Potato Soup - A Real Winter Chill Breaker

When in Idaho...make potato soup!!

Hi all! I'm out in Idaho this week, so what better to fix for dinner than some nice hearty thick potato soup!! I added some pan fried corn bread fritters to go along with this; it really knocked out that northwest chill.
The ingredients for this soup are "super simple"! (pun intended) You probably have most all the ingredients in the pantry tonight. Give it a try and let me know what you think....Just Harv.

Super Simple Ingredients!

***** Potato Soup *****
4-lbs potatoes (peeled and cubed)
1 - medium yellow onion (diced)
2 - large celery stalks (diced)
2 - medium carrots (peeled and sliced)
5 - tbsp. butter or margarine
3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 - cups whole milk*
1 - tsp. Salt
1/2 - tsp. black pepper
Optional - (shredded cheddar cheese to top before serving)

* - Pre-Cooking the Potatoes - (Save that stock!)

In a 4 quart soup pot, bring about 2 -1/2 quarts of water to a boil. Slowly (and carefully) add the potatoes. Potatoes absorb salt so fast, so theres no need to salt these just yet. Bring the potatoes to a boil, lower heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes. We dont want to overcook them. A little al dente' is ok. Once cooked, remove and drain. We want to keep the water that the potatoes were cooked in and use that in the final soup.

* - Saute' the Veggies

In a 4 quart stock pot saute the onions, celery, and carrots in 3 tbsp. of butter or margarine. Add the salt and pepper. Saute around 5-7 minutes or until the onions begin to appear slightly translucent. Add the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter and the 3/4 cup of flour. Stir well and allow to simmer an additional 1-2 minutes. We dont want to brown the base, just consolidate it.

* - Assemble the Soup

Now we have the potatoes pre-cooked and drained. The stock from boiling the potatoes was saved. We also have the veggies saute'd and have the flour added to create our soup base.  Now we want to pour three cups of the potato stock back into the soup base. Add the 2 cups of whole milk also. Add back in the pre-cooked potatoes. Slowly bring this mix back up to a boil, then lower the heat and allow to simmer 30 minutes until thickened. If you are using a lower fat milk like 2% or less, you may have trouble getting the soup to thicken. If this happens, simply disolve some more all purpose flour in water. Try 1/2 cup of flour and add some of the potato stock water (or tap water). Always add the water to the flour; never the reverese. It will just float or ball up and not disolve.... Slowly pour the flour /water mix into the soup. I added some more salt near the end. Potatoes absorb salt so quickly adding it near the end insures that the flavor enhancing property of salt doesn't disappear.
Serve hot and top with some shredded cheddar cheese or even some thinly sliced leeks. I've did this same soup with leeks in lieu of onions. It is terrific!! A pan fried corn fritter or baked corn bread works great with the soup also. (Just dont try to buying self-rising corn meal in Idaho....they've never heard of such a thing!)

So give it a try and dont forget to write and let me know what you think!!! Encourage your friends or family that like real food for real people to sign up for the blog. Its FREE...... Thanks for stopping by. Hope to hear from ya' soon....Just Harv.

BBQ Beef Ribs



BBQ Beef Ribs! Some serious eat'n....:-)

 Hi again! Nothing helps shake off the winters grip like some grilling! I had this rack of beef ribs in the freezer and decided that it was a good time to continue work on my BBQ sauce. I changed to a SMOKED paprika this time, but you can still use regular paprika. So anyway....heres goes! Write in and let me know what you think....

***** BBQ Beef Ribs *****
3lbs. beef ribs.
1-cup tomato sauce
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1-1/2 tsps. smoked paprika (can use regular paprika also)
1-tsp. chili powder
2-cloves garlic (crushed)
3-tbsp. Worcesteshire Sauce
2-tbsp, white vinegar
5-6 black peppercorns (crushed)
1/2 tsp.-salt

In a large pot boil enough water to cover the ribs. You may want to cut the racks of ribs into portion sizes before you insert them into the boiling water. It will make them so much easier (and safer) to handlle. Boil the ribs for 5 minutes. (We boil the ribs slightly to open up the meat and make it more receptive to the marinade.) Remove the ribs and drain well. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a non-mettalic bowl, mix the marinade/glaze ingredients. Using a non-mettalic bowl is suggested since we are mixing several acidic ingredients. Those type of ingredients can react to the metal and cause a small chemical reaction actually changing the flavor of your food.

