Book Club Food - Potato Peel Pie
I am in a book club that rotates homes with as few as 4 and as many as 10 people attending. Dinner is served and every host wants to put on the Ritz. Most people serve a casserole, bread and salad (wine, of course), but I'd like to do something crazy. Our book this month is "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" about post WWII people on Guernsey Island in the UK. Don't think the potato peel pie sounds that good, but, any suggestions? Or thoughts on Potato Peel Pie that is edible?
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16 Comments:
A few people on this site have mentioned that a wonder vegetable stock can be made by simmering vegetable trimmings (carrot and potato peels, onion skins, herb stems, etc.) that would normally be tossed. You could try that and use the stock to cook something.
What about individual pies of potato and meat baked in ramekins? Almost like a Cornish pasty filling, but with something luscious like puff pastry for a crust. You could try making a stock from veggie trimmings just for the theme of it - if you think that wouldn't sound unappetizing to your guests.
yayfood at 10:06PM on 09/15/09
Evidently the book's author offers a recipe for said pie: http://www.randomhouse.com/rhpg/guernsey/potato-peel-pie-recipe/
It seems that the peel is to serve as crust - how about making Twice Baked Potatoes? Same idea, much tastier. (I do a stuffed sweet potato with sliced smoked sausage and white cheddar, not terribly British but quite yummy.)
AliceBlue at 11:02PM on 09/15/09
Colcannon is a favorite and for some reason much under-rated dish here. Leave the peels on the potatoes, and cook the cabbage separately so it's sweet, then add to the potatoes and onions.
lemonfair at 7:18AM on 09/16/09
You might try deep fried potato skins stuffed with cheese and what ever else tickles you and also serve pizza topped with potatoes, rosemary and bacon along with a salad. Another thought would be to serve a salad and Smoked Chicken Chowder with potato peels that have been deep fried for a crispy accompaniment. With this chowder I roast some boneless chicken breasts rubbed with smoked paprika and chipolte powder and also add some of each to the soup instead of searching for smoked chicken breasts. Have fun--it's a great book.
dhorst at 9:09AM on 09/16/09
@lemonfair: I agree with you, it's too much under-rated and it's one of my favorite comfort foods. I use a nice chicken stock to add some flavor to it, without adding more butter than really necessary, if you want to make is healthier than normal. Also, leave the skins on! That's the best part! :)
Traveller at 10:48AM on 09/16/09
Here's a delicious and basic potato skin recipe.
http://elise.com/recipes/archives/007113potato_skins.php
Use the potato wells as baskets or crusts for your savory pie fillings.
CJ McD at 11:01AM on 09/16/09
Don't think traditional "pie". Think meat pie, pasty or hand held pie.
Fill with meats, vegetables, onions and potato with skins sliced, chunked or slightly mashed.
CJ McD at 11:05AM on 09/16/09
ha ha-i just clicked the link for the 'authentic' potato peel pie-it warns you that it tastes like paste & the more authentic-the nastier. that cracks me up.
love the ramekin idea from yayfood-as well as lemonfair's colcannon suggestion. my favorite way to eat potatoes is in the form of boxty-granted, it's an irish dish, but close enough, right?
gastronomeg at 11:55AM on 09/16/09
Make cauliflower pie! It has a crust of shredded potato (leave the skin on, there you go), and the dish is similar to a cauliflower cheese, which is a pretty standard english dish.
The food network recipe for it looks similar to what my mom used to make, though I'd use cheddar instead. I'd try posting a link but that is way beyond me.
eeels at 11:55AM on 09/16/09
I don't have a recipe because I've never heard of potato peel pie!
What do I think???
I LOVE POTPEELS! Why not eat them in a pie?
I like to eat them all the time. Even roast them with nacho toppings. And they're highly nutritious.
The peel has a wider variety of compounds than the potato flesh.
Some healthy and some less healthy.
The skin contains some minerals like potassium, B-6 (I think?) and calcium at higher levels than the potato meat, but it has "anti-nutritional ingredients" like phenolics, glycoalkaloids, and nitrosamines. [note that by "anti-nutritional" I mean chemicals that can have upsetting or even toxic effects]
hungrychristel at 12:30PM on 09/16/09
This might be easy to serve and make a nice presentation. Potato Foccaccia.
therealchiffonade at 2:17PM on 09/16/09
@traveller: I actually like the combination of flavors so well that I usually don't use any butter at all- sometimes just a tsp or so with water to saute the onions, and I cook the cabbage in a little water. Broth sounds very good too.
lemonfair at 3:22PM on 09/16/09
I did a potato pie recipe for our cooking club last week that was very popular. The theme was "food inspired by movies" and this was from "Gone with the Wind." I found an early-19th Century recipe that worked well. You thinly slice potatoes - and can leave the skin on, I did - then layer them in a dish with butter or oil, onions, and herbs. I simmered a grated onion and the herbs for a bit to soften the onions, then alternately brushed the oil on a layer, or spread some of the onions. The original had a crust on top, I left that off and baked them until mostly done, reheated them at the get-together. It was lovely.
morgancain at 3:23PM on 09/16/09
You might be able to get creative if you think quiche in a traditional pie crust with parboiled potatoes as one of the featured ingredients. In the end you might garnish your presentation with a popular potato skin appetizer recipe. With creative ingredient selection, you could make a one dish meal out of it.
Considering that your group size makes such huge swings, the only variable you need consider is how big a slice each member is served...
czken at 4:13PM on 09/16/09
So many great ideas to try! I am intrigued by the Colcannon, hadn't heard of the dish before. On St. Pat's day, it's all corned beef and soda bread around here. I love the chicken soup idea, fried potato peels, really all of the suggestions. Going to be hard to decide, maybe several dishes are in order! Many thanks.
lambowner at 10:24PM on 09/16/09
Well, the event was tonite, and I served potato, chicken (de-boned from the grocery store roasted chicken), roasted poblano, and a touch of monterry jack cheese soup with the potato peels fried in peanut oil as garnishment. Thanks, dhorst for that suggestion, it was a hit. My guests were appreciative. Along with that, a starter of cesear salad, whole leaf, and a finish of pie, lemon or chocolate, thus the potato peel and pie dinner! We also had a really good discussion of WW2 and its impact on Europe and our own country. Success!!
lambowner at 12:42AM on 10/08/09