Tortilla Espanola

Cheap, cheeps, ha ha ha.

This recipe is taken from The Splendid Table - great cooking show on NPR, also great cookbook, and of course, weekly emailed recipes. Good stuff. This can be really hard to flip, sometimes, I just skip the flipping part and put it under the broiler - using my Le Crueset pan. The salty kitchen language threat level is high with this one.

Recipe is as follows:

Tortilla Espanola
Reprinted with permission from Spain: A Culinary Road Trip by Mario Batali with Gwyneth Paltrow, published by Ecco, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2008.

Serves 4 to 6 as a tapa or appetizer

Tortilla espanola is essentially the national dish of Spain. You can eat it as a tapa, for breakfast, in a bocadillo (sandwich), or for dinner with salad and a bit of jamon. Basically anytime, anywhere. We had a great one at Valdubon and I think it's because they weren't afraid to use a lot of olive oil. No fear!

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1-1/4 pounds waxy potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 8 extra-large eggs
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large cast-iron or nonstick skillet over medium-high until very hot but not smoking. Add the potatoes and onion, season with salt and pepper, reduce the heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally and adjusting the heat if necessary so that the vegetables do not brown, until the potatoes are tender when pierced with the tip of a parking knife, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, beat the eggs with salt and pepper to taste in a large bowl. Add the potatoes to the eggs, then pour into the skillet, spreading the potatoes evenly in the pan. Cook for about 1 minute, just to set the bottom of the egg mixture. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 20 minutes, or until almost set through. Carefully flip the tortilla over (invert it onto a plate if you must, then slide it back into the pan, bottom side up) and cook for 5 minutes longer, until set. Flip out onto a clean plate and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

LYNNE'S TIPS

After reducing the heat to medium-low in Step 2, start checking for doneness after about 15 minutes. It may not take the 20 minutes mentioned depending on the pan you use. You don't want to overcook the eggs or they'll toughen and become dry.

You could, of course, gild the lily with cheese. Grate some good Cheddar, a nutty Gruyere, Manchego or Parmigiano-Reggiano and toss into the egg and potato mixture. It isn't traditional but it adds another layer of flavor.

Use organic eggs if possible. There is a difference, especially in dishes like this one where eggs star.

Spanish Paprika-Potato Oven Omelet

Another Splendid Table recipe, it's cheap and yummy. It reminds me of my trip to Spain, so I like that too.

Spanish Paprika-Potato Oven Omelet
From The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper: Recipes, Stories, and Opinions from Public Radio's Award-Winning Food Show by Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift (Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, 2008). Copyright 2008 by American Public Media.

Serves 3 to 4
15 minutes prep time; 45 minutes oven time
Excellent hot or at room temperature. Reheats well.

Whether you call them frittatas or oven omelets, baking eggs with a sauté or filling is much easier than fussing with a traditional omelet. Instead of the gymnastics involved in cooking and rolling a perfect folded omelet out of the pan, you put everything together, put it in the oven, and set a timer. While the omelet bakes, you could toss a salad of greens and sip a glass of wine.

This is portable food - good for potlucks, boat rides, and office lunches.

• 1 medium to large red-skin potato, sliced as thin as potato chips
• Good-tasting extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, sliced into thin rings
• Salt and fresh-ground black pepper
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon mild Spanish paprika, or mild or hot Spanish smoked paprika (pimenton de la vera)
• 6 large eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
• 1 cup fresh-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, Asiago, or Fontinella cheese
• 1 cup shredded Muenster or Monterey Jack cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Film a 10-inch skillet (with an ovenproof handle) with oil, and heat over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes, onions, and a little salt and pepper. Sauté until the potatoes are tender. Remove skillet from the heat. Stir in the garlic then sprinkle the potatoes with the paprika.

2. In a bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and 2/3 cup of each of the cheeses. Pour the mixture over the sauteed potatoes. Sprinkle with the remaining cheeses, cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out with only a few bits of creamy egg and cheese clinging to it. Let the omelet stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting it into wedges.

LYNNE'S TIPS

Think of this recipe as a general idea and improvise. Use cooked greens like spinach and chard instead of all or part of the potato. Or before cooking the vegetables, saute several slices of good bacon or pancetta in the skillet until barely browned. Remove from the skillet and set aside. Discard the fat in the pan and proceed with the rest of the recipe. Add the bacon to the egg mixture before pouring it over the potatoes.

If possible, use organic eggs. There really is a difference in flavor.

Scandinavian Flower Eggs with Sweet-Tart Mustard Dill Sauce

This is taken from a weekly newsletter I get from the Splendid Table, which is a radio show on NPR. There is a great weekly newsletter you can sign-up for, which is where I got the recipe. How to Eat Supper is a great cookbook, I highly recommend it.

