Recipes for when you're getting some good stuff with the bad
And the best freakin mashed potatoes I've ever had in my life
Hello, chefs.
I made a fairly substantial whoopsie this week and ordered an entire ChipDrop when I really just needed a few wheelbarrows full of wood chips for the chicken run. Please imagine how many wood chips could fit in a semi truck, then imagine those wood chips dumped in front of a teeeeeny tiny cottage in East Nashville. Things were bleak.
But then I made the happy realization that Facebook still exists and people do, in fact, still use it. The East Nashville Facebook group is perhaps my favorite place on the internet. It’s both ruthlessly mean and heart warmingly kind. And most of all, it’s full of people who apparently have a real and urgent need for free wood chips.
Over the last few days, our house has been a revolving door of neighbors hauling off truckloads of wood chips for various purposes: one lady bought a historic house previously owned by a master gardener and wanted to protect his plantings before our deep freeze next week, and another’s daughter just got her license and has been tearing up the lawn with her tires. Our handyman got his daughter chickens for her birthday and needed some for their run, and a friend just bought her first house and is getting her new garden beds prepped for the spring. Who knew how useful wood chips can be!
Sometimes it feels the cure to loneliness is spending more time with our people, and that’s true. But it’s also feeling connected to your neighbors and community, like that time we realized our favorite new vintage shop is owned by our neighbor who always has the best halloween decorations and yard sales. Strangers turned people who drive by your house now and think, ah, the wood chip girl! I don’t know, there’s something that feels very comforting about that.
The theme of this week has been that there’s always good stuff with the bad. Including a health-bomb carrot soup for lunch after over-indulging in the butteriest and creamiest mashed potatoes I’ve ever made. Would do it ten times over—the potatoes and the wood chips.
-Faith
p.s. For an easy way to save and store the recipes I share every week, save this Notion page. Use the magnifying glass to search. I’m slowly but surely getting passed recipes added in!
Carrot Ginger Soup
David Tanis wrote this one for NYTCooking, and sheesh, it’s almost too good. I made this with roasted fish—just some seasoned cod roasted between lemon slices and bay leaves—and next time I’ll just put the fish in the soup to serve, creating almost a poached fish-like dish. Or if you’re a purist, try your fish on a bed of creamy spinach rice on the side.
In a large pot over medium, melt 4 tbsp butter. Add 1 chopped onion and at least 6 minced garlic cloves. Season with salt and pepper and cook until softened.
Add about 4 cups of peeled and sliced carrots—don’t worry about being too fancy with these, you’re blending everything anyway—1 sliced jalapeño, and 1 2-inch chunk of sliced ginger. Give it a stir.
Add 6 cups vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 15 minutes or until carrots are nice and soft. Remove from heat.
Carefully use an immersion blender to blend the soup til smooth. You might need more broth here to get to the consistency you want; you’re going for something akin to a really thick tomato soup. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with a scoop of sour cream, some cilantro, and a thick slice of bread for dipping!
Mashed potatoes to end all mashed potatoes
This is a Melissa Clark treasure. I never make mashed potatoes because they are hard to make ahead, and I won’t be caught dead with a potato masher when there are guests at my house. But this can be kept in the fridge for days before you serve and really, truly shines. We had this for family dinner with lemon chicken breasts, green beans, and cardamom espresso brownies.
Peel and chunk 6lbs of potatoes. Place in a large pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Season your water with lots of salt, peppercorns, and a halved head of garlic.
The potatoes should be softened after about 30 minutes. Remove the garlic (the peppercorns will be fine; they’ll be soft by now and add some great flavor after they bake) and drain. Return your potatoes to the pot and mash with 10 tbsp butter, 1.5 cups sour cream, and salt and pepper to taste (if you salted your water enough, you might not need any salt!). Spread into a greased 9x13 pan. You can cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
When you’re ready to serve, combine 4 tbsp softened butter with 2/3 cups bread crumbs and 2/3 cup grated parm. Crumble the topping over your potatoes and bake for 40 minutes or until crisp on top.