These potatoes are the definition of savory, and your mouth and the mouths for which you are responsible, will thank you handsomely (well, you can at least count on your own mouth, anyway)
Potatoes: cut them in half and boil until tender. Sauté you some garlic. Stick of butter. <—-totally a sentence. Mash garlic in pan with butter. Add bourbon. Add cooked potatoes. Add water or a bit of stock. Stir. Done. Inhale with pork.
Potato obsession, and the wanton pronouncement thereof, is a decidedly American affair. We love to talk about how much we LOVE things, particularly food, and particularly potato-related hork-ables. Bacon, potatoes, and ice-cream are the Justin Biebers of the culinary world, and everyone in the country seems to be pre-teen girls. While we hope that you diversify your repasts beyond these slices of Americana, we are not averse to throwing the occasional recipe into the frenzied, potato-feeding pit (especially when it has a bit of alcohol *wink*).
Use these:
2-3 lbs Halved, unpeeled baby Dutch potatoes*
1 Head Garlic (a head comprises half-a-dozen, or so, cloves)
Splash Bourbon
1 cup Stock or water
To taste Salt and Pepper
Small sprig Rosemary/oregano/ some basil…we don’t care—whatever you want!
Place the halved potatoes into a pot of water and boil them until they are tender. While doing so, sauté the peeled garlic in the butter on medium heat until it is soft (garlic burns fairly easily, so be certain to resist the temptation to intensify the heat). Once soft, mash the garlic with a fork (in the pan, or in a bowl). Once the potatoes are tender, drain them and add them to the pan with the mashed garlic and butter.
Sauté the contents of the pan on medium-high heat and add the bourbon. Once the alcohol has evaporated off (waft the steam coming off the pan towards your nose and inhale—if it burns a little, the alcohol still needs more time to evaporate…or don’t), add the stock or water. Set your stove to the highest setting and let the stock/water reduce until the liquid surrounding the potatoes is noticeably thickened (the consistency of a heavy gravy). Stir constantly while the liquid is reducing to break off the potatoes’ starch, as that will be responsible for the thickening of the sauce (don’t be afraid to be a bit rough). If you are adding herbs, do so while the sauce thickens.
Once the sauce has thickened, season with salt and pepper and the potatoes are ready to serve. They will not last long, and they are as hearty and savory as they smell. Pair with the usual chicken, beef, or pork (or whatever tickles your fancy).
*These potatoes work nicely because they are small, and only need to be cut in half. Other potatoes will work just fine, but cut them into rough 1-inch pieces if they are large. Potatoes smaller than those in the recipe should still be cut in half to expose the tuber’s stores of carbohydrates. These carbohydrates provide the potato plant with the nutrients necessary to sprout new foliage and sustain life, and are largely starch. While mixing the potatoes in the pan, some of the exposed starch will break off and combine with the liquid, creating a sauce that will allow the flavorings and seasonings to adhere to the potato. If you viscerally despise potato skins, feel free to peel the potatoes. This will, of course, expose the starch, and there will no longer be a need to halve them (unless you want to).
Erubite 