Who Is Anastasia?

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New Castle, Indiana Zone 5, United States
When I was 55, I decided to embrace the things I love and hold precious and dear, regardless of anyone else's thoughts and opinion. I am a visual folk artist who loves flowers - my own flowers, grown and/or painted by me. I love good, hearty, exotic foods, and I love to prepare them myself. I love the secret garden situated in my backyard, regardless of how overgrown and wild it gets. No longer able to afford a vacation, this will have to be it for the time being. In the winter months, I still enjoy it. Anyway, here I am sharing my art, favorite recipes, cocktails, gardening tips, and just my usual vents and bantering. After all, I'm old enough to say whatever the heck I want to now ...

JEWELS OF MY SOUL

JEWELS OF MY SOUL
My Book Available on AMAZON

February 21, 2010

White Potato Pie

Our local newspaper has an annual cooking contest in the spring. The three times I have entered it I have won first place in my category, but never the grand prize or reserve grand prize. I did not enter it the last two years because I was employed by said paper during contest time, but did get to taste all of the final entries (well worth the exile).

This year, however, I intend to win, all in the spirit of fun, of course. Well, yeah, I could use the money too.

I'm entering in two categories; desserts and main dishes. While browsing through my data base of recipes and all of my old cookbooks, I tried to find something out of the ordinary, but still simple and delicious. One requirement of the contest is to make a dish that the average cook can prepare in her own kitchen without having to buy too many exotic ingredients. Pooh! I really was up for a challenge. However, I did find a recipe for White Potato Pie in one of my cookbooks, Sweety Pies, by Patty Pinner.

At first I thought, well that sounds pale and stale. But the recipe is quite nice, easy to make, and actually turned out to be just as good, if not more interesting, than her sister,
Sweet Potato Pie. Let me know your thoughts!

WHITE POTATO PIE

One 9-inch single pie crust (fitted into a plate, edged and crimped)
2 medium-sized white potatoes (I chose Yukon Gold)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 large eggs, beaten
Makes one 9-inch pie

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare the crust and set aside.

Peel the potatoes, cut into chunks, and cook in boiling water until tender; drain. In a medium-size bowl, mash the potatoes and combine with the butter, sugar, baking powder and salt until well mixed. Stir in the milk and cream, stirring until well blended.
Stir in the extracts, then the nutmeg. Add the eggs and mix well. Pour the filling into the pie crust, place in the oven, and bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Top each slice with a scoop of lemon-flavored ice cream for added flair and extra flavor. The illustration in the cookbook showed the pie garnished with thin lemon slices.

The Backyard --Today's Vacation Spot

The Backyard --Today's Vacation Spot
A simple garden meal in the shade. No, it's not my backyard, but it looks identical to the one I grew up with at our home in Queens. Looking for an original pic of it to post soon!

Old Fashioned Tips