Monday, September 6, 2010

Homemade Mashed Potatoes Recipe

Homemade Mashed PotatoOnce you've tasted homemade mashed potatoes, you'd never want to eat those instant ones you buy at the supermarket. I know that some of you don't want to be bothered with all the prep, however, this recipe is really really simple.




Choose your potatoes wisely. A few tips:
  • make sure the potatoes you buy are solid and firm
  • it's better if you select from the potato bin rather than buy those that are pre-packed
  • avoid potatoes with bruises, cracks or wrinkles

Recipe below is good for 2 servings.

Ingredients:
4 medium-sized potatoes
2 tbsps butter (approx. 3-4 small cubes)
1/2 cup milk
salt
pepper
a dash/pinch of nutmeg

Boil water in a pot enough to cover potatoes. Peel potatoes and cut them in half (quarters for big ones) so they cook faster. Throw them in boiling water and cook for 20 minutes or until tender. How do you know they're done? Stick a fork or a small knife into a potato--if it's soft, then it's done. Drain and put in a bowl.

Add butter while it's hot and roughly mash the potatoes. You may use a wire masher or even a fork like I do. Add milk, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Mash some more until your desired smoothness. Don't forget to taste so you can adjust the amount of salt and pepper.

Homemade Mashed Potato plated with Salad and ChickenThe nice thing with mashed potatoes is that it goes with just about anything. For a simple dinner, you can eat it with fried chicken and lettuce drizzled with olive oil and balsamico.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Insalata Caprese

Photo of my Insalata Caprese

I am seriously craving for this antipasto. It is a really simple salad made of freshly sliced buffalo mozzarella, basil, tomatoes and seasoned with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. We'd usually make this at home as we could buy large fresh tomatoes and the mozzarella from S&R. Unfortunately, a few months ago, the distributor stopped supplying S&R with said cheese. Now, the only other place I know of that we could get it from is Santi's which, as we all know, is not that cheap.

As this is a ridiculously simple recipe, it's important that fresh, top-quality ingredients are used.