Kitchen Hash

What wonderful things come to mind when scrounging in the kitchen.

My grandmothers and theirs used to make their own hash, rather than
buying it pre-made from the grocery. The potatoes made leftover meat
go farther on a tight budget. I found what I needed in my own kitchen
one morning and whipped this little recipe up for breakfast.

Kitchen Hash

Sausage leftover from brats and saurkraut.

Ingredients:

Tbs minced garlic
1/4 white onion, minced
Leftover sausage or other broken meats
2 medium potatoes, cooked, chopped
1/4 tsp pink sea salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp parsley
Cheddar Jack cheese to taste

 

Directions:
Sauté garlic and onion in olive oil
Add meat, sauté until hot
Add potato and spices, stir until hot throughout
Serve with cheese

 

Garlic, onion, and sausage.

Directions:
Sauté garlic and onion in olive oil
Add meat, sauté until hot
Add potato and spices, stir until hot throughout
Serve with cheese

Potatoes added

 

I simply served on a plate with shredded cheese. You might toss some
of this hash into a tortilla for breakfast tacos, or pile some on a
split biscuit and serve it with gravy. The potential combinations are
limited only by your imagination, and may be served for breakfast,
lunch or even dinner.

– Chopped jalapenos will give it a bit of bite.
– Diced, pre-cooked carrots, turnips, and/or rutabagas might be used
with or instead of the potatoes.
– Any broken meat will work with this recipe, from chicken and turkey
to pork, beef, venison, goat or mutton.
– Any type of onions, shallots, or even leeks will offer a variety of
textures and flavors.

Give this hash a try at home, seasoned to suit your tastes, an leave
a note about how it turned out.

Enjoy!

— Ann Cathey

Maple Bacon Mashed Potatoes

Fall is the time of year when maple-bacon flavors start turning up in the odd niches where pumpkin spice has already been and gone. In this case, I’ve run across a recipe that takes an old favorite and gives it a sweet-n-savoury twist.

MAPLE BACON MASHED POTATOES
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients
2-1/2 lbs gold potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup light cream
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp maple syrup
5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled, reserve some for topping
salt and pepper to taste
fresh chopped chives for garnish

Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add potatoes and cook until a fork will easily slip into the center of a chunk of potato. This should be about 15-20 minutes.

Heat the milk, cream and butter in small saucepan over a low heat until the butter melts. Stir in the maple syrup. This may be done while the potatoes are cooking.

Drain your potatoes and return them to the pot. Using a potato masher or electric hand mixer, slowly stir in the milk mixture until potatoes are smooth and creamy.

Fold in chopped bacon. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

If you are not serving int he mixing bowl, turn the mashed potatoes out into a serving dish. Top with remaining chopped bacon and sprinkle with chives.

Serve hot. Refridgerate any leftovers.

 

NOTE: Potatoes, like pasta, prefer to go into boiling water rather than to be started cold. Starting your potatoes in cold water will allow the outer layers to cook more rapidly than the interior, allowing the out layers to actually cook off the chunks. While this is a great method for reducing potatoes for potato soup, it’s not so great for mashed potatoes.

 

I can smell this just typing about it. It sounds like a wonderful take on sweet and savoury, just in time for your holiday gatherings.

Enjoy!

–Ann Cathey

 

Crock-Pot Baked Potatoes

Baked potatoes have so many wonderful applications on the gourmet table. They may take forever to cook in a conventional oven, which also heats up the house, but we often do it anyway for this world renown comfort food. They can also be done in the microwave, but rarely come out just perfectly right.

There is a method that is fool proof and delivers a perfect potato every time. Or at least every time that we have done it. Roast those bad boys in a crock-pot!

Pick your potatoes carefully. Large Russets work well for this method. Scrub them well, prick them with a fork to release internal steam buildup, and spray lightly or rub with a bit of olive oil. You may use butter if you prefer, but olive oil is a little healthier and gives the potato a lovely soft skin. Wrap each potato individually in foil. Pack our potatoes carefully into a  crock-pot and seal it up.

Cook for eight hours on low. You can set this up the night before and start it in the morning for lovely hot potatoes when you get home from work.

Serve these with cheese, butter, sour cream or other toppings. They make a great base for BBW chop, chili with cheese, stroganoff (without the pasta), and many other meat or veggie based gravy/soup-like dishes.

This process may also be used with smaller potatoes for side servings with meals.

–Ann Cathey

Idahoan Steakhouse Potatoes

Kroger had an interesting “Free Friday Download” recently. It was for a box of a newly released Idahoan brand potato side dish. These items are made with 100% Idaho potatoes, and need milk and butter added in most cases. They bake in the oven and are well worth the effort from our recent experience.

Photo from Idahoan.com

Photo from Idahoan.com

We got to sample the Steakhouse Cheesy Hashbrowns. The website says, “Idahoan Steakhouse Cheesy Hashbrown Potatoes start with world-famous Idaho® potato shreds in a premium cheese sauce, then finish with a real crunchy onion topping! These Steakhouse Cheesy Hashbrown potatoes will add premium restaurant quality flavor to any meal.” I find I agree with their statement.

