Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Plugging along

I rested, I rallied, and in the afternoon and evening I got back on that horse again. Managed to push through the pain to get a final total of 5 minutes bike time and about 3 minutes walking time. I also tried to work with my resistance bands, but at this point they seem a little too intense, so we will put them aside for now. 8 minutes total for the day - yay me ! Best thing about it was that after the pain stopped I felt more stable and mobile, so it is indeed time to do this. More today.

I was really happy to discover I had planned something comfort food wise for dinner ! When I was little , my mom would make something we called Scalloped Potatoes from scratch. You take peeled potatoes, flour, salt , pepper, butter and milk, layer and cover with milk to bake. It made a Bechamel sort of sauce, and it was always creamy and comforting. Through the years I stopped making it because it was too starchy. White potatoes + white flour make for a not so good thing. A while back I stumbled across a recipe for this sort of dish but made infinitely better. It seems that if you combine a starch like potatoes with a higher level of fat and protein, it will not provoke the insulin response that a starch alone will. I think potatoes get an unfair bad rap these days. They have long been a nourishing staple of many cultures for the energy and satiation level they provide. If prepared properly, potatoes are a good thing. And this dis was indeed a good thing- very satisfying, nourishing and pleasing to the pallete !


 Cheddar Cheese Scalloped Potatoes

  2 1/2 cups  heavy cream
     3/4 cup  finely chopped shallots or onions
  2 teaspoons  chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried)
  2 teaspoons  sea salt
     3/4 teaspoon  ground black pepper
  4 russet potatoes peeled, cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
  2cups  grated sharp  cheddar cheese (about 8 ounces)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Whisk cream, shallots or onions, rosemary, salt and pepper in medium bowl to blend. Place half of potatoes in prepared baking dish, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup cheese. Top with second layer of potatoes. Pour cream mixture over potatoes in dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover gratin with foil and bake 1 hour. Uncover and bake until top is golden brown and potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes longer. Let gratin cool 10 minutes before serving.


I wound up serving it with some Parmesan crusted pork chops and red cabbage- made for a yummy winter evening meal !

6 comments:

Pam said...

Looks delish! Hang in there. How do make the cabbage? I love boiled cabbage but, I use the green kind. Is the red similar?

Di said...

This particular one is from a jar, but red cabbage can be used and cooked in the same way as green. I posted a recipe for red cabbage back on Dec 21- I can't figure out how to link the post to this though !

Sugar Bush Primitives said...

Di, I had the craziest dream last night that you and I were on the Biggest Loser and we both got eliminated in the 10th week. As we walked out, we hugged and vowed to be the at home winners. LOL!

Hugs,
Mary

WWSuzi said...

Go you!! Just take it one step at a time :)

Di said...

Mary- too funny ! But why was Week 10 our undoing I wonder ?
Suzi- that is exactly how I am going about it. Quite literally at some moments of the day :-)

Anonymous said...

I love cheesy, saucy potatoes of ANY kind! Looks so good.