until it is done.

Now for the potatoes...


I saw this on Lynda's blog over at Food, Fun & Farm Life in East Africa and I thought they looked so satisfying that I had to try them. Just parboil the potatoes and then smash them with a rolling pin or masher or bottom of a jar...then drizzle on some olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, seasoning and garlic. I added some chopped garlic too.

Baked on a cookie sheet, I used my stoneware pan for 45 minutes until done. I put them right in the oven beside the chicken. I like how the potatoes are crispy crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, but that's just my preference, you can make them how you like them!

I am sharing the sunset that we saw last night. It has been so clear, no clouds at all....
...but plenty of birds...

...we were all enjoying the beautiful sunset...I think they were really watching the pelicans fish.

The moon was out and it was just a thumbnail sliver! My camera can't pick it up very well. Oh and we did see the "green flash" The conditions were just right, it must be that slight haze on the horizon...

I took this at school on Monday to show you all, the "silly band" fad that has been going on for while. I thought I would share it with The Color Carnival.
Now off to do the dishes, and please let me know if I left anything out!

Have a great week!

Potato Masala

I've made this before and really enjoy it with my dosa. My daughter will eat it too with sour cream on top! As long as she eats this healthy meal I don't mind. I don't have an exact recipe but will try to give it to you as close as I can.
Ingredients:

- 3 potatoes already boiled and cubed

- 1 shallot or 1/2 onion (I have been using mostly shallots lately)

- 1 green chili or to taste (I used serrano chili because it is mild enough for my family)

- fresh grated ginger

- 1 tsp turmeric

- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds

- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds

- 1/2 tsp red chili powder or to taste

- pinch of hing (asafoetida) this is optional, but I really like to add this

-salt and pepper to taste

- 1 sprig curry leaves

- cashews

- green peas

- cilantro to top

In a "tiny skillet" or any pan that will hold all the potatoes...heat it up and add a little butter, you can use olive oil or both if you prefer. Add the mustard and cumin seeds until they sputter, I added all the seasoning and the cashews next, then the potatoes and mixed them up until the seasoning was all over everything. Add the peas and cook until they are warmed all the way through. Of course as always the seasoning is all adjustable to your taste!

See...it's so quick and easy. This is good as a side dish or enjoy it with any dosa or roti or any Indian breads and chutney that you like. The cashews added a nice crunch to it.

I drizzled some yogurt and Wade had some creme fresh on his. I tell ya....we know what we like!

From the street in front of our yard..Florida afternoon skies.

Adai-Lentil Crepes

We like to have a big breakfast on the weekends when we have time to sit down out by the pool enjoy it. I also can take the time to try something new. I like to catch a video on how to make something that I haven't don't before...or lots of pictures. That's what I did before I attempted my moong dal dosa. That turned out so well and we all enjoyed it, but I wanted to try some with rice. I was told I had to try some of the other dosas too. I saw this on Show Me the Curry and I like the ingredients and I had most of them so here I go... just a few changes, but I wanted to keep it pretty true...

- 1/4 cup Rice
- 1/4 cup Whole Green Mung (I used split mung beans)
- 1/4 cup Channa Daal (I used urad dal)
- 1/4 cup Toor Daal
- 1 shallot (good size)
- 1 Green Chili - to taste (I used Serrano chili)
- 5 sprigs Cilantro Leaves
- 1 sprig Curry Leaves
- 1 pinch Asafoetida (Hing)
-Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2" piece Ginger
- 1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds (optional)

Oil – for pan-frying

Wash and soak the following in in 4 cups of water for 3-4 hours – Rice, Green Mung, Toor Daal & urad Daal. Drain out the water.

Add the rice and daal mixture and all of the remaining ingredients (except for oil) in a blender, I used my food processor and grind using a little fresh water. The consistency should be that of pancake batter.

I had to push the cilantro and curry leaves so you could see the rice and daal.

Just the right consistency...I wasn't really sure about pancake batter since I've only made it once. I figured if I had too I could add more water.

Heat pancake griddle to medium to high heat. I used a non stick pan so I didn't need to use any oil at this point. With a half cup scoop or ladle to pour the batter in the center of the griddle.

Place the bottom of the spoon or ladle flat on the center of batter. In an outward circular motion, spread the batter evenly.

When the outer edges start to dry drizzle oil on adai sparingly and allow to cook for a couple of minutes. Run the tip of your spatula around the outer edge of the Adai allowing it to flip over easily.

Flip the Adai to the other side. It should be golden-brown in color.
Cook for another couple of minutes and serve immediately with a blob of butter or chutney.

I served some with potato masala, we all enjoyed that with the moong daal dosa.