Once the marinade is well mixed, coat the ribs sections with a generous amount. Stacking the rib sections as you go, pour the remaining sauce across the ribs. Allow to marinate for at least two hours at room temp or overnight in the fridge. When time is short, marinating at room temp for a shorter amount of time always works, but make sure the food is kept covered and dont go longer than two hours. I use a large 1 gallon size freezer back to marinate. I can keep turning the food over and over to insure all parts get well covered.

Once marinated, cook the ribs over high heat for about 20 minutes or until cooked well through. Brush the ribs with the left over marinade as you cook them. Turn them often. I use an outdoor meat smoke at a very low heat for about an hour before I actually finish them up on the grill. The low temp will allow the smoke flavor to permeate the meat without drying it out. You can smoke them longer, til near done, and just face them up a little over a hotter grill also. Just make sure you reach an internal temp of 165degrees. 

Some grilled pinapple would pair up great with the ribs. The traditional sides would be baked beans, potato salad, and baked macaroni and cheese....... Let me know what you think of the ribs!!! Write in or email me...mitchellhw@comcast.com. See me on Facebook also..... See ya then and ENJOY the grub!! Just Harv.

Potato Croquettes

Crocche de Patate (Potato Croquettes)

Hi again! I decided that some good hearty potatoes would be good tonight so it was a good chance to try out a recipe that Addie found while at a seminar in Boise. The booklet was published by the Washington State Potato Commission. The recipe was from Chef K. Stolte. I varied it by using Italian sausage in lieu of Salame Napoli. For those that dont want a meat in the dish, this recipe will work just fine without it. After I had made this tonight, I decided that it seemed more logical to pair a meat with the croquettes rather than in them. I also added a Dijon hollendaise sauce atop the croquettes. Anyway, here it goes. I hope you enjoy them. I sure did!

***** Potato Croquettes *****

2 lbs. white or Yukon Gold potatoes
6 - tbsp. butter, softened
1/4 cup grated parmeson cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1-1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tbsp. flour
2 egg yolks
1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp. chopped parsley
1/2 cup cooked, chopped Italian sausage or Salame Napoli (Optional)
**********************

Coating
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup flour
1 cup fine bread crumbs

Wash and peel the potatoes. Slice into chunks. In a large saucepan, cover the potatoes with water. Bring them to boiling and reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook until tender (about 10-15 minutes). Drain well. Allow to cool slightly. In a large mixing bowl mash the potatoes with a hand held masher. Add in the butter, Parmeson, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add in the 1 tbsp of flour. Stir in the egg yolks. Cover and allow to chill for two hours in the refrigerator.

Assembly time....

Using a 1/3 cup measure portion out the croquettes. In the center of each portion put about 1 tbsp of Mozzarella, a pinch of parsley, and 1 tsp of the Italian sausage. Fold the potato mixture over the filling forming balls or cone shapes.

Heat the deep fryer to 350 degrees

In three shallow bowls stage the 2 beaten eggs, the 1 cup of flour, and the 1 cup of bread crumbs. Coat the croquettes first in the flour, then the egg, then roll in the bread crumbs. Deep fry for 5 minutes or until golden brown. Drain well on paper towels and serve hot.

I made up a basic hollendaise sauce and added 2 tsp of country style Dijon mustard to create the sauce. If anyone wants to know how to make a Hollendaise sauce, let me know and I will post a section on sauces. You can also cheat a little by using a packet Hollendaise sauce and add the Dijon. Not exactly the same, but works in a pinch and is quicker.

Let me know how you did with this!

Just Harv

mitchellhw@comcast.net