The Potato Year

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Choosing and Cooking Potatoes

January

Dublin Coddle

Potatoes à la Parisienne

Potato and Chervil Soup

Potato Pizza

Ohio Pudding

Sky and Earth

Chocolate and Hazelnut Refrigerator Cake

Lettuce and Potato Soup with Salmon Quenelles

Alice B. Toklas Potatoes

Jansson’s Temptation

Potato, Fish and Leek Salad

Potato Bread Rolls

Cream of Potato Soup with Scallops

Pommes Anna

Crainquebille Potatoes

Potato Soda Bread

Pigeon and Venison Pie

Coconut Macaroon Bars

Potato Dumplings

Potatoes with Kale and Bacon

Chips in Beer Batter

Baked Egg and Potato Casserole

Franklin’s Potatoes

Caramelised Sweet and Sour Potatoes, Carrots and Green Pepper

Bodge

Potato Griddles

February

Lemon Pie

Baked Potato with Cheese and Egg Yolks

Roast Potatoes

Potato Sponge Cake with Walnuts

Potato Bread

Woolton Pie

Chips

Gratin Saint Hubert

Salade Francillon

Potatoes with Carrots and Sesame Seeds

Potato Kisses

Braendende Kaerlighed (Burning Love)

Roasted Root Soup

Potatoes Stuffed with Anchovies

Potatoes à la Crème, Au Gratin

Potato, Sausage and Tomato Pie

Warm Potato Salad with Lamb’s Lettuce

Spiced Mashed Potatoes

Rosemary Potatoes

Pan Haggerty

Quenelles of Potatoes

Gratin with Sweet Potatoes and Coconut

Empty Larder Dinner

Potato Skins with Scrambled Eggs and Caviar

Potato Rock Cakes

Sausage and Potato Rolls

March

Leeks and Potatoes with Welsh Rarebit

Boxty – Bastai

Boxty Pancakes

Tatie Hash

Scallop and Monkfish Potato Pie

Potato and Pasta with Herbs

Potato, Red Onion and Cheese Flan

Potato and Chicken Stovies

Lenten Pie

Bourbonnais Pie

Potato and Chocolate Cake

Potato Choux Cases

Salad of Potato Cake with Chives

Potato, Cheese and Garlic Bread

Peruvian Potatoes

Champ

Maria O’Farrell’s Potatoes with Cream and Parmesan

Hasselback Potatoes

Caramelised Potatoes

Potatoes Aurore

Potato and Cheese Tortilla

Potatoes Pizzaiola

Potatoes and Cheese Griddle Scones

Chocolate, Potato and Pecan Cake

Potato with Semolina

Potato and Sausage Soup

April

Half-Baked Potato

A Warm Salad with Cream and Dill

Crêpes Parmentier

Baked Potatoes with Garlic and Nut Sauce

Peasant Potatoes

Baked Potatoes with Juniper Butter Sauce

Warm Potato Salad with Dandelion Leaves

Pumpernickel Bread

Cod, Salmon and Potato in Cream Sauce

Potato Skins Roasted with Garlic

Potatoes with Eggs and Chorizo

Layered Potatoes and Mushrooms with Two Cheeses

Potatoes in Spiced Yoghurt

Warm Salad of Potatoes, Quails’ Eggs and Roasted Peppers

Potatoes in Meat Juices

Chip Butty

Potato Gnocchi

Cinnamon Potato Buns

Lancashire Hotpot

Chocolate Muesli Biscuits

Potatoes with Lamb’s Liver, Bacon and Avocado

Potato Chahkee

Potatoes with Bacon

Potato with Cheese, Cream and Chives

May

Borscht with Potatoes

New Potatoes with Persillade

Potato Moussaka

Latkes

Indian-Style Potato and Chicken Casserole

Pommes à la Basque

Warm Potato Salad with Anchovies and Bacon

Potato Kugel

Nettle and Potato Purée

New Potatoes with Fromage Frais

Potato and Herb Plaited Bread

Garlic and Potato Soup

La Truffado

Potato Soufflé Omelette

Spiced Potato Balls

Potatoes and Mackerel Salad

Lompe

Cold Potato and Cucumber Soup

Hors D’Oeuvre of Anchovy, Peppers and Potatoes

Potato Pecan Cookies

Empanadas

Boylan Potatoes

