Tweet and Eat, Part 4

Two Potatoes—One Irish, One Sweet

Jansson’s Temptation
Seattle, Washington

Before she built the cookbook section and first kitchen store at Amazon.com, Rebecca Staffel was no slouch in the kitchen. An Oregon farm kid, she was weaned on solid Scandinavian cooking, like this classic scalloped-potato dish. How innocuous it seemed back in the era of dietary innocence. What derring-do is required to indulge the miracle of potato, butter, cream, and heat today. Call it a main course, then. Call it the reason for a light salad. Say the diet begins tomorrow.

• 6 tablespoons butter, divided
• 10 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/3-inch matchsticks
• 10 sprats (Swedish anchovies), roughly chopped
• 2 yellow onions, diced
• 3 tablespoons flour, divided
• salt and white pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a large casserole or baking dish with 2 tablespoons of butter. Layer about 1/3 of the potato “sticks” in the casserole, followed by half of the sprats and half the onions. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour, season with salt and white pepper, and dot lightly with half the butter. Repeat with a second layer, and top with a final layer of potatoes.

2. Pour the cream evenly over the top of the potatoes and add a little more salt and pepper. Cover with foil and bake for one hour. Check after 30 minutes and add more cream if it looks dry.

4. Remove the foil, turn the oven up to 375 degrees, and bake the casserole a further 20 minutes. The Temptation will be nicely browned.

Serves four to twelve

Michael Hogue’s Tajine bil Khodar
Bremerton, Washington

Michael Hogue grew up on military bases, and the experience allowed him to see―and taste―the world with no preconceived ideas. During his own tour in the Navy, he learned that “kitchen duty was mandatory for newbies” and about “cooking for the masses and making due with what you have.” He first tasted this dish at Al-Fassia in Marrakech and has modified it only by increasing the lemon and cinnamon. Couscous is the traditional base for a tagine but Mr. Hogue finds the dish’s flavors so warm and sunny that he suggests serving it over rice or fettuccine, or even on its own. A salad of oranges and olives, accompanied by a traditional flatbread, might start the meal, followed by the tagine. Chilled melon balls would be a perfect ending.

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped
• 2 cups vegetable broth, homemade or low-sodium canned
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1/2 pound turnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1/2 pound Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
• 1/2 pound sweet potato, peeled and cut it 1 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 teaspoon Ras el hanout spice blend
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Moroccan preserved lemons, 1 chopped and 1 sliced thin
• One 9-ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed

1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or tagine over medium heat. Add the onions and cook about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft.

2. Stir in the broth, water, lemon juice, carrots, turnips, potatoes, sweet potatoes, Ras el hanout, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender.

3. Stir in the artichokes and chopped preserved lemon and simmer for 5 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with the sliced lemon and serve.

Serves six