Mashed: Harvest Mashed Potatoes (Was: Re: Twiced Baked Potatoes)
Subject: Harvest Mashed Potatoes (Was: Re: Twiced Baked Potatoes)
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: Jill McQuown
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 06:45:41 -0500
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sf wrote:
> myrl_jeffcoat at yahoo.com wrote:
>
>> Occassionally, I will boil one Yam, while the potatoes are baking
>> the first time. I will mix in this Yam after peeling, with the
>> rest of the Irish potato mixture. It gives it a beautiful color.
>
> Interesting idea, I need to try that sometime.
While there are no true "yams" in North America, there are sweet potatoes. My friend Sharon gave me this recipe for:
Harvest Mashed Potatoes
4 large red or russet potatoes (2 pounds)
2 medium-size sweet potatoes (1-1/2 pounds)
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tbs. prepared horseradish
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
Bake sweet potatoes until tender (425F, about an hour); peel and mash the sweet inner part. Cook russet potatoes (cut large ones in half) in a Dutch oven in boiling salted water to cover until tender; peel and mash or press through ricer and combine with sweet potatoes. Add 1/2 cup butter and next 8 ingredients; mash with a potato masher or mix with electric hand mixer until smooth. Place in baking pan and bake until heated through and starting to brown on top.
Serve topped with additional Parmesan cheese if desired. Yield: 8-10 servings.
From: sf (see_reply_address at nospam.com)
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 07:14:44 -0700
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Jill wrote:
> 4 large red or russet potatoes (2 pounds)
There is a big difference between red and russet. Have you tried the recipe using red?
From: Jill McQuown
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:51:21 -0500
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sf wrote:
> There is a big difference between red and russet. Have you tried the
> recipe using red?
Nope; I never buy red potatoes. Sharon told me she's used both in the recipe but I have no clue about the difference.
From: Mr Libido Incognito (Not at vaild.null)
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 22:37:23 GMT
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Jill wrote:
> Nope; I never buy red potatoes. Sharon told me she's used both in the
> recipe but I have no clue about the difference.
I never buy russets I find them to mealy. I prefer waxy potatoes much more.
From: sf (see_reply_address at nospam.com)
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 19:41:35 -0700
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Mr Libido Incognito wrote:
> I never buy russets I find them to mealy. I prefer waxy potatoes much more.
Because of that quality, russetts are the best kind for mashed and baked potatoes.
From: Terry Pulliam Burd (ntpulliam at spaminator.net)
Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 17:58:26 -0700
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sf rummaged among random neurons and opined:
>Because of that quality, russetts are the best kind for mashed and
>baked potatoes.
When we lived in Syracuse NY (and I wasn't as "into" cooking as I am now) they had something called "salt potatoes" on offer. Not quite sure what brand of beast they were, however. Never much cared for them.
From: kilikini (kilikiniSPAM at tampabay.rr.com)
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 14:26:08 GMT
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Jill McQuown wrote:
> While there are no true "yams" in North America, there are sweet potatoes.
> My friend Sharon gave me this recipe for Harvest Mashed Potatoes:
Sounds good if you leave out the horseradish. I'm going to file this. Thanks, Jill.
From: sf (see_reply_address at nospam.com)
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 12:07:46 -0700
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kilikini wrote:
> Sounds good if you leave out the horseradish. I'm going to file this.
> Thanks, Jill.
It's only a tablespoon to 3 1/2 pounds of potatoes, so it's not going to bother you. OTOH, it's not worth running out to the store just for that one ingredient. Use a little more pepper instead.
From: Jill McQuown
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 17:12:38 -0500
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kilikini wrote:
> Sounds good if you leave out the horseradish. I'm going to file this.
> Thanks, Jill.
Perhaps some cocktail dipping sauce for boiled shrimp? :) Got news for ya, sweetie. When one makes cocktail sauce from scratch you use horseradish. It adds the "kick" to the sauce.
From: kilikini (kilikiniSPAM at tampabay.rr.com)
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 09:05:18 GMT
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Jill McQuown wrote:
> Perhaps some cocktail dipping sauce for boiled shrimp? :) Got news for ya,
> sweetie. When one makes cocktail sauce from scratch you use horseradish.
> It adds the "kick" to the sauce.
Thus I buy Del Monte cocktail sauce; it's the least.......offensive. :~)
kili <-------- who doesn't dip much anyway
From: myrl_jeffcoat at yahoo.com
Date: 23 Jun 2006 15:35:22 -0700
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You're probably right about the sweet potato/yam labeling in this country. However, in the stores, you will often see them labeled as Yams and Sweet Potatoes, when they are sitting side by side on the shelves.
I guess, the ones called, "Garnets" are the one's I prefer. They are more bright orange, than those the store labels as Sweet Potatoes.
Over time, I've labeled the "Garnets" as "Yams". . .and the yellow ones, as "Sweet Potatoes."
From: "-L." (gentleboa at peacemail.com)
Date: 23 Jun 2006 18:11:07 -0700
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myrl_jeffcoat wrote:
> You're probably right about the sweet potato/yam labeling in this
> country. However, in the stores, you will often see them labeled as
> Yams and Sweet Potatoes, when they are sitting side by side on the
> shelves.
>
> I guess, the ones called, "Garnets" are the one's I prefer. They are
> more bright orange, than those the store labels as Sweet Potatoes.
>
> Over time, I've labeled the "Garnets" as "Yams". . .and the yellow
> ones, as "Sweet Potatoes."
Garnets here (Portland, Oregon) are called Yams. It may be a store and/or regional thing. Sweet Potatoes are too starchy for me.
From: Wayne Boatwright (wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com)
Date: 24 Jun 2006 03:47:18 +0200
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Oh pshaw, -L. meant to say...
