Days Seven through Eleven - Hiatus

She Said:

As predicted, we didn't make any new recipes for our own Julie/Julia Project while we were in the process of using up Easter and the first week's leftovers. (Plus, we wanted to have our normal Thursday pizza-and-a-movie night this week. We like them.) We're gearing up to get back in the game today, though, so we'll be back with more of what we are doing as we cook our way through Serving Up the Harvest by Andrea Chesman (and a surprise entry, too!).

I will share one recipe with you, though, that we made on Easter and then again last night.

This came from the November 2008 issue of Family Circle and it's a definite keeper! (Don't make this if you're on a diet, though. It's high in calories and you won't be able to stop eating it.)

Whipped-Potato Casserole

5 pounds all-purpose potatoes, peeled and quartered
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1¼ cups half-and-half
1 tub (8 ounces) whipped cream cheese with chives (or 1 tub plain mixed with 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives)
1 teaspoon garlic salt
¼ teaspoon grouns nutmeg (we omitted this)
1 cup sliced almonds (we omitted these, too)
Fresh chives for garnish, optional

1. Heat oven to 350℉. Coat 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Place potatoes in a large pot with enough water to cover. Lightly salt and bring to a boil. Lower to simmering; cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until fork-tender. Drain.

3. In large bowl, mash potatoes with hand mixer. Add butter, half-and-half, cream cheese, garlic salt and nutmeg. With mixer, beat potatoes on medium-high speed until very smooth. Spoon into prepared dish.

4. Bake at 350℉, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Sprinkle sliced almonds over casserole; bake an additional 15 minutes, uncovered, until lightly browned.

5. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped chives, if desired.

Do-ahead: Proceed through step 3 and allow to cool. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days. When ready to serve, unwrap and allow to stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Begin with step 4 and bake until internal temperature registers 140℉ on an instant-read thermometer.

These are sooooo good! For Easter, we took the do-ahead tip and made them the day before. They baked up perfectly the next day. I can really recommend these.

But make sure you have a full 5 pounds of potatoes or else they'll be runny. (We found that out the hard way last night when I had to sacrifice a lot of my potatoes because they were not particularly nice. And I had just bought them that day! Not cool. I can't wait until we can start harvesting the potatoes from our garden - yeah, baby!!

He Said:

Yes, I agree. These were great. Really great. But I'm not sure that they weren't even better the next morning. Just pat some of these leftover babies (if there are any) into 5" pancakes and cook in a cast iron skillet coated with Olive Oil and Butter. Fry them up at medium high heat for about 8 minutes/side or until they are nicely browned. No, nicer and browner than that. Patience is key here. Eat with a few fried eggs with nice runny yolks and you, my friend, are in breakfast heaven.

You're welcome.