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Fried White Sweet Potato

21 Apr

There are two kinds of sweet potatoes – white sweet potato and the orangy sweet potato we call batata mameya.  Most Americans are familiar with the orangy kind, which I believe can also be called yam.

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                                                             batata-blanca

The white sweet potato, or batata blanca, is much sweeter and versatile than its mameya counterpart.  I really like it baked in the oven, which is a very traditional side dish to eat at BBQ rotisserie chicken stands.  But my grandma also used to make it for us fried… it’s a nice alternative to a plantain tostón or french-fries…                

 

 batatas-fritas

FRIED WHITE SWEET POTATO

1 white sweet potato, peeled and sliced thin
Canola oil for frying
Salt, optional

 

  1. In a large skillet, pour about ½” of oil…  heat it at medium-high heat.
  2. While the oil heats up, prep the sweet potato… I peel it using a vegetable peeler because I am not too good peeling using a knife.  The sweet potato will start to get dark after being exposed to the air a few seconds.  Don’t worry, it’s normal and it will not change the texture or taste of the sweet potato.
  3. After you’ve peeled and sliced the sweet potato and the oil is hot enough…  start frying.  The sweet potato will take a while to fry because of its moisture content…  but with patience, it will cook on the inside and get crispy on the outside.  The thinner you slice the potato, the faster they will cook and the crispier it will be.  They should be golden brown, without any burned spots.
  4. Drain them onto a plate with paper towel and sprinkle with some salt if you want…  I usually do not salt them.

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Undercover Potatoes

16 Mar

What to do when you have leftover sauce from your Undercover Carrot Mac  & Cheese??  Pour it on top of steamed potatoes… what else??

Another way to sneak in carrots into your kids meals…

 undercover-carrot-potatoes

UNDERCOVER POTATOES

About 10 fingerling potatoes, washed well and cut in half
About ½ cup of leftover sauce from this recipe here

 

  1. In a medium sauce pan place the fingerling potatoes.  Add enough water to the bottom of the pan, where about half of the potatoes are still exposed.  I find that potatoes cook better and faster when only a small amount of water is added to the pot.
  2. Salt the potatoes and swirl the water in the pan for the salt to combine with the water.
  3. Cover and let it boil/steam over medium heat for about 15 minutes.  Check the potatoes for doneness.  If they’re still underdone, let them go for about 2-3 minutes more and without uncovering, turn off the stove. 
  4. After about 10-15 minutes, the potatoes will be perfectly steamed and at the right temperature to handle.  I sometimes take the skin off after I steam them… but that’s entirely if to you.
  5. While the potatoes are resting, heat the leftover sauce.  After it’s warm, pour on top of potatoes. 

 

Serve with a nice side salad for a light dinner…

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Green Salad with Meyer Lemon Dressing

28 Feb

Ever since I went to Miami for Xmas, I have been hypnotized by Meyer Lemons…  a friend of mine brought them to our yoga retreat and never used them.  I looked at them everyday – how yellow they were, their soft skins in contrast with regular yellow lemons or limes.   We do not have Meyer lemons in Puerto Rico, so I was mostly intrigued by how they would taste.

meyer-lemons

According to most chefs on the Food Network, Meyer lemons are like a cross between a lemon and an orange, because they taste that much sweeter than a regular lemon.  I have substituted Meyer lemon juice in recipes my mixing lemon and orange juices.  But I had never actually tasted one in real life.  So after a little asking, she gave me some lemons and brought them home…

Meyer Lemons taste a tad bit different than regular yellow lemons – their juice is not as tart, but is not necessarily sweeter.  But now that I have these beautiful lemons, what do I do with them…  let’s see how a vinaigrette will taste like…

 green-salad-w-meyer-lemon-dressing

GREEN SALAD WITH MEYER LEMON DRESSING

The juice of 1 Meyer lemon
2 tsp of mustard with horseradish
About double of the amount of lemon juice you have
Salt and Pepper to taste
5-6 lettuce leaves
½ cucumber, peeled and sliced

 

  1. In a small glass jar mix together the lemon juice, mustard, olive oil, salt and pepper.  Shake well or whisk together all the ingredients until an emulsion forms.
  2. Wash the lettuce well and dry.  Combine with the cucumber slices.  Add a drizzle of the dressing and toss to coat.

