Tater Skins
Posted
Sun, 03/23/03
Ever since I was a child, I've disliked cooked potatoes with their skins on. To me, they tasted like the dirt from which they came (gritty), so I never really paid much attention to potato recipes including skins. When my husband Wilbert and I first moved to the Inland Northwest, my cousin Sheila invited us to dinner in her home. Guess what she served? Mashed potatoes with skins on.
I wasn't even going to try the dish, but to be polite I took a small portion. The first bite was sheer delight: the skins did not have gritty texture, seeming to blend in with the buttered flavor of the mashed potato. Sheila's bit of advice was scrubbing the potato skins thoroughly before cooking them. The only additional ingredients added were butter, milk, salt, black pepper and parsley. Very simple, yet somehow divine. There are other possible variations as well, such as adding bacon bits, sautéed mushrooms or thin strips of cooked onions. The milk can also be substituted with cream (half-and-half or liquid coffee creamer).
The basic recipe is as follows:
Sheila's Mashed Potatoes
3 to 4 large baking potatoes, scrubbed thoroughly
After cleaning potatoes, place them in a microwave oven (or conventional oven) and cook until easily run through with a knife. (About 15 minutes in a microwave, or one hour in a conventional oven at 350-degrees F). Place the potatoes (skins on!) in a large bowl. Using a sharp knife, slice through the potatoes until they are in large or medium-sized chunks. Add the butter, salt and black pepper. Blend with a manual potato masher or hand mixer until the large chunks break up. Add milk a little bit at a time; continue to mix. Once the potatoes have reached desired moistness and consistency, stir in the chopped parsley and serve.
Enjoy!
Tags: Potatoes
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