The cheese sauce came out creamy and very cheesy, keeping the whole moist without being soupy. The dried hash-brown style potato strips re-hydrated evenly offering a solid potato texture. The crunchy onion bits that serve as an included topping were a lovely addition to the “casserole”. We served the dish as a starch alongside scrambled eggs with a touch of salsa.

Actual dish from our kitchen.

The box claims that it will make 5 half-cup servings. We made it into four servings with ease. While this might not be the best thing to do with a controlled diet, in my case for a diabetic, but it was definitely tasty!

While I rarely fiddle with a pre-made dish on the first try, we did determine that adding extra cheese is never a bad thing. Cheddar of any kind or a Gouda would add a nice flavor contrast to this dish. Keep in mind that the crunchy onion topping is a trifle sweet. That’s not a bad thing, but it is good to know when picking out other items to serve with these potatoes.

Actual dish from our kitchen. Next time, we will be adding Gouda!

Other flavors in this new product lineup include:

Steakhouse Au Gratin Red Potatoes
“Idahoan Steakhouse Au Gratin Red Potatoes start with world-famous Idaho® red potato slices in a premium cheddar cheese sauce, then finish with a Parmesan cheese topping! These Steakhouse Au Gratin potatoes will add premium restaurant quality flavor to any meal.”

Steakhouse Bacon and Ranch Red Potatoes
“Idahoan Steakhouse Bacon & Ranch Red Potatoes start with world-famous Idaho® red potatoes in a premium ranch sauce, then finish with a real bacon topping! These Steakhouse Bacon & Ranch Red Potatoes will add premium restaurant quality flavor to any meal. Gotta love real bacon!”

Steakhouse Parmesan & Herb Red Potatoes
“Idahoan Steakhouse Parmesan & Herb Red Potatoes start with world-famous Idaho® red potato slices in a premium cheese sauce, then finish with a real Parmesan cheese topping! These Steakhouse Parmesan & Herb potatoes will add premium restaurant quality flavor to any meal.”

Steakhouse Scalloped Red Potatoes
“Idahoan Steakhouse Scalloped Red Potatoes start with world-famous Idaho® red potato slices in a premium cheese sauce, then finish with a topping of crispy onions for an irresistible crunch! These Steakhouse Scalloped potatoes will add premium restaurant quality flavor to any meal.”

— Ann Cathey

Lamb Loaf – Off the Cuff

We’ve had another grand adventure in manager markdown shopping today. It has led to the creation of a stuffed meatloaf of a flavor you may not expect.

Several pounds of lamb and chicken tenders, fresh herbs, and lovely veggies were all available at the grocery today, much to my surprise. Of course, it all came home with me. The plan for how to combine the ingredients started forming in the aisle and was ready to execute by the time I got home.

Chicken Tenders and Ground Lamb

My partner in the kitchen and I set about to make something not just tasty, but rich and luscious for supper.

 

To start, 2 pounds of ground lamb were combined with a sprinkling of Herbes de Provence. This was flattened out across a square plate to form a nice base layer for our intended rolled loaf. The layer of lamb was lightly dusted with seasoned salt.

 

 

Rosemary, Thyme and Sage

The fresh herbs were stripped off the stems, then roughly chopped to release the flavorful oils they contain for easier infusion into the meat. This mixture of rosemary, thyme, and sage was then sprinkled evenly across the giant lamb patty.

 

 

Layers

Next came the chicken tenders. These were laid out across the lamb and herbs to form a second layer of meat. This layer was smaller than the lamb layer to allow the lamb to seal around the chicken when rolled.

 

Rolling the Loaf

The meat was then carefully rolled into a loaf. Lamb is very tender and the loaf threatened to split, so it was left on the plate to cross the room to the crock pot. There it was gently tipped into place. A little more seasoned salt was sprinkled across the top.

The roasted garlic came out right about now. I pushed about a dozen cloves into the top of the loaf, having forgotten to add them to the inside. Talk about a happy accident.

Loaf in Crock

Roasted Garlic

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mint Mead

We broke with our common practice of cooking with a wine this time. All we had on hand were some heavy reds, so we took a chance on something much sweeter. We reasoned that mint and lamb go well together, and honey is good with chicken, so we went with Ursa Major’s Mint Mead*. A quarter cup was drizzled across the meat.

 

 

Some lovely organic carrots were cleaned and laid in place to either side of our savory loaf. Fingerling potatoes were washed and added across the top of everything. We sealed it up and gave ourselves over to patience for a few hours.

