This is what Ina Garten does with her leftover risotto, according to “Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics.” She mixes it with high-fat daily products, shapes it into patties and fries up a big batch of Chive Risotto Cakes, this month’s Barefoot Bloggers bonus recipe. You’d think Ina was Southern, except for the way she always talks about how good her food looks, smells and tastes. I’ve never seen a Southern woman do that, except for Paula Deen, which makes me think she’s being prompted by a pimply Food Network intern with a taser.

“Hey, ya’ll! This might not be fit to eat, but …” BrrrrrrrrZAP! “Teethin’ babies just love Smithfield ham!”

Ina’s Chive Risotto Cakes remind me of potato pancakes cranked to 11. The crunchy panko crust gives way to a creamy, tangy interior of Fontina cheese, Greek yogurt, chives and softened rice. If the scent doesn’t lure you in, that first bite will. And, as Ina would say, how good is that? BrrrrrrrrZAP!

Read More…

Whether you’re looking for a good make-ahead holiday side or you have a deep-seated fear of mashing taters, this is the recipe for you: Blue Willow Inn’s Holiday Mashed Potatoes.

Because, and I can’t stress this enough, there’s no room for error with mashed potatoes. They’re your fallback food, the one side everybody loves. The buoy they’ll reach for in a sea of cranberry-pear this and roasted squash that. We are hard-wired to love mashed potatoes.

In “A Christmas Story,” what does Randy stick his face into and snort at the dinner table? Mashed potatoes.

What does John Belushi stuff into his cheeks in “Animal House”? Mashed potatoes!

What tasty, delicious material does Richard Dreyfuss sculpt in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”? MASHED POTATOES!

Is there a dance called the Cranberry Sauce? Or the Green Bean Casserole? Nooooooo! I believe the only side dish to hold that honor is the Mashed Potato.

What I’m saying is, when it comes to making mashed potatoes for a holiday meal, you have to BRING IT.

I love the Blue Willow Inn’s Holiday Mashed Potatoes, because you can refrigerate them overnight before baking them – or you can freeze them. Plus, they taste like the filling of a twice-baked potato, with a nice golden crust that reveals a velvety mixture of cream cheese, butter, sour cream, a little onion and … potatoes. The perfect mashed potatoes for snorting, stuffing, sculpting and satisfying everyone at your holiday table.

Read More…

Kids put ketchup on everything: French fries, scrambled eggs, hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken fingers. I always wondered why until I read Malcolm Gladwell’s article, “The Ketchup Conundrum.” Basically, ketchup (specifically, Heinz) hits all of our fundamental tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami. It pushes our “primal buttons.” So, when a child is faced with something new to eat, very often he coats it in a food he trusts: ketchup.

When I’m making something new for dinner, I don’t slide a barrel of ketchup next to the table, but I do pair the unfamiliar with something everyone trusts: the infinitely versatile potato (aka “tater”).

I love these Lemon-Scented Potatoes, because the flavor is spicy and surprisingly bright, and they go with everything. No need for butter, cheese or sour cream when you’ve got a cinnamon stick, cumin, lemon juice and cilantro. Great with Indian and Mexican. Responsible for saving me from the Chinese mahogany chicken disaster of February ‘08.

Read More…

It’s been years since I was a vegetarian, but I still plan plenty of meatless meals.

I get the worst cravings for this stuff: Couscous with Roasted Veggies and Feta. You don’t eat it thinking, This would be so much better if it only had some bacon/sausage/prime beef. It’s a vegetarian trifecta. First, there’s the couscous. Fluffy, filling, and faster to prepare than rice or dried pasta. Then, you’ve got the roasted vegetables, which you can customize to your own taste. And finally, the tangy little punches of feta.

It’s also ridiculously versatile. Besides switching up the vegetables, you can try different instant couscous mixes, types of feta, herbs and spices. Toss in some pine nuts. Substitute the olive oil and lemon juice for your favorite Greek or Italian salad dressing. Eat it on its own as a meatless meal, stuff it into a tomato or pita or serve it as a side dish. Great warm, cold or at room temperature. You just can’t say that about hamburger.

Read More…

Last weekend, we helped my parents move furniture. Large furniture made of wood. Why? Because of the promise of Mom’s homemade chili with all the fixings: cheddar cheese, sour cream and – be still my heart – Fritos. She sent us home with a container of chili. I don’t know about you, but after two bowls of chili, I’m done with chili. So, we decided to use it up on Twice-Baked Potatoes with Chili and Cheese.

When I met Jeff, he was not a fan of the baked potato. Not until he tried my mom’s. Most artists work in oil or marble. She works in tater.

The secret to Mom’s twice-baked potatoes is that she rubs them with extra-virgin olive oil and pats on some Kosher salt before they go into the oven. The skin is so good, Jeff digs out the filling and eats the rest like a taco. No flavor wasted.