Potato, Bacon and Onion Hot Pot with Lovage

Gooseberry and Potato Cobbler

Potato Salad with Black Olives and Thyme

Potato and Asparagus Soup

June

Spanish Potatoes

Potato Caesar Salad

Offentori

Asparagus with New Potatoes

Baked Potatoes with a Green Sauce

Marinaded Kipper Fillets with Potatoes

Potatoes with Egg Butter

Potatoes with Basil and Parmesan

Potato Salad with Ginger and Horseradish

Potato Salad with Mint and Orange

New Potatoes and Peas

Vichyssoise Soup

Potato Salad with Radishes and Chive

New Potatoes with Cream and Croutons

Sesame Potato Twist Loaf

Salt Bloom Potatoes with Garlic and Mascarpone Sauce

Potatoes and Artichokes

246 Layered Potatoes

Potato Fritters

Gratin of New Potatoes and Courgettes

Potatoes and Oyster Mushrooms

Spiced Potato Pancakes

Salade Niçoise

Potatoes with Walnuts and Garlic

Potato Salad in the Pink

July

Nova Scotia (Old Arcadia) Grated Potato Pie

Lemon Potatoes

Potatoes with Breton Sauce

Sorrel and Potato Soufflés

Focaccia with Red Onions

Caesar Soup

Salad of Potatoes, Tomatoes and Watercress

Potato Purée with Whipped Cream

Ocopa

Coffee Potato Doughnuts

Potato and French Bean Salad

Pommes de Terre Lyonnaise

Potatoes with White Wine and Herbs

Terrine of Potatoes with Caraway Seeds

Potato Biscuits

Potato Sauce

Potatoes with Lentils

Potatoes with Squid and Fresh Herbs

Smoked Haddock Terrine

Potato and Spinach Cakes

Omelette à la Savoyarde

Finnan Haddock with Bacon and Potatoes

Cornish Bouillabaisse

Potato Muffins

Garlic Potato Purée

Potatoes à la Greque

New Potatoes with Prawns

August

Green Goddess Soup

Summer Flower Salad

Stuffed Potato Shells

Ajiaco de Ollocus

Potatoes with Lettuce and Nasturtium Butter

Barbecued Potatoes with Mint

Salad of Potatoes, Tomatoes and Basil

Sautéed Potatoes with Hazelnut Sauce

Causa with Tuna and Avocado

New Potatoes in Mustard

Dill Potatoes with Garlic Mousseline

A Picnic Omelette

Smoked Duck Breast, Rocket and Potato Salad

Spinach and Potato Roulade

Purée of Potato with Basil

Spiced New Potatoes

Pommes Fifine

Paupiettes of Sea Trout

Seafood Salad with Potatoes and Aioli

Italian Potato Cakes

Potato Subrics

Potatoes and Mushrooms

Potatoes Cooked with Tomato and Cucumber Concassé

Aromatic Potatoes and Turnips

Potato Boats

Provençal Potatoes

Potato and Leek Purée

September

Potato and Bean Soup with Turnip Tops

Potato and Tomato Purée

Rabbit with Rosemary and Potatoes

Potato Galette with Thyme

Salade Cauchoise with Avocado Cream

Potato Lasagne

Potato Salad with Cockles and Mustard

John Tovey’s Potato and Mushroom Flan

Potatoes of the Grape Gatherers of Burgundy

Fishermen’s Potatoes

Carrot, Celery, Potato and Lovage Soup

Potatoes Baked with Cheese and Olive Oil

Wild Mushroom and Potato Mould with a sauce of Dried Mushrooms

White Fish Soup with Lemon Grass and Potato Rouille

Potatoes with Cheese, Tomato and Onion Sauce

Autumn Gratin

Lomo Saltado

Potato Casserole with Pork

Dolmades

Parcels of Potato and Irish Farmhouse Cheese

Mushroom Topping for Mashed Potatoes

Kartoffelkrapfen

Spiced Potato Cake

Italian Stuffed Potatoes

Hot Potato and Chicory Salad

Chocolate and Hazelnut Potato Cake

October

Mrs Murphy’s Soup

Gratin of Potatoes and Celeriac with Fromage Blanc

Kartoffelkuchen

Potato, Rocket and Bread Soup