 

Loaf with Carrots nested

Fingerling Potatoes added

 

 

Two hours later, my kitchen is an olfactory wonderland. The mead, meat, and herbs are hot and perfuming the air. If the smell is any indicator, we will eat well tonight. The cooking process continues…

The power went out for about an hour, but our plucky crock-pot stayed hot and kept right on cooking. At the six-hour mark, it was time for the unveiling. We didn’t even have to open the pot for the savory aroma to tickle our nostrils. Once it was open, the sweet steamed up to tease us a bit more. It was admittedly difficult to wait long enough to take the remaining photos before tasting this dish!

Roasted Loaf with Veggies

The loaf was firm and lifted out of the pot fairly easily. Cutting it was easily accomplished, the meat being quite tender. The potatoes on top came out a touch dry, but the carrots had cooked well down into the mead and juices, and were falling apart as they were lifted to a plate.

Roasted Loaf

The top of the loaf, of course, took on the flavor of the roasted garlic most strongly, while the bottommost lamb absorbed the mead and offered a sweeter, lighter flavor. The chicken played up the fresh herbs delightfully, offering distinct flavors of rosemary and sage from bite to bite. Interestingly enough, it was the potatoes that attracted the thyme flavor.

First Cut in the Loaf

I did not have to add any extra salt or pepper, though some palates may prefer some. A pat of butter on the meat and veggies, however, added a very nice scent and flavor touch.

 

 

Emplated Meal

All in all, this experiment is a smashing success. It may be a bit expensive for weekly rotation, but is well worth the trouble for special occasions. Depending on how you slice the loaf, it will handily serve anywhere from 4 trenchermen to 8 portion-concious individuals.

 

— Ann Cathey

 

*Ursa Major is a small homebrew project that takes up a large portion of my kitchen. The mead and beer produced are hand constructed by my partner in the kitchen, Christopher. For information on his project, please see Ursa Major Beverages on Facebook.

Bill Miller BBQ – Austin, Texas

Bill Miller’s BBQ in Austin looks like a nice place. The decor is Texas kitch – wood paneling, cow hides, and Texas shaped brands. Antlers, taxidermied critters, plow shares, and other bits of farm history are tastefully arrayed. Sadly, the main dining area has echoes. Conversation is difficult at best when the place is crowded. It’s difficult not to over hear conversations at other tables when there are fewer patrons.

The bathrooms are clean and tidy. The floors and tables are kept clean. That was a definite high point. I cannot abide nasty bathrooms or sticky tables.

When placing your order, you get to talk to a person over a counter while staring up at an uncomfortable angle to make sure you get it right. Our cashier had a sweet disposition and smile, but apparently no real brains or common sense. I applaud Mr. Miller for giving her a job and a chance.

We ordered, checked in at a table and took a look at what we’d paid for. This is why we try new places, right?

The sweet tea was mildly sweet, unlike the usual Southern Style sweet tea found in so many places. It was fresh and had a pleasant flavor.

I’d asked for lean brisket. I got juicy, tender, fat riddled meat smothered in a disguising sauce. The lovely smoked turkey right next to it was also swimming. The sauce itself wasn’t bad, but it was very strongly tomato flavored, thin, vinegary, sort of a Carolina style that separated solids form vinegar as it cooled on the plate. Frankly, I prefer to be able to taste my meat, and not be given a heart attack from consuming it. One of my table partners thriftily finished it for me.

To accompany the entree, a bar of sorts was set up offering pickles, onions and hot peppers. This seems typical, but the items were hard to reach as the bar was small and cramped.

The baked potatoes are more of a medium size than a large size. Today’s potato was not quite done all the way through, and we had to ask for the fixings. I don’t think they intended it that way, but our girl at the counter appeared to have been a bit sheltered in her youth. She had to be asked twice, “What comes on your spuds?” She didn’t know what a spud was.

If you like black pepper, this is your place. It’s in almost everything – the coleslaw, the meat rubs, the potato salad. The pepper rub on the turkey almost overpowers the smokey flavor, though the sauce tempers the pepper a bit.

The pinto beans were thankfully very mild. They were tender with a beefy flavor. There was no evidence of black pepper or any other kind of hot spicing. I really enjoyed them – enough to eat my own and another person’s helping.

The hash browns were just heavenly. A little soft, a little crunchy — and the white onion was in large, removable slices. The flavor combinations were quite tasty. There was no pepper apparent in my helping, nor was there a large amount of salt. These hash browns easily pair up with eggs for breakfast tacos, as a side for BBQ, or just on a plate by themselves. Since Bill Miller’s offers breakfast on weekends until noon, there’s always the pleasure of starting your day with these hash browns.

Sadly, not all the customers we encountered that day were enlightened by their dining experience. Our Chaplain, a Caucasian Hindu mind you, and who had the issue with the baked potato earlier, was verbally accosted while waiting for the rest of us to clear our checks. He was sitting on a bench outside when he heard, “Look! It’s a fucking Muslim!” coming from a 10 or 12 year old boy who was pointing directly at him. The boy’s parents didn’t have the grace to be embarrassed, much less apologize.

If this is the sort of people who patronize this location, I won’t be going back. The rude even outweighs the hash browns.

Sorry, Bill.

 

–Ann Cathey