Read More…

For lo these many months, I have carried lust in my heart for The Pioneer Woman’s Asian Noodle Salad. Noodles, cabbage, spinach, peppers, bean sprouts, scallions, cucumbers, cilantro, peanuts–all of those flavors, colors and textures in one place? Yes, yes, YES!

Could I justify buying all the ingredients for a salad only I would eat? No! Jeff wouldn’t touch this salad with Bea Arthur’s tongue.

But, LOOK AT IT. All of that crunchiness. And we haven’t even discussed the dressing: lime juice, olive oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, serrano peppers and EVEN MORE cilantro. Read More…

I can’t believe I halved this recipe.

Jeff was working late. I was about to watch the presidential debate. And Barefoot Contessa recipes usually make enough to fill a trough. What did I need with a trough of Butternut Squash Risotto?

I NEED a trough of Butternut Squash Risotto.

First, there are the sweet, peppery cubes of roasted butternut squash. Delicious on their own. But then you start simmering a little pot of chicken stock and sautéeing the pancetta and minced shallots in melted butter, and the smells mingling in the kitchen are nothing short of intoxicating. After about 10 minutes, you add the Arborio rice and a little champagne. (The recipe calls for dry white wine, but we are rich in champagne – one of the many benefits of getting married on New Year’s Eve.) And then you ask yourself, “What would Ina do?,” and pour yourself a glass.

Read More…

When I was a kid, my parents would take us for Sunday lunch at Po Folks, one of those family-style Southern restaurants where the drinks are served in Mason jars and the menu features appetizements, onion rangs and Kuntry Fried Steak Salad. One particularly eventful Sunday, Daddy decided I was old enough to order off the menu. I told him I wanted the veggie plate. With Mashed Po-taters, a Baked Po-Tater, Po-Tater Salad and French Fries.

“Rebecca, you are not eating four kinds of potatoes. Pick a real vegetable.”

“Macaroni and cheese.”

In the South, mac and cheese IS a vegetable. Look at any menu of “homestyle veggies,” and you’ll find it, sitting right above the mashed potatoes. We eat it at home, school, potlucks, restaurants, holiday dinners and funerals. Restaurants (and women) are judged on the quality of their macaroni and cheese.

So, when the Barefoot Bloggers decided to try Ina Garten’s Grown Up Mac and Cheese this week, I felt well-versed. Then a quick glance at the recipe put me on notice. Bacon? Gruyere? Blue cheese? Breadcrumbs and basil?

Where was the SOUR CREAM?

Read More…

I didn’t grow up on fried green tomatoes. Fried chicken, fried potatoes, fried okra, fried catfish, fried shrimp, chicken fried steak, French fries, fried turkey, fried rice, fried pies and fried ice cream? Yes. But I’d never even tasted a fried green tomato until last year.

Now, I’m a connoisseur. I’ve eaten them fancy (with lump crab and goat cheese); I’ve eaten them plain. And I’ve gotten Jeff hooked on the ones at our favorite meat-and-three. A place where the weekly menu looks older than the Ten Commandments, and regulars commit it to heart just as reverently, for thou shalt have fried chicken on Monday but thou art outta luck any other day. Luckily, the fried green tomatoes are a daily blessing. Served three at a time on their own dish to keep them crisp. Made with a dredge so coarse you can see the needles of rosemary sticking out, like the tomato’s literally about to explode with flavor.

I love them. But I’d never made them until last night.

Read More…

We are moving this week, which means I should be packing boxes. A lot of boxes. Which means I’m making Paula Deen’s Corn Casserole.

Maybe you procrastinate by cooking? It’s not that I’m not excited about the move. I am. I’m actually going to have a closet INSIDE OUR BEDROOM. But our current home has magical drawers. Just when I think they’re empty, I open one, and there are, like, 38 pairs of takeout chopsticks, a 3-foot set of tongs, and two phone books. I thought about using one of those phone books to look up “exorcism,” but what we really need to put things right is this corn casserole.

I’m using the term “corn” loosely, since any nutrients this vegetable might have disappear in the casserole, bending like reeds before the great mass of butter, sour cream, and cheese. Oh, yes, and Jiffy corn muffin mix. But, you know, nutrients aren’t everything. There is beauty in the balance of sweet and tangy, soft and crunchy, whole food and soul food.

Tonight, surrounded by all these boxes, we need soul food. And for the USA Network to stop the “Law and Order” marathons. Seriously. I can’t pack boxes and watch fictional people solve fictional crimes at the same time. And crime-solving ALWAYS trumps packing boxes.

This corn casserole is incredibly easy. Stir the ingredients together, pop the dish into the oven, top them with cheese, and dig in. It’s delicious as-is, but Jeff likes to cut the leftovers into wedges and pop them into the toaster oven to get the edges really crispy. A great dish for potlucks, packing, and crime-solving.

Corn Casserole
From Paula Deen, “Paula’s Home Cooking,” Food Network

• 1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, stir together the two cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9-by-13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and top with cheddar. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.