Spiced Potato, Cauliflower and Pumpkin

Vegetable Terrine

Potato Scones

Potatoes Huancaina

Hilton Potatoes

Buckwheat Crêpes with Potato Filling

Gratin with Beer

Herring and Potato Salad with Crème Fraîche

Bubble and Squeak

Three Onion and Potato Salad

Gratin Dauphinoise

Green Ravioli with Two Potato Fillings

Oven-Fried Chips

Salmon Wrapped in Straw Potatoes with Fennel Sauce

Breast of Chicken with Potato and Herb Stuffing

Potato and Apple Cake – Cáca Prátaí Agus Úll

Autumn Casserole

Aligon à ma Façon

Steak Pie with Potato Cheese Pastry

Fish and Potato Timbale

Mash of Nine Sorts – Stwmp Naw Rhyw

Potato Barm Brack

Colcannon (Cally)

November

Rumbledethumps

Caldo Verde

Chilcano Soup

Potato and Butter Bean Curry

Foil-Baked Chilli Potatoes

Potato and Cheese Soufflé

Baked Potatoes with Spiced Chickpea Filling

Potato Waffles

Potato Cakes with Tomato

Chocolate and Marmalade Potato Cake

Garlic Potatoes

Galette of Potatoes and Parsnips

Potatoes Stuffed with Chicken Livers and Mushrooms

Rosemary Potato Galette

Treacle Pudding

Purée of Potatoes and Celeriac

Irish Stew

Soufflé Baked Potato with Smoked Haddock

Potatoes, Leeks and Swiss Chard in a Cream Sauce

Winter Pie

Potato Cakes with Banana Filling

Skirlie-Mirlie

December

Purée Albert Noel

Potatoes with Cinnamon and Pine Nuts

Potato Sanders

Apple, Sultana and Potato Bake

Cheese Puff Potatoes

Potato and Mussel Soup

Baked Potato with Lobster

Potato Punts

Sautéed Ginger Potatoes

Potato and Caraway Bread

Mexican Potatoes

Potatoes with Smoked Bacon and Prunes

Potato Brioche with Ginger

Cranberry Pudding

Fruit Savarin

Mince Pies

Apple and Potato Purée

Potato Stuffing for Roast Goose

Christmas Pudding

Potato, Ham and Turkey Chowder

Leek and Potato Cakes

Potato Gingerbread

Potatoes à la Landaise

Potato Diet

Foreword

by Susan Jane White

Lucy Madden is among the greatest of our country-house cooks. As Darina Allen of Ballymaloe said recently, ‘Lucy turns out some of the most delicious and appropriate food I’ve tasted anywhere.’ Writing as someone who has unapologetically wrestled leftovers from other guests at Hilton Park, I have to agree. There, too, I have finished one meal only to dream about the next. No wonder the Observer has called this redoubtable Englishwoman ‘one of the most inspired cooks in Ireland’.

Lucy grew up in London, but in her early twenties she made the decision that haunts so many women: she married an Irishman! Johnny is the ninth generation of Maddens to own Hilton Park, near Clones. There must have been days when Monaghan felt oppressive. (Patrick Kavanagh said of it: ‘My black hills have never seen the sun rising, eternally they look north towards Armagh.’) Yet here in border country, Lucy and Johnny – who is an equally thoughtful, amusing host – have reinvented the Irish country-house experience, offering foodie pilgrims legendary hospitality in a part of Ireland that rarely finds its way onto the travel pages.

Hilton Park is nearly 300 years old. It’s a grand – very grand – property, yet the hosts could not be more engaging. Over lunch at the kitchen table you might spend an hour debating the mating preferences of mussels, the antics of adulterous politicians or the behaviour expected of people in obscure religious cults. This is a kitchen full of flavour.

