Category: Side Dish

Posted in Breakfast, Side Dish

Sunday Brunch: How Did They Make That?

Posted on by Northerly Nosh

How Did They Make That?!

One of our family’s guilty pleasures on a road trip is Egg McMuffins and Hashbrowns.

Today I’m gonna show you how to make hashbrowns like Mickey D’s.

Copy Cat McDonalds Hashbrowns

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4 large Russet Potatoes (scrubbed clean)
Kosher Salt
freshly ground Black Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
1 large Egg (beaten)
2 tablespoons Flour
1/4 cup Canola Pure Oil
Olive Oil for coating

Prep Day: Preheat oven to 350 F. Prick potatoes with a fork on all sides. Rub potatoes with oil until lightly coated and sprinkle generously with salt. Place potatoes on a baking sheet fitted with a wire rack. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven an allow potatoes to cool. When there is no more steam coming off of the potatoes, place them in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, or until they are completely cooled.

(NOTE: The key to making a crispy hash brown is to draw out as much moisture as possible. That is why I baked the potatoes first.)

After the potatoes have cooled, shred them onto a sheet tray using the largest hole on your box grater. You want to shred them lengthwise, producing long strands of shredded potato rather than short. After all the potatoes are shredded, you will have about 5 heaping cups – transfer them to a large mixing bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of kosher salt, some freshly cracked black pepper, the paprika and the beaten egg. Gently mix everything using a fork. You don’t want to overwork the potatoes or turn this mixture in to a gluey paste. Next add the flour and gently mix in. Shape into patties on a clean work surface, about 1/2-inch thick. You may freeze the patties at this point to use later.

Serve Day: No need to thaw. Heat a large sauté pan (cast iron preferred) over medium heat. When the pan is hot add the canola oil. Place hash brown patties in a single layer with spacing around them. Pan fry for 1 minute per side or until golden brown then remove to a paper towel and season with kosher salt.

(NOTE: May need to cook longer if cooking from frozen.)

Serve immediately.

Love cooking from taste memory!

Posted in - Meatless, Side Dish

Side ‘n’ Saturdays: Lentil Rice Casserole

Posted on by Northerly Nosh

I’m not a lover of Lentils, but this recipe helped me like them a little more.

Lentil Rice Casserole

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3 cups chicken broth, or use water and 1 T. vegetable seasoning (mccormick’s brand is what I use)
3/4 cups lentils, uncooked
1/2 cup brown rice, uncooked
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Prep Day: Blend all together in a casserole dish. Bake covered, for 1 1/2 hours at 300. Cool then freeze.

Serve Day: Thaw and reheat. During the last few minutes of cooking, you may top with shredded cheese if you would like.

Posted in Holiday Good Eats, Side Dish, Tips and Tricks

Merry Christmas! – Add Flavor to Yorkshire Pudding

Posted on by Northerly Nosh

I’m part English and so are my in laws. This Christmas I want to attempt making traditional dishes from my heritage.

Yorkshire Pudding

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1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 Tbsp melted butter
2 eggs, beaten*
2-4 Tbsp of roast drippings
* If you double the recipe, add an extra egg to the batter.

Note: Yorkshire puddings are really delicious and most people love them even if not with the traditional roast beef meat served with them! But if you want to add a little flavour to them particularly if your batter mix isn’t up to it, then you can add in a few herbs and spices to add some lovely flavour. Nothing too strong is required. For instance, why not add in a little fresh garlic or perhaps some mixed herbs to add a nice tasty zing to the Yorkshires!

Directions: Sift together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Form a well in the center. Add the milk, melted butter, and eggs and beat until the batter is completely smooth (no lumps), the consistency of whipping cream. Let sit for an hour.

Heat oven to 450°F. Add roast drippings to a 9×12-inch pyrex or ceramic casserole dish, coating the bottom of the dish. Heat the dish in the oven for 10 minutes.

For a popover version you can use a popover pan or a muffin pan, putting at least a teaspoon of drippings in the bottom of each well, and place in oven for just a couple minutes.

Carefully pour the batter into the pan (or the wells of muffin/popover pans, filling just 1/3 full), once the pan is hot. Cook for 15 minutes at 450°F, then reduce the heat to 350°F and cook for 15 to 20 more minutes, until puffy and golden brown.

Cut into squares to serve.