> Garnets here (Portland, Oregon) are called Yams. It may be a store
> and/or regional thing. Sweet Potatoes are too starchy for me.
There are so many varities of sweet potatoes. Until more recent years I really did think that both yams and sweet potatoes were marketed in the US, but they really are all sweet potatoes. I really don't like the more yellow fleshed variety. They are usually dry, often stringy, and not as sweet. And, as you said, seem more starchy. Both the brown-skinned and red-skinned (and even the purple-skinned) varieties that have intensely orange flesh are my favorites. All varieties can be improved, however, by long slow baking, until the juices escaping begin to caramelize. Unfortunately, a lot of people don't have the patience for that.
From: sf (see_reply_address at nospam.com)
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 19:47:08 -0700
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Wayne Boatwright wrote:
> All varieties can be improved, however, by
> long slow baking, until the juices escaping begin to caramelize.
> Unfortunately, a lot of people don't have the patience for that.
AFAIC, even baking doesn't help the yellow ones. They might be good as an ingredient in some stew, but I haven't figured what recipe that would be.
From: Wayne Boatwright (wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com)
Date: 25 Jun 2006 04:55:28 +0200
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Oh pshaw, sf meant to say...
> AFAIC, even baking doesn't help the yellow ones. They might be good
> as an ingredient in some stew, but I haven't figured what recipe that
> would be.
I'm in total agreement. I never buy the yellow ones. Mom taught me that when I was a kid. :-)
From: Alexis (alexisinalaska at aol.com)
Date: 25 Jun 2006 19:10:03 -0700
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sf wrote:
> AFAIC, even baking doesn't help the yellow ones. They might be good
> as an ingredient in some stew, but I haven't figured what recipe that
> would be.
I ended up with a couple by mistake once -- they were palatable by making them into seasoned oven-fries. I made a dip of roughly equal parts BBQ sauce and sour cream to have with them.
I won't repeat the mistake -- but I didn't have to throw them out either.
From: Bob Terwilliger (virtualgoth at die_spammer.biz)
Date: 26 Jun 2006 16:23:02 -0500
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sf wrote about sweet potatoes:
> AFAIC, even baking doesn't help the yellow ones. They might be good
> as an ingredient in some stew, but I haven't figured what recipe that
> would be.
From Paula Wolfert's _Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco_:
Beef Tagine with Sweet Potatoes
2 1/2 to 3 pounds beef stewing meat, such as shoulder, chuck, or short ribs of beef (with some bone), cut into 1 1/4 inch chunks
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
Salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup salad oil
1/2 teaspoon sharp paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 pinches ground cumin
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 1/2 medium onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup mixed chopped herbs (parsley and cilantro)
2 ripe tomatoes
1 pound sweet potatoes
Juice of 1 lemon
EQUIPMENT:
Paring knife
Vegetable peeler
5 1/2 quart flameproof casserole with a tight-fitting lid
3 1/2 quart saucepan
Shallow ovenproof serving dish
Aluminum foil
WORKING TIME: 30 minutes
COOKING TIME: 2 hours or more
Serves: 4 to 6
1. Remove and discard the excess fat from the beef. Place the beef in the casserole with the turmeric, salt, pepper, and oil. Fry, turning the beef often to lightly brown all sides. Cover the casserole tightly and cook 15 minutes WITHOUT LIFTING THE COVER. The meat will cook in its own juices, drawn out by the salt over low heat.
2. Stir in the remaining spices, chopped onion, herbs, and very little water. Simmer, covered, 1 1/2 to 2 hours over gentle heat, until the meat is very tender (almost falling off the bones). Add water whenever necessary to keep the meat from scorching.
3. Peel the tomatoes, halve them crosswise and squeeze out the seeds, then cut them into chunks. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Transfer the meat and gravy to the serving dish. Place the sweet potatoes on top of the meat and the tomatoes on top of the sweet potatoes. Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes, until the meat and potatoes are tender. Remove the foil cover, raise the oven temperature to 450°F, and transfer the dish to the upper shelf of the oven. Bake until there is a brown-spotted crust over the tomatoes. (If there is a great deal of gravy in the pan, pour it off into a saucepan and reduce over high heat to 1 cup before returning it to the dish.) Taste for seasoning and serve at once.
From: Jill McQuown
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 14:23:15 -0500
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myrl_jeffcoat wrote:
> You're probably right about the sweet potato/yam labeling in this
> country. However, in the stores, you will often see them labeled as
> Yams and Sweet Potatoes, when they are sitting side by side on the
> shelves.
Shelves? You're talking canned Yams vs. canned something else? I buy fresh sweet potatoes. I have never seen canned sweet potatoes but I have seen canned Yams. Go figure ;)
From: Isaac (isw at witzend.com)
Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 22:11:36 -0700
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Jill McQuown wrote:
> Shelves? You're talking canned Yams vs. canned something else? I buy fresh
> sweet potatoes. I have never seen canned sweet potatoes but I have seen
> canned Yams. Go figure ;)
They're really sweet potatoes; they're just called yams. Yams are as big as your arm, white inside, very starchy, and not at all sweet.
From: sf (see_reply_address at nospam.com)
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 19:44:49 -0700
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myrl_jeffcoat wrote:
> Over time, I've labeled the "Garnets" as "Yams". . .and the yellow
> ones, as "Sweet Potatoes."
Around here it's the opposite... the bright orange ones are called sweet potatoes and the drier, stringier, not sweet, yellow ones are called yams.
From: Wayne Boatwright (wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com)
Date: 25 Jun 2006 04:50:00 +0200
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Oh pshaw, sf meant to say...
> Around here it's the opposite... the bright orange ones are called
> sweet potatoes and the drier, stringier, not sweet, yellow ones are
> called yams.
In either case, none of them are yams.