Swiss Chard and Potatoes

Do you want to know what I think is a beautiful thing?  Heading out to my own backyard grocery store to choose what to have for dinner.

And do you know what I think is even prettier?

The price.

Not much is ready yet other than the leafy goods, but I am so happy about it all (except for the critters munching my goods; I just replanted both the corn and the peas...Grrr.).  It's really not just the price that I think is pretty, even though that is a very, very nice thing.  It's a little bit of pride, a little bit of independence, a little bit of personal choice about what we eat and the quality of the food.  And I dig it.

Last night was one of those nights where there was little in the pantry and freezer because I did not have time to shop today, yet somehow dinner for six needed to appear.  Between the potatoes, garlic, and spices in the pantry and what was in the garden, this Swiss Chard and Potato dish made a perfect side to accompany some steamed garden peas and our main dish.

And it made me very happy to go out and harvest it.

Now, I just need to get rid of those not-so-cute-anymore bunnies that like my garden as much as I do. They ate my corn, peas, lettuce, bean leaves...and I didn't get any.  They don't seem to mess with the onions and garlic, so next year, instead of marigolds (which they don't even notice - or maybe they do and they are just laughing at those silly humans as they munch right past them), I am going to plant a garlic and onion barrier around everything.  A thick one.

Soon, dear bunnies.  Soon, I will take all measures necessary to ensure you eat from the neighbor's garden rather than mine. Between the fence and the pepper spray I mixed up just last night, with the dogs in the middle, you'd better run, and run quickly.
 

A quick note about "stickage" in this dish - the moisture in the potatoes and chard mixture may cause a little sticking.  You can either gently press the moisture out of the mixture as it is draining in the colander, or use an acid (I suggest beer or white wine vinegar in the recipe) to deglaze the pan with the potatoes still in it, or you can serve the dish and deglaze the pan later with plain white vinegar gently warmed when it's time to wash the dishes (anything stuck on in any pan usually cleans up very easily with this method!). Regardless of how you make clean up easier, you're going to love this Swiss chard and Potatoes recipe!

Swiss Chard and Potatoes
serves 6

• 1 lb Swiss chard, washed
• 2 lbs potatoes (red, white, or otherwise), peeled and cut into a 1 inch dice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 Tbs butter or olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 spring onions, sliced
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2-3 Tbs beer, white wine vinegar - if necessary, to deglaze the pan, optional

Trim the Swiss chard: run a sharp knife along the both sides of the stem to remove the leaves. (Suggestion: stack 3-4 like-sized stems together and run the knife through all at once to speed things along)

Chop the stems into 1/2 inch pieces.  Stack and slice the leaves into 1/4 -1/2 inch ribbons.

Place potatoes in a large pot.  Cover by two inches with water.  Add 1/2 tsp salt.  Bring to a boil.  Partially cover and reduce heat to medum. Simmer for 3 minutes.  Add chard leaves and stems.

Bring back to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium and partially cover again for about 10 min, or until potatoes are tender.

Drain potatoes and chard.

Melt butter or heat olive oil in 12 inch skillet over medium heat.  Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes.  Cook 1-2 minutes, or garlic is fragrant.

Toss in the potatoes and chard (be careful for any sizzle due to the moisture in the potato mixture).  Stir in the green onions.  Season with salt and pepper.

Cook untouched 4-5 minutes.  Stir, scraping any bits off the bottom of the pan.

Cook another 4-5 minutes, or until everything is well cooked.

If some of your potatoes have cooked to the bottom of the pan (heat varies between electric and gas, and when you add the moisture of the potatoes and chard, sometimes things get...sticky.  That's all fine in this dish, though - that's extra added flavor), add the optional beer or white wine vinegar now.  Stir to scrape any yummy flavorful bits from the bottom of the pan.  If your potatoes release well, you can skip this part if you'd like. Taste, and season again with salt and pepper, if necessary.

