perfect roast potatoes

December 21, 2011

In British households the roast potato is king at Christmas. No other cooking method can live up to the shining glory of a great roast spud.

I had a bit of trouble wrapping my head around the whole mashed potato at Thanksgiving thing, because in many other respects Thanksgiving dinner looks like the British Christmas dinner. Why were people eschewing the roastie?! I couldn’t wrap my head around it. But it’s okay. You can have your T-Day mash if I can have my Chrimbo roast potato.

If you can’t tell already, I’ve been thinking a LOT about this recently. Christmas is a-coming and Dan and I have been charged with planning two Christmas dinners, which we’re mightily excited about. You could say I’ve got my game face on when it comes to serving up really good roasties.

So, what makes a great roast potato? To me it must be fluffy on the inside and wonderfully crisp on the outside.

There are a few secrets I’ve discovered to really perfect roast potatoes:

> par-boil your potatoes for just a couple of minutes so they’re nice and fluffy before you begin.

> give them a vigorous shake as you drain them which will help the fluffiness, as will dusting them with a teaspoon or two of flour.

> make sure your oil or fat of choice is really, really hot before you pop the tats in the pan.

Taking inspiration from my friend Tyler, I’ve decided that cooking said tats in goose or duck fat adds a luxurious twist that is wholly appropriate for something like Christmas dinner. You don’t need it for great roasties, obviously, but it adds a blooming lovely depth of flavour. Lu-xu-ry.

I got more help on technique from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Angela Nilsen.

If all this seems like far too much fuss for a potato then you, my dear, have never had an outstanding roast potato. It’s a thing to truly be revered and adored. The things food dreams are made of.

Will you be having them with your Christmas dinner this year? Tell me your secrets to perfect spuds!

Perfect Roast Potatoes

Ingredients

  • 1 kg/ 2.2lbs potatoes (I recommend these UK varieties: Maris Piper, Cara, Kind Edward – and these American: Russet or Yukon Gold), peeled and cut into fairly small even-sized pieces
  • 100g/ 3.5oz duck or goose fat, or 100ml/3½fl oz olive oil (Clancey’s in Linden Hills is a great resource in Minneapolis)
  • 2 tsp flour
  • Sea salt, to serve

Directions

  1. Place an empty roasting tin in your oven and heat it to 200C/400F.
  2. Put your potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Add a large pinch of salt and bring to a rolling boil. Once the water comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and leave the potatoes for 2 minutes. While they are par-boiling, add your fat of choice to the roasting pan in the oven to get nice and hot.
  3. Drain the potatoes in a colander, shaking them around enough to fluff them up a bit and give them a rough texture. Add the flour and shake to cover evenly and thinly.
  4. Carefully place the potatoes in the roasting pan – the hot fat will sizzle intensely so watch out! – and turn them over so all sides are covered in fat. Spread them in a single layer, making sure they have plenty of room.
  5. Roast the potatoes for 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and turn over. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes, then turn them over again, each time making sure they are well coated with fat/oil. Put them back in the oven for another 10-20 mins, or however long it takes for them to get really golden brown and crisp. The colouring might not be even, but that’s fine. Some darker sides and some lighter are ideal.
  6. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with salt and serve straight away. Serves four, as part of a meal.

Note: If your potatoes seem too oily when you remove them from the oven, feel free to put them on a paper towel for a couple of minutes to soak up some moisture.


christmas chocolate biscuits

December 19, 2011

Again with the “biscuits” instead of cookies. Am I making you cross-eyed yet? The thing is that I’ve adapted to so many Americanisms since moving to this side of the pond but Christmas is stuck in my bones. It’s what I grew up with. I can let go of some things, but Christmas chocolate biscuits with festive sprinkles is not one of them.

These are super simple to make and as Nigella says, meltingly gorgeous to eat. They’re dark, soft pillows of chocolate shortbread – thicker than any cookie or biscuit you’ll have had in a while and so very, very chocolate-y – I love them.

Brits call this kind of topping to a biscuit/cookie “icing”. There’s no butter involved as with American frosting, instead it’s usually made with icing/confectioner’s sugar and boiling water. It’s still a very sweet topping but less rich and of a thinner consistency. Quite delightful really.

