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Help Me, I’m Melting (Potatoes)!

When we decided to make the prime rib dinner this past Christmas, the natural inclination would seem to go with mashed potatoes as a standard side dish. I wanted to try something a little different with the starch we were going to serve and try to keep things easy at the same time. I love mashed potatoes, but unless you make them ahead of time and re-heat them they can be a chore during holiday cooking when you have to stop and mash them perfectly. I thought a roasted potato would be just perfect and then I found in the same issue of Cook’s Country that I found the prime rib recipe this wonderfully easy recipe for melting potatoes, which are roasted potatoes that are popular in the United Kingdom and sometimes called fondant potatoes.

Melting Potatoes

3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled

6 tablespoons butter, melted

1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed and peeled

Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 500 degrees. Square off the ends of the potatoes and cut them crosswise into 1-inch thick disks. Toss the potatoes with the melted butter, the thyme salt and pepper. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer in a 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

Roast the potatoes until the bottoms are beginning to brown around the edges, about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. Using a flat metal spatula and tongs, loosen the potatoes from the bottom of the pan and flip them. Return the potatoes to the oven and continue to roast them until they are browned on the second side, about 15 minutes longer.

Remove the pan from the oven and flip the potatoes once more. Add the chicken broth and the garlic to the pan. Return the potatoes to the oven and roast until the potatoes are tender and the sauce has reduced slightly, about 15 minutes. Baste the potatoes with some of the sauce before serving.

This is a great side dish not just for the holidays but for anytime you want potatoes. I did alter things slightly. Since I had the roast out resting for an hour and was already roasting vegetables at 425 degrees, I put the potatoes in as well and let them cook for a few minutes longer to make up for the temperature difference. They may not have been the super crispy that is described in the recipe but they were still very crispy and the sauce had thickened nicely around the potatoes. They were a great brown color and the ideal compliment to the prime rib and roasted vegetables. I think they would just as well with any other type of roast or poultry and I plan to give them a try when it is just the three of us for a meal and see how it goes.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe from our holiday meal. There is still lots to come as we had appetizers, sides and desserts galore to choose from and I had made some things just before the holidays that I haven’t even gotten to yet. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

A Fez Style Fish For Mother’s Day

13 May

We’re going out for Mother’s Day today and I am making the fish portion of the meal for those that don’t eat red meat. I was wondering what to make earlier in the week, when luckily I came across this recipe in the New York Times on Wednesday and it sounded perfect. It’s from a restaurant in Marrakesh at a hotel called La Mamounia and it’s a simple, all in one baked fish. it sounded light enough and easy to make and it will make a great summer dish. I went off the board a little bit with the fish. The recipe calls for sea bass or fluke, but when I went shopping yesterday the halibut looked the best so I am going with that.

Baked Fish, Fez Style

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves

1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro leaves

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

1 pinch saffron threads, crushed

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 1/2 pounds fish fillets (4 fillets): sea bass, fluke, hake or halibut

1 pound large Yukon gold potatoes, peeled, in 1/2-inch thick slices

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

1 red bell pepper, cored and slivered

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives

Combine the garlic, parsley, cilantro, cumin, paprika and saffron in a dish big enough for the fish. Mix the vinegar, lemon juice and tomato paste in a small bowl. Add to the dish and mix. Place the fillets in the dish, turning to coat the fillets, cover and set them aside to marinate, 2 hours at room temperature or 3 if refrigerated.

Place the potatoes in a saucepan, add water to cover, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain.

Brush a baking dish that can go to the table and will hold the fish in a single layer with a little of the oil. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the potatoes in the dish, season with salt and pepper, and place the fish fillets on top of the potatoes. Scatter the peppers and tomatoes over the fish. Add a little more salt and pepper. Spoon any excess marinade over the fish, strew with the olives, drizzle the remaining oil and bake about 30 minutes, until the fish is just cooked through. Serve.

I think it will be a very nice meal and everything is made and served in one dish, which it makes it even better. I’ll add some pictures later as I put it all together. I hope to actually have some recipes this week to post. It’s been a little crazy around the house the last few weeks. Michelle has been working a lot, I have been working a lot and Sean has been studying for tests so we haven’t had a lot of time to put into meal planning, but hopefully we’ll do that. I know I have the makings for a meat loaf and I bought some chicken breast so we’ll be doing something with it this week. Stay tuned to find out. I hope everyone out there has a wonderful Mother’s Day and all the Moms out there should enjoy their day and enjoy your meal!