Potatoes.... Really!

According to the nutritionists at WIC potatoes aren't actually a vegetable. They're a starch like rice and noodles. Which is fine by me because that's what I use them as. Actually I could use them even more as a starch then I already do.

What I use them for? Well first there's the obvious; mashed potatoes. But you don't have to just serve them alongside a slab of meat. You can make a meat gravy and pour it over the mashed potatoes and have a meal.

Mashed potatoes are also a good stepping stone for other meals such as shepherds pie.

The secret to a good mashed potato? Okay it's not a secret but surprisingly, unless you had someone show or tell you it seems that not so many people know this one. Add butter and milk. Not an extreme amount of either, but it really helps with flavor and texture. Also salt... But that one seems like more of a no brainer.

Don't have a potato masher? I've used forks, pastry blenders, heavy duty whisks, electric mixers, you name it. In a pinch I've used it all. (within reason)

For other potato uses: you could make gnocci which I've recently blogged about, you could make scalloped potatoes which I've rather taken a liking to since I got a mandolin vegetable slicer, you could chop them into cubes and rub them in oil/seasonings then bake, you could chop them into cubes and boil until almost done and use them in a sauce like noodles (just don't mash), cube and cook till almost done then chill and use in potato salad, and you could make potato soup.

As for the instant potatoes I like to keep a box on hand. I use them to thicken my mashed potatoes if I accidently add too much milk, I also use it in a pinch or if I just don't feel like buying potatoes but want mashed potatoes, and I've heard you can use it in breading for fried or oven baked chicken but I haven't tried it.

Why do I have potatoes on the brain today? Well I bought a bag a while back and had to come up with things to use them in, then I had a couple odd potatoes left in the bag but not enough for a meal so I bought another bag, and so on. Finally yesterday I used up all of the leftover potatoes in the bag making scalloped potatoes. I'm so happy to be done with them. It was hard to come up with new or different things to make with them, which is why I don't buy potatoes very often. Because I have a hard time using them before they go bad. I know you're supposed to be able to keep potatoes for a while but that's in the right conditions which I don't have or feel I need.

However, for the rest of you who maybe keep potatoes on hand all the time then I hope this post has given you inspiration. Otherwise, for those of you who don't keep them on hand I suggest you buy a 5lb bag and try something different with them.

Update Notes 06/11/2013

I decided to start posting update notes so people will know exactly what I fixed or changed in which cookbook.

I updated The Poverty Cookbook For Beginners today because of a comment a review left. It wasn't a nasty one like quite a few of you feel the need to leave. It was constructive. The review told me that they had tried a recipe and found it confusing. The recipe in question was my rice pudding recipe that, like all other rice recipes, simply said to 'cook rice and set aside'. The reviewer was confused because I had the ingredients for the rice in the same list as the other ingredients but with no explanation as to what to do with them.

I guess I just assumed that most people would read my methods section and thus would know what I meant there. So to fix it I went through and separated the rice ingredients from the regular ingredients and expanded the directions to include a very short explanation of what to do with the rice; "Mix together rice, oil, and salt then add water. Cover and bring to boil then reduce heat and let sit until cooked."

I feel bad for the reviewer that I didn't have everything written clearly. So if you're reading this; I'm sorry.

Also, I will be going through the other cookbooks and fixing this error.

My Adventure With Gnocci

What is Gnocci? It's like a mix between a dumpling and pasta, but it's make with potatoes. Basically you cook the potato and mash it through a mesh strainer to get it as granular ad possible. Once it's cold add egg and flour and kneed into a dough ball. Then you roll it out into a thin line and cut it into small cubes. Then if you're feeling fancy you press and roll on the back of a fork to make grooves. Boil like pasta and add to sauce. Sounds easy right?

That's what I thought. I'd heard of gnocci and even seen recipe videos online so I thought "I can do this". Well it started easy. I peeled and chopped potatoes and cooked them. Then I let then strain for until cool and dry then pressed through a mesh strainer. Which isn't as easy as it might sound. You really have to press hard... Anyway so then I let it sit in the fridge for a bit while I did other stuff. Once I was ready I took it out and added egg and flour... then more flour... and more flour... and more flour... 0.o

Then I added more flour and more and more and more. In small amounts of like 1/4 cup but still. It was just so sticky and wet and wouldn't come together. Finally it came together but it was still so sticky I couldn't roll it out so I kept adding flour and kept adding flour.

Finally it worked out right and I got it cut into tiny cubes. I looked at the fork and laughed... Then threw the gnocci into the water ungrooved. They cooked and turned out great! Except for the flour consumption it really was a great dish. I put them in a bechamel (as always) and it was amazing.

Will I ever make it again? Well this is the question I ask myself every time I make pasta. With both it takes time, it's not extremely easy, it's messy, and it takes a whole bunch of flour. Answer? Absolutely! I love how it tastes and the texture. I'm going to experiment with different methods and what not but I will absolutely make it again.

Would I suggest you try it? Probably not. I wouldn't wish the struggle on my closest friends or worst enemies. But if you're interested google it or something. I have no recipe for you yet.