Tag: Potatoes

Twice Baked Potatoes

We always used to make this with just cheese on top, but lately we’ve added green onions with the potato in the middle. And it’s been a delightful addition. It’s great either way–it just depends what you’re in the mood for.

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Twice Baked Potatoes

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print


Pretty easy, but it takes a little time to make.

Ingredients

  • 8 Potatoes (or however many it takes to fill half a cookie sheet)
  • 1 (+) can Evaporated Milk
  • ½ c. Butter
  • Salt and Pepper, to taste
  • 1 bunch Green Onions, chopped (optional)
  • Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions

Bake potatoes on cookie sheet at 400° for about 1-1 ¼ hours OR at 350° for about 1 ½ hours, depending on size. Cut potatoes in half and scoop out middles into a bowl, such as a stand mixer. Salt the remaining skins. To the potato middles, add and mix milk, butter, salt and pepper to taste, and green onion if using. You can even add a handful of cheese to the mixture and stir in, if desired. Spoon mixture back into skins on foil-covered cookie sheet and sprinkle potatoes with cheddar cheese. Broil till cheese melts and browns slightly.


Potato Wedges

Very simple and delicious, potato wedges are also very popular and sure to go quickly. I love them so much.

And luckily the Morton seasoned salt is gluten free, so this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Potato Wedges

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print


Simple, delicious, and a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients

  • About 4 Potatoes (or whatever it takes to fill a cookie sheet)
  • 1/4 – ½ c. Butter
  • Morton Season All Seasoned Salt

Directions

Melt butter on cookie sheet in oven. Cut potatoes into thin wedges. Dip potatoes in butter, sprinkle one side with seasoned salt (not too much or it gets overwhelming). Bake at 400° for about 20 minutes until golden brown.


Sparkling Potatoes

Sparkling potatoes in a Dutch oven are a camping classic, and I have many memories of having them during our camping excursions growing up. Or at Scouting events. We basically never go camping anymore, but it’s still fun to make these potatoes at home in the oven. Whether you’re having a “camping at home” night with s’mores or a Dutch oven night, they’re lots of fun. They do tend to be a bit greasy with all the cheese and bacon, so you may want to serve this with a less greasy main course or a nice fresh salad.

We’ve also made sparkling potatoes with leftover New Year’s ham instead of bacon. It’s pretty good and very similar to the regular kind, but bacon does make it better.

And of course this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Sparkling Potatoes

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

It takes a bit of time and it’s fairly greasy, but it’s delicious.

Ingredients

  • 8 Potatoes, sliced (peeled or not, depending on your preference)
  • 1-2 Onion(s), chopped
  • 1 lb. Bacon
  • 1 tsp. Salt
  • Pepper to taste
  • 1 (+) can Sprite
  • Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions

Fry bacon and onions in bottom of pot. (If you want it less greasy, you can remove some bacon grease.) In same pot, add potatoes, salt, and pepper. Pour in Sprite. Sprinkle on a thick layer of cheese. Bake at 375° for about 1 hour or until potatoes are tender and cheese starts to brown.

(To save time, lately I’ve been cooking everything in a big ovenproof skillet beforehand to get the potatoes mostly done before putting it in the oven. Then I just pour in the Sprite and top with cheese, and basically cook until the cheese is melted and starting to brown a little.)

For cooking with charcoal: Dutchovendude.com says for a 12″ Dutch oven to be at 375°, place 20 coals on the lid and 6 under the oven. Don’t forget to rotate the oven every 10  minutes or so 1/4 turn.


Potato Salad

When I worked at MCA, we’d occasionally have potlucks. One time, they asked people to sign up for salads, so I thought I’d bring a potato salad like my mom always made (since no one else was going to bring one). At that potluck, one of the owners said it was the best potato salad he’d ever had, and after that potluck, I kind of got volunteered every time to bring the potato salad. Haha, I even had to do an assignment in college where I had to ask former coworkers for feedback on my strengths, and one of my coworkers jokingly ended by mentioning my potato salad.

I’m glad they liked it, but it does take quite a bit of time, and you have to adjust flavors a lot. So I basically only make this once a year in the summer. This recipe is an approximation of the final amounts, but you really do have to test and adjust. I’ll pay closer attention to quantities next time I make it.

If you’re making this gluten free, just make sure that you use a new jar of mayo or one dedicated gluten free, so you don’t get bread crumbs from previous double-dipping from making sandwiches.

Make it a meal with:

Potato Salad

  • Servings: 20?
  • Difficulty: hard
  • Print

This recipe isn’t necessarily the hardest, but it takes a lot of time and requires adjusting flavors. Make the night before for best flavors.

Ingredients

  • 5 lb. bag Red Potatoes
  • Mayonnaise (Not miracle whip) (a few big spoonfuls and add more as necessary) (or from a new jar)
  • Sweet Pickle Relish (about 3 or 4 spoonfuls)
  • Hard Boiled Eggs (8 or 9. Make more if you want to decorate the top with egg slices)
  • ~1/2 tsp. Mustard
  • Dried Minced Onion (about 3 heaping Tbsp.)
  • Milk (just a little to give it some moisture)
  • Salt and Pepper to taste (it’ll probably require a fair amount of salt)

Directions

Steam the potatoes (about 15 minutes when cut in half), peel, and cube them into a big bowl. Add remaining ingredients and adjust flavors as needed. For eggs, use an egg slicer to cut them into tiny cubes. For onion, place them in a small bowl with a little milk and let it absorb for 5 minutes before adding to potatoes. Make the salad a little more wet than wanted because it will absorb as it sits. Best if salad is made the night before, then covered and refrigerated. You may need to add more salt and milk the next day. For garnish, you can add egg slices to the top and paprika.