Add a bit of a Christmas joy to your life with all those multi-coloured sprinkles and you’re good to go. Merry, merry!

Christmas Chocolate Biscuits
from Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

  • 250g / 8.8oz soft butter
  • 150g caster sugar / 5.3oz white sugar
  • 40g / 1.4oz cocoa powder, sifted
  • 300g plain flour / 10.6oz all purpose flour, sifted
  • ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda /baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

For the topping:

  • 2 x 15ml tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted
  • 175g icing sugar / 6.2oz confectioner’s sugar, sifted
  • 60ml/ 2fl oz boiling water, from a kettle
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Christmas sprinkles

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/350F and line a baking sheet with a Silpat or baking parchment.
  2. Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl until the mixture is soft and light. Add the cocoa powder and mix in. Add the flour, baking soda, and baking powder and beat again until incorporated.
  3. Scoop up pieces of dough about the size of a large walnut and roll them into balls, then slightly flatten into fat discs placing them well spaced on your baking sheet; you should get about 12 on at a time.
  4. Bake for 15 minutes (they might not look baked through but they’ll continue to cook as they cool). Remove the baking sheet to a cold surface and let it sit for 15 minutes before transferring the biscuits to a wire rack, with a sheet of newspaper under it (to catch drips while topping them).

To make the topping:

  1. Put the cocoa powder, icing sugar, water and vanilla extract into a small saucepan and whisk over a low heat until everything’s smoothly combined. Take off the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
  2. When the biscuits are cool, drizzle each one with a tablespoonful of chocolate glaze  using the back of the spoon to help spread the mixture, though an uneven dribbly look is part of their charm.
  3. After you’ve iced 6 biscuits, scatter with some of the Christmas sprinkles, and continue until all the biscuits are topped. If you ice them all before sprinkling, you will find the cocoa “glue” has dried and the sprinkles won’t stick on. Makes approx. 24.

Note: As I mentioned on this post, British measurements are listed first with American adaptations second. If you don’t own a measuring scale I highly recommend buying a cheap digital one so that you can weigh ingredients accurately for baking. Most have the option for grams and ounces. Here’s a reasonably priced option. Also, the argument for using a scale :)


11 comments     posted in:   Recipe


kale tortellini soup

December 16, 2011

Are you a soup person? If you’ve been coming here a while then you’ll know that I am.

They’re hard to mess up for a start, that always helps. But I also love that they are one of the most relaxing things to make. As a bit of a stress-head in the kitchen, it’s nice for me to make something with a slow rhythm to it.

This soup is pretty quick and easy to make but it’s got soul and it’s got rhythm. Put on a record or the radio and get that oil warming. Saute some garlic and red chili flakes as you tap your foot; watch some stock and chopped tomatoes simmer while you sing out of tune; stir in tortellini, and lovely detoxifying kale. Add pesto, dance around a bit, season, and serve.

It’s a rustic, bold and spicy base filled with mouthfuls of kale, tomato, and carb-y, cheesy pasta. What could be better on a freezing December day?

Kale Tortellini Soup
from Running with Tweezers

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 large cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp dried red chili flakes
  • 5 cups vegetable stock (or 3 cups vegetable stock and 2 cups water)
  • 14 ounces chopped tomatoes with their liquid
  • 3/4 -to a whole bunch of kale, roughly chopped and tough stems removed
  • 8 ounces fresh or frozen cheese tortellini (Feel free to use normal pasta instead of tortellini if you like, or maybe beans instead.)
  • 1 tbsp good quality pesto
  • salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

  1. In a large heavy bottomed pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and saute until soft but not browned – 1 to 2 minutes. Add in the dried red chili and saute for another minute.
  2. Pour in the vegetable stock (and/or water) and chopped tomatoes and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the tortellini and cook until tender, about 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the kale and cook until the leaves are wilted and the ribs are tender, 3 to 4 minutes.
  3. Stir in the pesto, taste and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

10 comments     posted in:   Healthy Food, Recipe


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