A couple of weeks ago, before things were more challenging than usual, Annalena prepared two side dishes that, as she thought about it, were both of the season , and not. Thinking about it a little further, she realized that these dishes stand the test of seasonality: carrots and potatoes are with us always, and while they change, you can always find them at your farmers market. "New" potatoes and "new" carrots come out in late spring/early summer. They have a delicate flavor, almost dare you to peel them and skin them, and don't ask for much. Later in the year, as they grow, they take a bit more work. You WILL need to peel them, and you will need to spend a bit more time, especially with the carrots. Yet, they will both reward you amply, as rounding out whatever meal you are making.
Who does not like potatoes? Annalena suspects there are one or two souls out there who don't like them. Now, let's separate "I don't like" from "I don't eat." Potatoes, like all carbs, get a bad name because... they're carbs. If you choose not to eat them, that is of course your option; however, do not confuse that with not liking them. You like them. You know you do.
Carrots sort of fall into a different place. No one will admit to not liking carrots, but they are, as Annalena has said before, one of the "forgotten" vegetables. We sort of assume they're there, eat them when they're put in front of us, but think more of Bugs Bunny than good eating.
Carrots are good eating. Restauranteurs have discovered this, as you will not from the 9.00 plates of carrots you can get as side orders at many restaurants. They brighten up a plate, and as Annalena found out when she posted the picture that follows, they make people happy. They make people want to eat them. And she hopes that they make you feel the same way.
Here come the pics, and then, the recipes:
Both dishes are very easy. You could make them in the same meal. In fact, they probably could BE your meal.
So, which one should we start with? How about the carrots? You'll need a pound of carrots (we'll get to types in a minute), fresh ginger, about two tablespoons of unsalted butter (although the unsalted is not writ in stone), and a pot to cook them in, with some salt.
Really challenging, huh? Here's what you do. Get whatever carrots are available and look best, but please, do NOT buy those "baby carrots" that you can find in bags at the supermarket. Do not be deluded: these are not young carrots. They are pieces - the junk really - from processing carrots, pressed and shaped into molds to look like small carrots. Here's the rule ragazzi: if it looks too perfect, it's not real. You can get young carrots at this time of the year. They have long inedible roots on them. They have skin. Usually, they have greens attached. They are NOT fluorescent orange. That's what you buy. And if you're doing this later in the year and all there are, are soup carrots (big monsters that you could use to cudgel someone to death), use those. If you get them with greens attached, remove them immediately and give them to your local rabbit or compost them. Annalena has been told that you can treat them like parsley. Let her know if you do.
You want carrots or carrot pieces that are about 1-2 inches long, and about a half inch thick. Do what you have to do to get there. If you need to cut and slice, do it. Now, you probably don't. And of the skin. Well, taste one. Does it taste like it needs to go? Are you spitting out mud? If so, scrape em gently. If not, don't bother. Just get your finished carrots into about an inch and a half of boiling, salted water. Some say that as carrots are a root vegetable, you should cover the steaming pot. Annalena does not agree. Lower the heat to medium low, and let them cook. If your pot is too shallow for them to cook in a single layer, move them around every couple of minutes. They are ready when you can take the end of a knife and barely get it into the center of the bigger one.
Drain them, and if you happen to have soup in mind for later in the week, save that water. Now, move that pot aside and get out a pan. For a pound of carrots, melt two tablespoons of butter, and toss in a knob of ginger. No slicing, just a knob about a half inch long. Swirl it around in the butter, and then add the carrots. Keep em turning, and when you see the carrots and the butter beginning to brown, turn off the heat.
Get your grater, get the ginger root (USE FRESH), and just go to town. Use more than you think you'll need. Ginger , especially fresh ginger, is a strong ingredient, but Annalena finds that heat drives off the good flavors. So use a lot. Incidentally, she also finds that she doesn't need to peel the ginger. (And, just this week, fresh ginger has come into the market. This is very perishable, very delicate, and very expensive. Use it and savor it).
Put these next to your next cut of meat, and smile at how happy you are for eating something you forgot about and which you enjoy. And know what? These are awfully good for you (which is NOT true for most veggies, ragazzi. Truth be told, you'd be better off eating potatoes than green beans).
And now, let's turn to the potatoes. Again, let's look at what we've got. You want potatoes that weigh at least about 3-4 ounces each. That's 4-5 potatoes to the pound. You can use bigger, but the size given is ideal. Now, let's look at the peel. Take one and rub your fingernail on it. Does the skin come off? If the answer is yes, you don't need to peel them. If the answer is no, you still don't have to, if you like potato peels. YOU DO NEED TO WASH THEM THOUGH. Even the organic ones. Potatoes produce more toxins in their peels than any other vegetable: they protect themselves from predators that way.
Ok, so your taters are ready. Cut them into half inch slices. You can see the form in the picture before. Put these into cold, salted water, and bring it to the boil. Again, Annalena does not cover the pot. You want to cook them the same way you cooked the carrots: get some resistance from the knife. It will take 5-10 minutes. Drain them, and let them dry. Keep this water if you're going to bake bread, because there's something in that water that makes your bread rise so much better than plain water does.
Preheat your oven to 450. Meanwhile, dump the potatoes onto a baking sheet, and be generous with olive oil and salt, and get your hands in there. Coat every surface, and don't be cheap with either ingredient. Then put everything into the oven. You'll hear some sizzling, and after ten minutes, move them around. You'll see some browning on the part resting on the sheet. Try to get as much even browning as you can, but this is a dish that works really well with taties that are not uniform.
While this is happening, grate yourself some parmesan and some pecorino: say a half cup of each (it's not as extravagant as you think). Mix them together. When the potatoes are done, dump them in a bowl, just like you see above , and toss them with the cheese, and a few grinds of fresh pepper. Some of the cheese will melt, some will not, and you will have another dish that will make you hug yourself, and wonder why you didn't make more.
Ragazzi, you can put these in the bank as solid "go to" sides. We all need them. You can do it. Now do it!
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