Mashed Potatoes

Jeff is the mashed potato king. Whenever he makes them, they’re so buttery and creamy and amazing. The secret is adding sour cream or cream cheese, in addition to all the regular delicious stuff. If you don’t have sour cream, we generally do two sticks of butter instead of one. The measurements below aren’t precise yet, but we’ll measure more carefully next time we make mashed potatoes. And usually we’re too lazy to peel the potatoes–we just wash the potatoes and then cut them–but frankly it’s nice having the extra texture and fiber from the peels.

Of course this one is naturally gluten free–just make sure that your sour cream hasn’t been contaminated by previously spooning onto flour tortillas or anything else with gluten.

Make it a meal with:

Mashed Potatoes

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print


The secret ingredient is sour cream.

Ingredients

  • 5 lb. bag Potatoes (peeled or not)
  • About 2 tsp. Salt in water
  • 1/2 c. Butter (or 1 c. Butter if not using any sour cream)
  • About ¼ c. Milk (or canned milk)
  • About 1 c. Sour Cream (optional, but delicious)
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

Peel and cut potatoes into about 1” cubes. Boil in salted water till tender but not mushy (about 15 minutes) OR bring to boil, turn off heat, cover, and let stand 2-3 hours. Drain. Add butter, milk, and sour cream and mash till smooth. For creamiest potatoes, use a hand mixer to mash. Add salt and pepper to taste, and more milk if you want a creamier consistency.

(For gravy, take drippings from pan and combine with about ¼ – ½ c. flour or corn starch and 1 – 2 c. water. Whisk smooth and bring to a boil–add more salt, flour, or water as needed.)


Funeral Potatoes

A popular dish in the Mountain West is funeral potatoes, often served as a kind service to a mourning family (with ham) at a loved one’s funeral. Even though it’s associated with funerals, I look forward to enjoying these potatoes every time we have ham. Traditionally, it’s topped with bread or corn flake crumbs. But I’m not a fan of the crumbs–so I generally top with lots of cheese, which I am a fan of, haha. This is adapted from a cookbook, but with more cheese and no crumbs.

If you’re making it gluten free, you buy gluten free cream of chicken soup (which can be hard to find in stock, so plan ahead) or make your own version of it (I haven’t found a great option yet, though). Also be careful that your sour cream hasn’t been contaminated from touching flour tortillas in the past or something else with gluten.

Make it a meal with:

  • Ham or Salmon
  • Green Salad or Green Beans
  • Rolls

Funeral Potatoes

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print


The perfect cheesy accompaniment to a ham dinner.

Ingredients

  • 32 oz. bag frozen Hash Browns
  • 2 (10 ¾ oz.) cans Cream of Chicken Soup (or gluten free cream of chicken soup)
  • 2 c. Sour Cream
  • 1 c. shredded Cheddar Cheese (plus extra cheese to top)
  • ½ c. Butter, melted
  • 1/3 c. Onion, chopped

Directions

In a large bowl, combine soup, sour cream, 1 c. cheese, butter, and onions. Gently blend hash browns into mixture until well mixed. Turn out into a greased 9×13 pan. Top with a generous layer of cheddar cheese. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or cheese is lightly brown.


Bavarian Potato Salad

I know people hear “German potato salad” and they think of a weird hot salad. But at least on my mission in Southern Germany and Austria, I had a LOT of potato salad and never had it served hot. Mostly it was beautiful golden potatoes, delightfully oniony, and in a vinegary broth.

This recipe is adapted from one in a Bavarian cookbook that I bought in Germany. Haha, German cookbooks sometimes aren’t very specific, just saying things like “oil” and “some vinegar”, so I tried to figure out a little more specific quantities for an authentic taste. You may end up with a fair amount of liquid in it. We don’t make it very often because my family doesn’t like vinegar, but it’s good if you’re looking for a more authentic recipe.

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Bavarian Potato Salad

  • Servings: 10?
  • Difficulty: medium
  • Print


Oniony, vinegary, and full of Bavarian flavors. It does take a bit of time, with cooking, peeling, and cutting potatoes.

Ingredients

  • 3 lb. bag Yukon Gold potatoes
  • 1 c. Vegetable Broth
  • Salt and Pepper to taste (you’ll need quite a bit of salt)
  • ½ c. Vegetable Oil
  • 1 ½ c. White Vinegar
  • 1 small White Onion
  • 2 heaping Tbsp. chopped fresh Parsley

Directions

Steam potatoes (about 15-20 min.), then peel and slice, cutting slices in quarters. Warm the vegetable broth, then add salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, onion, and parsley. Pour over potatoes. Mix well and let it absorb for at least half an hour. Adjust flavors as needed.