An enthusiastic chronicler of the oddities of Irish life, Lucy has a neighbour who was once asked why he had a washing line erected across his farmyard from which hung a row of empty plastic oil cans. The farmer looked astonished to be asked the question. ‘Because a man has to have what no other man has,’ was his explanation. ‘And this attitude,’ says Lucy, ‘is what we once had in Ireland. Bring back the oddballs.’

Lucy’s culinary philosophy is simply expressed. ‘The dishes,’ she says, ‘are inspired by the fruit, vegetables and herbs grown in the garden.’ And while her talented son, Fred, has taken over the reins in the kitchen, Lucy is still to be found in that four-acre walled garden, with a stiff cup of coffee and a shovel, digging spuds. That is the genesis of this book.

The Potato Year is a celebration of the most modest vegetable in our shopping basket, the story of a garden and a record of our shared heritage as potato growers and lovers. Freshly boiled organic potatoes, with a lick of sea salt and pan-fried garlic? Guaranteed to do all sorts of funny things to my nostrils and my toes.

Kale is so 2013. Turnip is yet to find a patron. And blueberries are in rehab. Spuds are the national superfood, almost buzzing with goodness. Indeed pasta and rice would blush in the presence of potatoes, which are a terrific source of potassium – otherwise known as the hangover-healer! If you eat them with the skin on, vitamin C can also help the body repair any damage done the night before. And finally, vitamin B6 and iron can help to strengthen red blood cells. Isn’t it great to find a food you love that loves you back?

The recipes in this book do the Irish potato a memorable service. If you haven’t submitted to their call, prepare to embark on a pilgrimage. And remember to savour the writing. Always interested, ever looking for the right combination of flavours and words, Lucy is a pleasure to read. She inspires us to experience food as one of the great gifts of life, and that spirit of celebration informs every page of this ‘homage to the humble spud’. It looks set to become a classic.

Acknowledgements

There are so many people who have helped with the production of this book to whom I truly owe thanks. I’ve discovered that the potato is a great leveller and the very mention of this book has struck a responsive culinary chord in all sorts of gatherings while I have been collecting and collating potato recipes.

Heartfelt thanks are due to An Bord Glas (now Bord Bia) for the help and patience they showed over the years of putting the first edition of the book together. I’d also like to thank my daughter, Amelia Raben, for her work on the manuscript, Mike O’Toole for his photography and exceptional patience, Gary Smyth of R&S Printers Monaghan, Roberta Reeners, Ally Bun-bury and of course my husband, Johnny, for stoically eating his way through numerous potato dishes, sacrificing his waistline in the process.

Where possible, specific credits appear through the book, but I would like gratefully to acknowledge and thank the following for their kind permission to reprint copyright material: Cambridge University Press for extracts from The History and Social Influence of the Potato by Redcliffe Salaman, published 1949; the estate of James Joyce for a quote from ‘The Dead’; Jill Norman for the lines from ‘An Omelette and a Glass of Wine’ by Elizabeth David, published 1989; Curtis Brown for an extract from Some Experiences of an Irish R.M. by E.Œ. Somerville and Martin Ross, published 1899; Sophie Grigson for an extract from Jane Grigson’s Fruit Book, published 1991; Michael Joseph Ltd for extracts from The Ladies of Llangollen, a Study in Romantic Friendship by Elizabeth Mavor, published 1971; Elizabeth Lambert Ortiz for extracts from The Book of Latin American Cookery, published 1969; and Professor Kevin Whelan of the Royal Irish Academy for material from the Thomas Davis Lecture series.

Unfortunately I have not been able to credit some of the original writers of the recipes since some of these I have been unable to trace. Many of the recipes in this book were sent to me hand-written, but relayed from books and magazines over the years, by friends and often the original sources of the recipes were lost. For omissions I am sorry.

Introduction

‘What is this?’ an American visitor asked recently, indicating a row of plants growing in our kitchen garden and dotted with purple and white flowers in full bloom. That an adult should not be able to identify what is without doubt one of the world’s most important crops, was a shock. To look down on the flowers that Marie Antoinette had once worn in her hair, and not to know them, was this possible? Add to this the fact that the visitor’s existence on this planet had not a little to do with the one-time failure of the crop, which caused the great Irish famine that sent his ancestors on their diaspora to the New World, and the lack of knowledge was even more bewildering.