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder

My son's favorite creamy potato soup was the inspiration for this chunky, cheesy vegetable chowder.  Potatoes do take a primary place in this soup, but by increasing the other vegetables, and adding corn and cheese to the mix, the original recipe takes on a smooth, sweet, rich flavor that quickly made this chowder another favorite to keep in our rotation.

Sometimes I find that I am out of vegetable broth when I've already started planning and even beginning to make this chowder.  Because there are so many other flavors in this particular soup, a quick saute of the vegetables seems to be enough to generate a good background flavor.  In the case of the bowl in the picture, I discovered a little too late that I only had about 1 1/2 cups of broth to add and needed to balance it out with just plain old water, but it still worked out in the end with the quick saute and the addition of a little more salt.  I love how versatile soup making can be.

To make this chowder vegan, use olive oil to saute the vegetables, and skip the last four ingredients (butter, flour, milk, and cheese).  After the soup has simmered, use a stick blender to puree about half of the mixture; creaming the vegetables, especially with all of the potatoes, will generate a thickened, creamy soup without all of the butter and cheese.  And if you, like me, like all the butter and cheese (Mmmm!) and still find you would like the soup to be thicker, go ahead and use the stick blender to puree a few of the veggies until the soup reaches your desired thickness.

I would like to thank one of my favorite bloggers, Soni from Soni's Food For Thought, for passing on some awards to The Art of Cooking Real Food.  While I love Indian food, I'm not so experienced with knowing what we will like and how to make the dishes.  Soni has shared some fantastic recipes from an area of cuisine where I do not excel, making it possible to for my family (and yours!) to enjoy some wonderful Indian food right at home.  Thanks so much, Soni!

And don't forget that all April long a berry lovin' blog hop is going on!  You will find some of the most incredible berry recipes to add to  your collection from some of the most talented bloggers in the 'net.  You can find a constantly updated list at the bottom of Blueberry Cheese Pie.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder
serves 6

• 1 Tbs butter
• 4 c potatoes, diced
• 1 c carrots, diced
• 3/4 c onion, diced
• 1/2 c celery (plus any leaves), diced
• 1/2 c cut corn (fresh or frozen)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 1/2 c vegetable broth
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1 Tbs freshly chopped parsley
• 1/3 c butter
• 1/3 c flour
• 2 1/2 c milk
• 1 1/2 c shredded medium or sharp cheddar cheese

Heat 1 Tbs butter in stockpot over medium high heat.  Add potatoes, carrots, onion, celery, corn, and garlic.  Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add broth, salt, pepper, and thyme.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered about 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  Stir in the parsley. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan, melt 1/3 cup butter over medium heat.  Add flour and whisk to blend.  Slowly pour in the milk, whisking constantly.  Cook mixture approximately 5-6 minutes, or until the mixture begins bubble and has thickened, whisking often to prevent the milk from burning. Stir in the cheese until melted.

Slowly add the milk mixture to the vegetables and broth, stirring to blend.  Give it a taste and adjust the salt and pepper to your liking.

Mashed Potatoes with Kale (Colcannon)

Colcannon, a traditional Irish potato dish, is a simple, filling, creamy bowl of comforting goodness. It is made with potatoes, either cabbage or kale, lots of butter, and lots of cream or milk.  Sometimes ham or bacon, and/or cooked leeks or onions can be incorporated for some extra flavor.  In this version, I use kale, and add some garlic, too (because I like it like that).

I am an unashamed potato lover; I have yet to meet a potato I don't like. I'll take them mashed, fried, roasted, baked, steamed, plain, buttered, seasoned...I really don't care - potatoes are just good.  The humble potato has been around for thousands of years, is easy to grow in the back yard, and a lack of them wreaked havoc on an entire nation.  That's pretty impressive, if you ask me.