 

Enjoy as a side salad with a delicious Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart.

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Garlic-infused Mashed Potatoes

8 Feb

I once saw Tyler Florence do mashed potatoes boiled in a mixture of cream and milk.  He infused the liquid with lots of flavors – bay leaves, garlic and salt, among others.  This is my rendition of those potatoes…

I used half and half – partly because I already had it in my fridge, partly because that’s exactly same thing as mixing equal parts of milk and cream…  why buy two things if you can buy only one.  What I liked about adding the garlic whole and letting it cook with the half and half is that it mellows the strong taste of garlic…  giving it a smoother, almost roasted, taste to the mashed potatoes.

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GARLIC-INFUSED MASHED POTATOES

About 10-12 fingerling potatoes – I would also use Yukon Gold or Red Bliss Potatoes, which are my favorites
About 2 cups of half and half – enough that would cover most of the potatoes
1 bay leaf – fresh or dry
2 medium garlic cloves – smashed and with the peel removed
Salt to taste – I used about 1 tsp
Freshly Cracked Black Pepper – optional
 
  1. Wash well the potatoes  – It is very important to wash well the potatoes because we will not discard the liquid they’re being boiled in.  Cut them in half or even thirds if the potatoes are a bit large. I usually do not cut my potatoes too small, but because we’re boiling them with the same liquid we’re mashing them in, none of the nutrition will be “drained away”. 
  2. Add the potatoes, half and half, salt, bay leaf and garlic to a large pot.  You might think the pot is too large, but this is to prevent any spillovers.  I tend to cover my pots when I boil potatoes, but because we’re doing it in a dairy product, only half-cover the pot for now.  This will help bring the liquid to a nice simmer/ light boil.
  3. Boil the potatoes for about 30 minutes, until they’re fork tender.  Fingerlings tend to be a bit tougher than Yukon Gold’s or Red potatoes… just so you know.
  4. When the potatoes are done, cover the pot and let them be for about 10-15 minutes.  The steam inside the pot will ensure they’ll be thoroughly cooked and the liquid will not be as hot for you to handle the mashing…  this is experience talking here.
  5. When the time has elapsed, discard the bay leaf, drain some of the liquid out (this will make the mashing a bit easier) and mash potatoes with remaining liquid with a potato masher.  Add more of the boiling liquid if you see they’re not as creamy as you would like them to be.  I use most of the half and half when I make them.   As you’ll see, the garlic is soft enough and mashes easily into the potatoes.
  6. Check for seasonings.  Add more salt if needed.  Add cracked pepper is using.

 

garlic-infused-mashed-potatoes

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Yellow-Mustard Fingerling Potatoes

27 Jan

Last year we already established how much I love potatoes with my Potato Festival, celebrating the Year of the Potato…  but I have only shared only a fraction of all the potato dishes I know how to make and love to eat.

I made these potatoes for the first time when I visited my sister in her new Florida home last year.  I wanted to make something with these incredible potatoes she had bought and this is what I came up with.  I ate them with a veggie hot dog, and in my opinion, if you don’t have chips around, these are great with any veggie hot dog or veggie burger.

They’re super easy to make and after you put them in the oven, you can literally forget about them for about an hour.  So they’re great when you have a lot to do and not a lot of time to tend to the cooking.

I like to make these with fingerling potatoes because when you quarter them, they actually look like “steak fries”… don’t’ you think?

 yellow-mustard-fingerling-potatoes

 

YELLOW MUSTARD FINGERLING POTATOES

About 10-12 fingerling potatoes, washed well and quartered lengthwise
2 tbs yellow mustard
1 tbs olive oil
1 clove of garlic minced or grated
1 tsp salt
A few grinds of freshly cracked black pepper
A few sprinkles of Italian Seasonings
  1.  Pre-heat oven to 400 F.
  2. Mix all the ingredients, except the potatoes, in a bowl that can fit the potatoes eventually.  Toss the potatoes to coat well with the mixture.
  3. Place the potatoes in a sheet pan and roast in the oven for about 1 hour.  At about 35 minutes into the cooking, look at them and see if they need turning.  I sometimes turn them, sometimes I do not… but anyway, they turn out great. (it rhymed and I did not planned that…)

 Let them cool a bit before digging in…

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