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.