Most people familiar with Colcannon associate it with cabbage, but it is traditionally made with either cabbage or kale.  I  find it easiest to make this dish using a pasta pot (a big pot with a removable strainer); the potatoes boil in the water on the bottom while the greens steam in the strainer on the top.  If you don't have a pasta pot, you may either want to use two pots and cook each separately, or you could still use one large pot; use just enough water to cover the potatoes and then toss the kale on top before covering, but be sure to strain well.  If you want to add the onions or leeks, melt some butter in a pan and saute until tender; stir them into the dish after mashing.

Mashed Potatoes with Kale (Colcannon)
serves 4-6

• 2 lbs potatoes (russets are ideal), peeled and chopped into 1 1/2 inch chunks
• 2 - 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 lb kale, stems removed and roughly chopped or torn 
• 4 Tbs butter, divided
• 1/2 c whole milk or cream
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• pinch of mace or freshly ground nutmeg

Place the potatoes and whole garlic cloves in the bottom of a pasta pot; cover with water.  Insert the strainer; place the chopped kale in the strainer.

Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat.  Simmer 11-13 minutes, or until potatoes and kale are tender.

Remove the kale and set aside.  Drain the water from potatoes and place the potatoes back into the pot.  Add 3 Tbs butter, milk or cream, salt, pepper, and mace or nutmeg.  With a hand held mixer, beat potatoes until creamy, about a minute.  Add the kale and mix until blended.

Remove to a large serving bowl.  Make an indentation with the back of the spoon and add the remaining 1 Tbs butter.

March is #greenslove month!

Please join in the #greenslove fun by linking up any leafy green recipe from the month of March 2012.  Don't forget to link back to this post so that your readers know to come by the #greenslove event!  The twitter hashtag is #greenslove.

Check out the #greenslove co-hosts!

Al Dente Gourmet ~ Aldy ~ @AlDenteGourmet

ASTIG Vegan ~ Richgail ~  @astigvegan

Badger Girl Learns to Cook ~ Kimberly ~ @BdgrGrl

Baking and Cooking, A Tale of Two Loves ~ Becky Higgins

BigFatBaker ~ Erin ~ @BigFatBaker

Bon a croquer ~ Valerie ~ @Valouth

CafeTerraBlog ~ Terra ~ @CafeTerraBlog

Cake Duchess ~ Lora ~ @cakeduchess

Cheap Ethnic Eatz ~ Evelyne ~ @cethniceatz

Easily Good Eats ~ Three Cookies

Georgiecakes ~ Georgie ~ @georgiecakes

Kitchen Belleicious ~ Jessica ~ @kbelleicious

Mis Pensamientos ~ Junia ~ @juniakk

My Twisted Recipe ~ Dudot ~ @mytwistedrecipe  

No One Likes Crumbley Cookies ~ TR ~ @TRCrumbley

Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose

Queen's Notebook ~ Elizabeth ~ @Mango_Queen  

Rico sin Azucar ~ Helena ~ @ricosinazucar

Savoring Every Bite ~ Linda ~ @Spicegirlfla

Simply Reem ~ Reem ~ @simplyreem

Soni's Food for Thought ~ Soni ~ @sonisfood 

Sprint 2 the Table ~ Laura ~ @Sprint2theTable

Teaspoon of Spice ~ Deanna ~ @tspbasil 

That Skinny Chick Can Bake ~ Liz ~ @Thatskinnychick

The Art of Cooking Real Food ~ Laura ~@TAofCRF

The Spicy RD ~ EA ~ @thespicyrd 

The Wimpy Vegetarian ~ Susan ~ @wimpyvegetarian

Vegan Yack Attack! ~ Jackie ~ @veganyackattack

Vegetarian Mamma  ~ Cindy ~ @VegetarianMamma

Easy Steakhouse Oven Fries

Potatoes rank right up there with pizza on my list of favorite foods.  Baked, fried, sauteed, grilled, boiled, mashed, whipped, scalloped - it doesn't matter; potatoes are just good.