They are the softer crepe, not crispy like the moong dal dosa. This is good for breakfast or lunch, and has so much flavor. It filled me up. Wade and I had ours with a little yogurt and coconut chutney. Maranda of course had hers with sour cream. I will post the potato masala and coconut chutney recipe soon!

This was added to Meatless Mondays over at My Sweet and Savory.

White Eggplant and New potatoes with Bo's Fig Balsamic Sauce

After I got many comments about the photos of the white eggplant, I had to try some. Apparently the eggplant got it's name because in the 18th century it only came in white, was a little smaller and it resembled goose eggs while hanging on the plant. The skin is a little tougher and should be peeled. The flesh is white, not greenish like the purple ones. I had a hard time seeing where I had already peeled it. It was a little firmer and I heard it was sweeter than the purple, I skipped the sweating part. It seems to have less seed too.

I used it in a couple of recipes, here is one that was easy enough to throw in the oven and finish the rest of the meal. I used a recipe from my Blogger friend Bo from Bo's Bowl . He made two recipes using fig jam, a vinaigrette for salad dressing and a fig balsamic pan sauce for pork medallions. I have some fig jam that I wanted to use and told him I was thrilled that he had these recipes. I used the one for the pan sauce but changed it slightly because I was tossing it over the vegetables and baking it.

Ingredients:

3 cloves of garlic smashed and sliced
1 tbs fresh rosemary, chopped
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup fig preserves
1/4 cup walnut oil (you can use olive oil)
salt & pepper (once it's on the pan)

If I had some walnuts I would of tossed them in too.
Whisk it all together in a large bowl and toss in the cubed eggplant and potato wedges. Toss together until everything is evenly coated. Spread out on a baking pan, then salt and pepper. Of course I'm using my stoneware bar pan again, it's perfect for roasting veggies.

Bake in a 350 F oven for 45-50 minutes until potatoes are tender and the desired crispness on the potatoes. I'm not sure I really timed it, I just see how they look in the oven, if they are tender and browned up the way I like it then they are done. Take them out part way and turn them to get browned on both sides. At this point I threw in a little bit of spinach, I liked how that crisped up too. (I added fresh too for the bowl)

It was so good, with the balsamic and fig jam caramelized slightly, yum! I also made a couple of skewers of eggplant to put on the grill with the meat. We didn't care for that as well, I think it needed to marinate longer for grilling.

Make sure you check out Bo's Bowl for the original recipe that he used over pork, and his mixed baby greens with goat cheese, bacon, with fig balsamic vinaigrette. He has a lot of great recipes, and shows you how to make them!
Happy Friday!!

Potato Leek Soup

I enjoy soups all through the year. Here in Florida we don't always have the perfect time for soups due to the weather. I also use my oven when ever I want because it's usually warm out, and if I waited for cold weather to use it it would be pretty slim times used. Well you know what I mean. Quick soups are always good this time of year because you don't have your oven on and they don't have to simmer for hours.

I had a leek I was going to use in my split pea soup I make in my slow cooker, but I didn't have the parsnips, so I improvised. This quick soup is so easy and you usually can have the ingredients on hand. When preparing the leek, slice the ends off first, then I like to cut in half lengthwise before washing. There is a lot of sand and grit that gets caught in it's layers.

- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 shallot chopped
- 1 celery stalk chopped (optional)

- 1 med leek, sliced thinly
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
- 3 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth if going vegetarian)
- 2 potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks
- 1 tsp dried dill (or Penzey's Pairisen Bonnes Herbs*)
- 1 tsp chives (more to garnish)
- 1/4 cup cream
- Sea salt and pepper to taste

You can use parsley or fresh chervil to garnish if you'd rather

Of course all the ingredients are adjustable. The amount of broth can be adjusted to the desired consistency. If you would like you can leave some of it mashed instead of puréed if you like it chunkier.

In a large heavy saucepan cook the leeks, celery and shallots in the butter slowly low heat, stirring occasionally, stir in the seasoning and cook until they are softened but not browned, about 5-8 minutes. Add the water, broth, and potatoes, and simmer the mixture, covered, for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. In a blender purée soup 1 cup at a time, until it is all smooth. (Or use a stick blender like I did) returning to the pan, stir in the cream, season with sea salt and pepper, top with chopped fresh chives or parsley.

* Penzey's Pairisen Bonnes Herbs is hand-mixed from: chives, dill weed, French basil, French tarragon, chervil and white pepper. It is great to use in eggs, potatoes, fish, chicken tenders, vegetables and many more dishes. I used mine up and the last time I visited my family (which is the only chance I get to go to Penzey's because the only one in Florida is in Jacksonville) we went to Pensey's and they only had one bag left so my sister snatched it up before I got there! I told her that was ok, I just mixed my own and used organic herbs! It's a nice blend that I use often.