Jill Dupleix's Crash-Hot Potatoes

So here's the thing about being married to a Norwegian. He flippin' loves potatoes. No seriously, I have never seen anyone love potatoes that much. For him, it's not a real meal without them, so I guess we eat a lot of non-meals around here. I, on the other hand, tend to kind of forget about the potato unless I find those amazing little purple ones at the store, and then I think to myself, why in the world are those potatoes purple? And keep moving. The potato, in other words, is not my go-to food.

But I've had this recipe in the back of my mind for a while. After I first saw it on the Pioneer Woman who has kind of commandeered them. But they're Jill Dupleix's idea, and her recipe. If you're in the US, you might not be all that familiar with Dupleix. She's an Australian food writer, with a monthly column in the food magazine Americans only wish we could get, called Delicious. In fact, whenever I travel internationally, or go to a book store with a large magazine selection, I always look for Delicious as a special treat. Love that magazine. And Dupleix writes a monthly column for them.

So Dupleix has written her fair share of cookbooks, but this recipe can be found easily on her website. They are amazing little potatoes. A cross between the tenderness of a baked potato and the crispiness of a french fry, but with very little fat. Actually, it's quite genius. Genius enough to even impress a Norwegian.

Adapted from Jill Dupleix's Crash Hot Potatoes

16 small, round potatoes
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper
A sprinkle of caraway seeds if you'd like (I did)
A few rosemary sprigs, broken into pieces

Preheat the oven to 450F (yea, screaming hot). Put the unpeeled potatoes into a pot of salted, boiling water and simmer them for about 15 minutes. They should be tender enough to take a fork, but not falling apart. Make sure they're not overly soft.

Drain the potatoes and spread them out on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Use a potato masher, and press down on each potato until it's flat. It should be about twice its original size.

Brush the potatoes with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper and the caraway seeds, then lay the rosemary over the tops. Bake on the top shelf of the oven for 20 - 25 minutes, or until they're very crisp and golden brown. Serve right away.

Lentil Chili Burgers

So let's say you made Mollie (with an "ie") Katzen's Lentil Chili, like I did the other night. But let's also say that you live in a family of two and didn't bother cutting the recipe down. You might be thinking, what in the world should I do with all of that chili? I've learned to admit to myself that things which end up in the freezer tend to stay in the freezer until out of desperation I throw them away. So freezing's out (although Katzen does say the chili freezes beautifully). Eating lentil chili for every meal for the entire rest of the week is also out because nothing is good three times a day.

What to do, what to do... Here's a hint. Remember when I complained that whenever I deal with lentils they suck up all water with which they come into contact, making it difficult for me to keep them in a soup or stew? Well if you have a similar problem, you can take your greedy little lentils which have soaked up all of their broth, and make them into pre-seasoned, already cooked burger patties. Genius. You can even include the tomato and onion chunks. Here's how you do it.

Lentil Chili Burgers
Original Recipe, or at least, original idea

2 1/2 cups leftover Lentil Chili, which has absorbed all of its liquid
3/4 cups rolled oats
3/4 cups bread crumbs, I used panko, but if you make your own, use them
Fixings for burgers, you know the drill

Give your rolled oats a wizz in the food processor to grind them. Combine the ground rolled oats, the bread crumbs and the lentils. Use your hands to form the lentil mixture into nice round patties.

Heat a pan over medium, then pour in a little olive oil to coat. Place each lentil patty in the pan and cook on each side for 1-2 minutes, depending on how hot it is. Remove and serve, maybe with a bun, tomato and lettuce, or plain with some A1 sauce. (I'm a sucker for A1 sauce.)