Making your own potato wedges or french fries is ridiculously easy, and by doing so, you can customize the flavors, use a quality oil, and eliminate the ingredients no one ever needs on their potatoes (such as modified food starch, dextrin, disodium dihydrogen pyrophosphate...you know, things like that).  Yes, it takes a little more time than tearing open a bag and pouring them onto a pan, but not much.  And they taste better.  A lot better.

These potatoes are similar to some of my favorite "fries" available at a local steakhouse.  For this picture, I used small red potatoes because I have an abundance of them, but medium reds or russets (and even sweet potatoes, although sweet potatoes will cook faster, so if you use them, adjust your time) work extremely well, too.

Smoked paprika is essential to create a delicately smokey flavor, reminiscent of a steakhouse.  If you've not used smoked paprika before, now would be the perfect time to get some - it is amazing on these potatoes.  Likely you'll find yourself putting some of this spice in a lot of other dishes that might benefit from a little smoke flavor.

This recipe calls for "shredded onion".  Use a regular old box grater and grate the onion on the shredding side.  Like this:

Easy Steakhouse Oven Fries

serves 6

• 2lbs potatoes, scrubbed
• 3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbs shredded onion
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 425F.  Lightly oil 2 15x10 jelly roll pans.

Cut the potatoes into quarters (or into eighths if using larger potatoes - just be sure all the wedges are of similar thickness; about 1/2"-3/4").  Place the potatoes on a towel or paper towel and pat dry.

Transfer potatoes to a large bowl.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well to coat.

Divide the potatoes evenly between the two pans.

Roast for 30-40 minutes, or until golden, turning halfway through baking time.

Herb Roasted Root Vegetables

Autumn is settling in quite well here in the Upper Midwest.  The weather is cooler and the trees are just barely beginning to turn. Not so coincidentally, the farmer's markets are ablaze with orange pumpkins, yellow and dark green winter squash, red apples...even the colors of the harvest reflect the changing of the season.  It's another reason I love living here so much (I write, as I pull my cardigan a little tighter and consider closing the window behind me, through which a particularly cool breeze is blowing, but decide not to because it's still too early and the air is so fresh and lovely.  And because I'm stubborn).

Root vegetables are being harvested and stored at this time of the year.  So, I'm going to share with you a favorite side dish that is easy enough to serve with weeknight dinners, and elegant enough to serve at Thanksgiving.  The balsamic vinegar is just enough to bring out the sweetness of the roots, while the herbs are subtle enough to compliment the vegetables without overpowering the flavor of the main characters of the dish.  If you love the flavor of any of those ingredients, go ahead and add a little more of whatever it is you like.  (Sometimes I will add more balsamic vinegar just because I love the flavor of it.  The balsamic vinegar is not so pronounced in this particular recipe so that the dish will be versatile enough to accent numerous main courses, from beef to poultry to fish, depending on the flavor of each.)

The key to having all the vegetables done at the same time is in the size of the cut.  The potatoes should be cut a little larger than the carrots, turnips and parsnips, which are more dense and would take longer to cook at the same size.  I use kosher salt to season many of my dishes, which is less intense than sea salt, so be sure to salt according to your tastes (you will need about 1/3 the amount of sea salt to kosher salt). Feel free to substitute rutabaga for the turnips and parsnips, or even just more carrots and potatoes if you have a preference, because they all work very well here; all together, excluding the onion and garlic, you should have about 3 1/2 lbs of vegetables to serve 6 people.

Herb Roasted Root Vegetables
serves 6

• 1 1/2 lbs small red or purple potatoes, scrubbed and halved (or quartered if they are bigger "small" potatoes)
• 1 lb turnips, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
• 1 medium parsnip, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
• 3 large carrots, scrubbed and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
• 1 medium red onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 Tbs minced fresh rosemary
• 1 Tbs chopped fresh thyme
• 1 Tbs chopped fresh parsley
• 3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar
• 1Tbs kosher salt (or more to taste)
• few grinds of fresh black pepper

Preheat oven to 425F.

Combine everything in a 13x9 baking dish.

