Nourishing Potato Salad

Russet potatoes have dark brown skin and few eyes. Their flesh is white, dry and mealy, and they are good for baking, mashing and, most of all, French fries. That’s enough to make them the most widely grown potatoes in North America.

Because we tend to eat the Russet deep-fried, or baked and smothered with sour cream and butter, it can get a bad rap. However, one russet potato (approximately 5.2 ounces in size) has a moderate 110 calories and is an excellent source of potassium (more than a banana) and vitamin C. Russets are also a good source of vitamin B6 and are fat, sodium and cholesterol free.

russet potatoes

The Salad
6 cooked, cooled and diced organic potatoes with skin.
1 cup chopped organic celery
1 cup chopped organic carrots
2 medium-sized organic, naturally fermented chopped pickles
2 teaspoons organic celery seed
4-6 hard-cooked pastured eggs, peeled and chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

The Sauce
2 pastured eggs, beaten
1/4 cup sucanat or rapadura (optional)
1 teaspoon arrowroot powder
1/2 teaspoon Himalayan salt or other unrefined sea salt
1/3 cup organic apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon organic yellow mustard
4 tablespoons butter

Mix all the salad ingredients together.

For the sauce, whisk together the 2 beaten eggs, optional sucanat or rapadura, arrowroot powder, and salt in a saucepan. Stir in the vinegar, milk and mustard. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. You must stir constantly so the eggs to do not scramble.
Remove from heat and cool about 5-7 minutes. Stir in the butter. Refrigerate until cool.

Gently fold in the sauce with the ingredients and serve immediately or you can let “sit” in the fridge for a few hours or overnight to let the flavors blend.

We thank westonaprice.org for this recipe.

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Corn Chowder

Source Note: This is a lower-calorie version of the traditional corn chowder that is usually made with lots of cream and butter. If you are on a sodium-restricted diet, omit the salt. 
bicolor corn
2 pounds white potatoes, diced (River Run Farm Yukon Golds!)
1 bay leaf
4 cups water
3 teaspoons margarine or butter
3 medium onions, chopped
4 ribs celery, chopped
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
3 tablespoons Nash’s soft white wheat flour (or all-purpose flour)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage, or 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried sage
1/2 teaspoon crushed white pepper
2 cups skim milk
1 1/3 cups cooked sweet corn
Salt

Optional
Parsley, for garnish
Red bell pepper slices, for garnish

In a large saucepan, combine the potatoes, bay leaf, and water; bring to a boil. Cover and cook for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Discard the bay leaf. Drain the potatoes, reserving the liquid. Set both aside.

In the same saucepan, melt the margarine. Add the onions, celery, and cumin seeds; cook until the onions are tender. Stir in the flour, sage, and white pepper. Stir in enough reserved potato liquid to make a smooth paste, then stir in the remaining potato liquid and potatoes, and heat through. Stir in the milk and corn, season to taste with salt, and heat thoroughly.

If desired, top with snipped parsley and bell pepper slices.

We thank Bounty from the Box, the CSA Farm Cookbook for this recipe.

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Classic Dijon Potato Salad with Fresh Dill

dill, bunched

Cut 1 ½ lbs red and/or Yukon potatoes in equal-sized pieces. In a medium saucepan, parboil until just fork-tender, but firm. Allow to cool.

Combine 2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard, 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar, 2 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix in 1 Tbsp. capers and set aside. Grill potato halves on a grill pan over medium-high heat about 4 minutes or until browned. Turn over and cook the other side. Try to get nice grill marks on them. Toss potatoes in dressing until well-coated. Add ¼ small red onion, thinly sliced, and 2 chopped ribs of celery and toss everything together. Enjoy warm or cold, on a bed of arugula or chopped lettuce.

We thank onegreenplanet.org for this recipe.

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Nash’s Pork Chops

Pork Chop and FriendsAbove are the ingredients for Nash and Patty’s dinner yesterday evening. It took only 1/2 hour to prepare, was almost entirely local, and tasted delicious. First we preheated the oven to 350°F. In went the small potatoes to start baking. The pork chops were seasoned with garlic salt and pepper, and browned in a skillet in Nash’s camelina oil for 3 minutes per side. Then they were transferred to an oven-proof pan and put in the oven for exactly 10 minutes. Meanwhile, we splashed a little Olympic Cellars Working Girl white wine in the skillet, and put in some chopped leeks to soften and flavor the wine. Then we added the kale and covered it to simmer. The purple sprouting broccoli went into a steamer.

After 10 minutes in the oven, the pork chops came out to sit for 10 minutes. By the end of that, the broccoli and kale were done, as were the small potatoes. We put the white wine bottle on the table, along with a little Alpenfire vinegar to sprinkle on the veggies, and voila! A tasty, local meal, that’s healthy and easy to prepare. Everything but the potatoes, salt and pepper came from the Olympic Peninsula. We are so lucky to live in a place where that is possible.

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English Bacon, Leek, and Potato Soup

leeks

Leeks add wonderful flavor to soup.

2 Tbsp. butter or ghee
2 medium leeks, white and light-green parts, sliced thin
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves
1 lb. English-style bacon, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into ½-inch pieces
1½ quarts chicken bone broth
2 Tbsp. chopped chives

Melt the butter in a heavy stock pot over medium. When it foams and froths, toss in the sliced leeks (save the rest of the leeks for flavoring stock) and fry them in the butter until they soften and become translucent. Stir in thyme and bacon, and continue cooking until the bacon renders its fat and is cooked through, about 6 minutes.