Scandinavian Flower Eggs with Sweet-Tart Mustard Dill Sauce
From The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper: Recipes, Stories, and Opinions from Public Radio's Award-Winning Food Show by Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift (Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2008). Copyright 2008 by American Public Media.

Serves 4 to 5
15 minutes prep time; 5 minutes assembly

Cook's Note: The potatoes and eggs could be cooked a day ahead and refrigerated. The sauce holds for 3 days in the refrigerator.

Wedges of hard-cooked egg tucked into chopped salad greens mimic tightly clustered chrysanthemum petals - a great presentation.

What no one knows until they dig into the salad is that hidden under the greens are slices of potato. Slathering the platter first with mayonnaise ensures that the salad is flavored from the bottom up as well as the top down.

Given some hard-cooked eggs and boiled potatoes, you can make this fancy-looking dish in a few minutes. Zigzag the mustard sauce over the eggs, and you are done.

Potatoes:

• 1 pound (7 to 8) small red-skin potatoes

Mustard Dill Sauce:

• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 3 tablespoons minced onion
• 1/4 cup plain distilled vinegar or cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons sugar, or more to taste
• 3 tablespoons cold-pressed canola or safflower oil
• Generous 1/2 cup dark grainy mustard
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill leaves
• Salt and fresh-ground black pepper

Salad:

• 2 generous tablespoons mayonnaise
• Salt and fresh-ground black pepper
• 1 small head Bibb lettuce, leaves stacked and sliced into thin strips
• 8 large hard-cooked eggs, peeled and cut into 4 wedges each
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill leaves
• 1/4 cup chopped sweet onion (Vidalia, Mau, Walla Walla, etc.)

1. In a 6-quart pot, simmer the potatoes in water to cover for 15 minutes, or until they offer a little resistance when pierced with a knife. Drain, and rinse them with cold water to cool. Peel and slice them about 1/4 inch thick.

2. While the potatoes are cooking, make the sauce: In a medium bowl, blend together the garlic, onion, and vinegar. Let stand for 10 minutes to mellow. Then whisk in the 2 tablespoons sugar, the oil, the mustard, and 1/3 cup of the dill. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Taste for sweet-sour balance, adding sugar or vinegar as needed. Add more dill if you like.

3. On a large platter, spread the mayonnaise to form a 9- or 10-inch round. Top with the potatoes, overlapping the slices. Sprinkle them with salt and pepper, then pile the lettuce on the potatoes. Top with the egg wedges, tucking them into a tight sunburst pattern (like flower petals). Season them with salt and pepper.

4. Before serving, zigzag streaks of the mustard dill sauce over the eggs and greens. Scatter the chopped dill and sweet onion over the eggs, and serve with additional sauce at the table.

LYNNE'S TIPS

Dressing salad from the bottom as well as the top is a trick that works whether you build the salad on a platter or in a bowl.

When you have some leftover cooked salmon, flake it into big chunks and tuck it in with the egg slices. It's a natural with the dill sauce.

Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes

This comes from a friend of the family, I am not sure where she got it. Good stuff, indeed.

Ingredients:

1 Cup sour cream
1 8-ounce package softened cream cheese
8-10 medium size potatoes, peeled & boiled til tender
4 Tablespoons butter, plus 2 tablespoons
1/3 Cup chopped chives (optional)
Salt & Pepper to taste
1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus 1/4 cup

Directions:
Beat the sour cream and cream cheese together. Add the hot, drained potatoes. Beat until smooth. Add the butter, optional chives, salt and pepper. Rub the inside of a 3 quart souffle dish with 2 Tb softened butter. Sprinkle 1/4 cup grated parmesan into the dish, and tip the dish, so that the cheese adheres to the butter. Turn the potatoes into the souffle dish and dot with butter and sprinkle with cheese. REfrigerate 2 to 3 days and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, until golden. Prep time: 10 minutes. Cook time: 45 minutes. Serves: 10.

Sweet Potato Souffle

For the love, this is the best sweet potato recipe, ever, ever.

Ingredients:

6 medium sweet potatoes, boil til soft, then mash
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla (I add more!)
1/2 cup melted butter
1/3 cup flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans (I use more!)
1/3 cup melted butter

Directions:

Mix sweet potatoes, white sugar, eggs, vanilla, 1/2 C melted butter thoroughly. Pour into buttered baking dish.
Combine flour, brown sugar, pecans, 1/3 C melted butter. Sprinkle over potato mixture. Cover, bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.