 Bake uncovered about 50-60 minutes or until vegetables are fork tender, stirring once after 30 minutes.

Beer Braised Pot Roast and Potatoes

Horseradish - would you believe I can't find the root anywhere around here?  Not at the farmer's markets nor in any of the grocery stores.  Well, I did actually find some at one grocery store, but the cashier didn't know how to ring it up; she couldn't find the code listed, so she called someone from produce, who didn't know what it was, either (neither the root nor the code).  The produce guy called another produce guy, who called someone else, who called a manager, and all the while the line of customers waiting to check out was growing longer.  The good people in line behind me were alternating between being annoyed at the hold up and conversing about the "mystery root".  After several minutes of the store personnel trying to figure out how they could sell it to me, what it was, passing the root from person to person (by this time there was quite a crowd handling the odd looking root), off color jokes about the aptly named root (at which I laughed and agreed), I gave up and ended up purchasing a bottle of prepared horseradish.  Which pales in comparison by way of flavor, but definitely lends something good, none the less.

This pot roast is a slow cooked, heady mixture of beef, horseradish, garlic, onions, herbs and beer.  I love to add the potatoes right into the slow cooker so they soak up all that yummy flavor and juice, and then hand mash them with the garlic and onions as a side dish to the roast.  When I use the slow cooker, I don't like to "attend" to the contents, so I keep the potato chunks large enough to maintain their form during the long cooking time (smaller chunks get done much sooner than the meat and become too mushy for my taste).   Also, the slow cooker tends to cook the flavor out of a lot of seasonings, so don't be alarmed by the amount of each of them in this dish - just go with it; you'll be happy you did. Served with a green vegetable salad and some crusty bread, this is a most satisfying meal with hardly any work involved.

*Note - When I make this, I often make two roasts; one for dinner and one for sandwiches throughout the next few days.  Two 2 1/2 lb chuck roasts fit nicely in a 5-6 quart slow cooker.  The only amendments to the recipe you'll need to make is to double the flour, salt, pepper mixture in the beginning (to accommodate both roasts), double the horseradish, increase the thyme and rosemary, and use the whole bottle of beer.

And the broth makes a wonderful gravy (1 Tbs butter to 1 Tbs flour to 1 cup of broth) to mix with the shredded beef later in the week.

Beer Braised Pot Roast and Potatoes

• 2 1/2 - 3lb chuck roast (preferably free range, grass fed/finished)
• 1/4 c flour
• 1 Tbs kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1-2 Tbs olive oil
• 2 Tbs prepared horseradish
• several fresh sprigs thyme and rosemary (don't be shy)
• 2 bay leaves
• few good pinches caraway seeds (optional)
• 5-6 cloves garlic
• 5-6 large red potatoes, halved
• 1 onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 1 cup dark beer (a good stout is very nice)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat oil in large skillet or dutch oven over medium high heat.

In a shallow bowl, mix flour, salt and pepper.  Dredge the chuck roast in the flour mixture, using your hands to pat in all the flour mixture.  Carefully place the roast in the pan (it may splatter) and cook about 5 minutes on each side or until deeply browned.

Transfer the roast to a 5-6 quart slow cooker.  Turn the heat on the skillet or dutch oven off.  Pour the beer into the pan and scrape all the little blackened bits from the bottom.  Set aside.

Spread the prepared horseradish on the roast.

Toss in the onion, garlic, thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, caraway (if using) and potatoes.  Pour the beer (with all the flavor bits from the bottom of the pan) over everything.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

This 6 qt slow cooker has 2 roasts under the potatoes

Cover and cook on low 8 - 9 hours or on high 5 - 6 hours. When the meat is extremely tender and falls apart, it's done.

When ready to serve, remove the roast to a serving platter and keep warm.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the potatoes, onions, garlic, and herbs (if herbs still have the stems, pluck those out, and discard the bay leaves), to a large bowl and mash with a fork or hand masher.

Serve with an ice cold beer and enjoy.