Dump the carrots and potatoes into the pot, stir in the broth and simmer, covered, until the vegetables become tender in the heat of the soup, about 40 minutes.

Ladle the soup into bowls, top with chopped chives and serve.

We thank nourishedkitchen.com for this recipe.

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Potatoes Au Gratin with Fennel & Bacon

fennel

What can you do with fennel? Add bacon!

1 lb sliced bacon
5 Tbsp. butter
5 Tbsp. Nash’s soft white flour
3.5 cups milk
½ tsp. white pepper
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 pinch ground nutmeg
2.5 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
2 lb. yellow potatoes, thinly sliced
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and diced
7 leaves fresh basil, or 1 Tbsp. dried

Preheat the oven to 325° F. Fry bacon in a large skillet until browned. Drain on paper towels. Chop or crumble, and set aside.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth and starting to bubble. Gradually whisk in milk while stirring constantly so that no lumps form. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with white pepper, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese until smooth, adding a handful at a time. Set aside.

Use 1/3 of the potatoes to make a layer in the bottom of a greased 9×13 inch baking dish. Top with 1/3 of the fennel, 1/3 of the bacon and 1/3 of the basil. Pour about 1/3 of the cheese sauce over everything. Repeat layers two more times or until you run out of room. Cover the dish. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the cover during the last 30 minutes to allow the top to brown if desired.

We thank AllRecipes.com for this recipe.

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Peter Rabbit’s Birthday Soup

Bulk carrots

What does Peter Rabbit like best in the whole wide world?

Serves 8 to 10

2 pounds carrots, peeled and chopped
4 cups chicken or veggie stock or water (or a combination)
1½ tsp. salt
1 medium potato, chopped
1 cup chopped onion
1 to 2 small cloves garlic, crushed
⅓ cup chopped cashews
3 to 4 Tbsp. (about ½ stick) butter
¾ cup sour cream
½ to 1 tsp. finely chopped fresh thyme
Toasted nuts and extra sour cream (optional)

In a large saucepan, bring the carrots, chicken stock, salt, and potato to a boil. Cover and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are very soft. Let cool. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, sauté the onion, garlic, and cashews in the butter until the onions turn translucent.

Puree everything together in a blender until the soup is smooth. Return the puree to a pan or double boiler, and whisk in the sour cream. Heat very slowly and season with the thyme. Garnish with the toasted nuts and more sour cream, if desired.

Our thanks to Maureen Cooney, The Bluff Country Co-op Cookbook, as it appears in Bounty from the Box: The CSA Farm Cookbook, by Mi Ae Lipe.

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Rutabaga Borscht

Rutabagas in a basket

What to do with a basket full of rutabagas?

2 Tbsp oil or butter
1 1/2 chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped potatoes
1 or more cup chopped beets
1 large carrot sliced
1 stalk of celery sliced
3 cups chopped rutabaga
1 cup tomato, diced or puréed
1 tsp caraway seed
4 cups stock (veggie or chicken)
2 tsp salt
Black pepper to taste
1/4 tsp dill weed
2 Tbsp cider vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp honey

Sautee onions in oil or butter. Add caraway and salt.  When soft add the other veggies, stock/water and remaining ingredients.  Simmer until tender for at least 30 minutes. Whiz in the blender until smooth.  Serve with sour cream or yogurt dollop on top.

We thank Pam & Liam Antrim for this recipe.

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Root Vegetable Puree

Serves 4 to 6
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

4 large parsnips, peeled and chopped into 1-inch cubes (about 3 cups)
1 rutabaga, peeled and chopped into 1-inch cubes (about 2 cups)
1 potato, peeled and chopped into 1-inch cubes (about 1 cup)
3 tsp. olive oil
½ tsp. salt, or to taste
¾ cup yogurt
2 to 3 cloves garlic
Water to thin, if desired

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Place vegetables in roasting pans. Mix with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, and cover. Roast for about 30 minutes, or until vegetables are fork tender. Allow vegetables to cool.

Place in a food processor (in batches, if necessary), along with yogurt and garlic, adding water if needed. Process until smooth.

Try serving the puree under a spoonful of your favorite soup!

Original recipe by Virginia Newman.

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Potato Salad with Arugula and Dijon Vinaigrette

arugula

Fun facts about arugula: *Arugula is a good source of vitamins A, K, C, folate, and calcium. *Arugula also has extremely powerful ‘glucosinolates,’ which act as detoxifiers and can potentially decrease the risk of cancer. *Arugula has some protein in it, which is not common in other vegetable families.

1/2 small red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 pounds potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
3 cups arugula, stems removed, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
5 tablespoons olive oil

Put onion in small bowl and cover with cold water (to remove some of the bite). Put the potatoes in large pot of generously salted water. Bring to boil over high heat, lower heat simmer and cook until just tender. Drain well and put into large bowl.

Gently toss warm potatoes with rice vinegar, salt, and pepper. Add chives, arugula and red onion and stir. Whisk together red wine vinegar, mustard and olive oil in small bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour over potato mixture and toss to combine. Serve warm.

We thank food52.com for this recipe.

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