But then, sadly, we don’t all know our potatoes. Extraordinarily, many people prefer pasta, rice or couscous. Not I. My father, a man whose relationship with the soil could only be described as reluctant, and who once planted a hedge of fuchsia cuttings upside down, managed to produce a crop of potatoes that, steamed with mint then gilded with butter, were as epicurean as anything I have eaten since and began a life-long love affair for me with the vegetable. When I had the good fortune to marry a man whose family owned Hilton Park in Co. Monaghan, with its large walled gardens that seemed to beckon to a potato grower, years of cultivating and experimenting with different varieties of the crop ensued. When, some thirty years ago, we decided to open the house to paying guests as members of Hidden Ireland and people from all over the world began to visit, it provided an opportunity to widen my collection of potato recipes, which, year by year, increased alarmingly.

One summer a retired CIA colonel from Washington DC put me in touch with the Potato Museum* in his home town, and the idea of bringing out a book about the potato began to germinate. The arrival of their newsletter, Peelings, was as exciting as anything else the postman could deliver and with it began my realisation that the influence of the modest tuber was not just as a food source of global significance and inspiration to writers and painters, but also as a mover and shaker in the history of our world. It saddens me then that this vegetable, in spite of attempts to revive its popularity in the last twenty years, has yet to achieve star status. It is hardly ever mentioned in the numerous books and articles that discuss healthy eating and yet its nutritional qualities are well established. I recently had a letter from a nutritionist who has noticed that patients suffering from depression who switch from a wheat-based to a potato-based diet find their symptoms improved. I have read, too, that the doctors who examined the immigrants passing through Ellis Island, New York in the latter half of the 1800s found the Irish to be fitter than those from other countries. Was this in spite of, or because of, their reliance on the potato? The tuber’s medicinal properties, it seems, are more appreciated in South America, where at one time potatoes were used as dowries.

This book was originally put together in calendar form, with a recipe for every day. This seemed reasonable, since the character of potatoes and potato dishes changes with the seasons. Publishers thought otherwise, so with the help of my daughter Amelia, who understood the then mysterious world of desk-top publishing, we put together the first edition of the book ourselves. A Trinity friend of hers, Peter Bland, a young law student, came up with the illustrations and before long I was walking out of our local printers holding a copy of The Potato Year. To our surprise the book sold well, and a second edition ensued.

Since the first edition of The Potato Year in 1992, I have received many letters that attest to the ubiquity and love of the vegetable. I have learned of Potato Days and events celebrating potatoes all over the world. Here in Ireland in 2008 a schools’ competition, ‘Meet the Spuds’, was initiated by Agri-Aware, encouraging children to grow the tubers and chart their progress. I remember the winning project included songs about potatoes. I have been sent recipes from interested strangers; a Dutchman sent me a recipe for Hutspot, a potato dish of historical significance, cooked annually as a commemoration of the independence of the Netherlands. A Belgian television crew filmed here to include Ireland in their six-part series covering different countries from both hemispheres where potatoes have had a special influence. The potato has indeed played a significant role in the history of our world.

So keep your pasta, polenta and lentils, away with your rice, couscous and quinoa, these are mere upstarts. Bring back the potato to its place of significance on our plates. The vegetable deserves reverence. The deep-fried ‘roast’ potato that is slapped beside a lump of mash in certain hostelries is an insult to the plant and our palettes. Cooked instead with respect, some of the greatest dishes in the world have potatoes at their heart and can be fast food at its best. Add to that the fact that potatoes want to grow in our gardens; in ours they almost grow like weeds. Pushing back the earth to reveal those golden orbs is one of the gardener’s great experiences. I might almost say it is one of life’s great experiences.

Footnote

* This museum is now the Food Museum, Albuquerque.

Choosing and Cooking Potatoes

There are two main schools of potato eaters; those who prefer the waxy variety and those who prefer the floury kind. The latter group predominates, particularly in Ireland.

In potato cookery both schools are accommodated. Floury potatoes are best for baking, mashing and chipping, while the waxy varieties are more suitable for sautéing and salads. Which kind you prefer for boiling and steaming is a matter for personal preference and to some extent, nationality. Only in Ireland have I met the bursting, dry mouthful of perfection that is the Kerr’s Pink or Golden Wonder. The English prefer their potatoes wetter and waxier. This soapiness is disdained in Ireland.

It is the dry matter that is the key to taste and quality in potatoes. Research reveals that Golden Wonder has the highest dry matter content and Cara the lowest. For Vitamin C, Kerr’s Pink has the highest mean and Record and Pentland Dell the lowest. For ‘flouriness’ Golden Wonder and Kerr’s Pink are best, with Cara found to be the ‘soapiest’.

But ‘horses for courses’ and every potato variety will have its devotee. Even the ‘I’m a meat and potato man’ will have his own particular favourite. Potato buyers are becoming very discerning. At a large supermarket in Dublin recently I found thirteen different varieties on sale. The days are past when greengrocers asked ‘Reds or Whites?’ and one was given a bagful of earth that hid all sorts of unpleasantness.

If you are going to grow potatoes, buy fresh, certified seed potatoes every year rather than saving them from last year’s crop, a practice which increases the risk of virus disease. Buying unusual seed varieties is becoming easier and if unusual varieties are what you want, you may have to grow them for yourself because unfortunately some of the ‘connoisseur’ kinds are commercially not viable – the curvaceous and excellent Pink Fir Apple, for example, is difficult to harvest because of its small knobbly shape and is susceptible to disease. Potato growing, however, is a joy and nothing compares to the pleasure of pushing back the earth in early summer to reveal the little waiting tubers. More than this, though, it is vital that the home growers help to keep alive the old and more exotic varieties that the commercial growers can’t – or won’t – produce.

It is not given to many people in this world to be able to go to the garden when potatoes are needed. Most of us must depend on what is supplied locally, and what is supplied locally will largely depend on demand, so by demanding different kinds the news will filter back to the growers. Ask for organically grown potatoes to experience the full flavour of each variety.

There are just a few rules to remember with potatoes. Don’t refrigerate them, they become sweet. Since the nutrients lie under the skin, only peel if necessary. Peeled potatoes turn brown through oxygenation, so cook them at once or keep them for a few hours, if necessary, in cold water. Potatoes should be clean and free of disease and never greened by exposure to the light. Do not eat green potatoes. Buy new potatoes in very small quantities since they don’t store well. Don’t keep cooked potatoes for re-use longer than 24 hours.

I prefer to steam potatoes rather than boil them, although this means sacrificing the potato water which can be used for stocks and sauces. When cooking potatoes for puréeing, I cut them into small, even-sized pieces, which speeds up the process and ensures that the potatoes cook evenly. The recipes in this book do not mention which variety is most suitable to which dish because often those varieties are not available. When a recipe calls for a new potato, I have said so. ‘New’ potatoes are not necessarily special varieties as all types of potato can be bought as ‘new’ early enough in their season. Potatoes divide into ‘earlies’ and ‘maincrop’; here is a list of some of the better-known types of potato available in Ireland and the uses to which they can be put.

POTATO VARIETIES

BOILED OR STEAMED

Earlies: Horne Guard, British Queen, Wilja, Balmoral, Pink Fir Apple

Maincrop: Kerr’s Pink, Golden Wonder, King Edward, Cara, Maris Piper, Rooster, Cultra, Pimpernel

JACKET BAKED

Cara, Desiree, King Edward, Maris Piper, Pentland Dell, Rooster, Pimpernel, Golden Wonder, Romano, Kerr’s Pink, Balmoral, Cultra, Pentland Squire

PURÉED

Golden Wonder, Maris Piper, Kerr’s Pink, King Edward, Pimpernel, Pentland Dell

DEEP-FRIED

Earlies: Horne Guard, British Queen, Wilja, Ulster Sceptre

Maincrop: Desiree, Golden Wonder, King Edward, Kerr’s Pink, Record, Pentland Dell, Cara

SALAD

Earlies: Most early potatoes, such as Wilja, La Ratte, Belle de Fontenay and Pink Fir Apple

Maincrop: Rooster, Cultra, Desiree and Golden Wonder

ROASTING

Cara, Desiree, Golden Wonder, Rooster, King Edward, Maris Piper