Corn Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes

Salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

2 cups corn, from about 2 ears of corn, or 2 cups frozen and thawed kernels

Freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Directions

Place the potatoes in a large pot, cover with cold water and season with salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain well, then cool slightly. Return the potatoes to the pot and, using a masher, mash the potatoes.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in medium, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and corn and saute about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cream and cook over medium-low heat for 3 minutes longer.

Add the sauteed corn to the mashed potatoes and stir to combine until the liquid is fully absorbed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

recipe by:Mexican Made Easy

Poblano Rice

3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided

1/2 medium white onion, chopped

2 poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded and chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup chicken broth, plus more if needed

1 cup long grain rice

Directions

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium, heavy nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the poblano chiles and saute, about 8 minutes. Mix in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Season with the salt and pepper. Add 1 cup broth and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and let cool.

Transfer the mixture to a blender and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Measure the liquid yield from the blender, adding more chicken broth if necessary to yield 2 total cups of poblano liquid. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Meanwhile, clean the skillet, place over medium heat and add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Fry the rice until slightly golden. Pour the poblano puree into the skillet and bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat to medium-low and cover tightly. Cook for 30 minutes, turn off the heat and let rest for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving

Creamy Polenta

Ingredients

Vegetable cooking spray

1 cup milk

1 1/3 cups half-and-half, divided

2 tablespoons butter, divided

1/3 cup coarse polenta, or corn grits

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Special Equipment: slow cooker

Spray the insert of a slow cooker with cooking spray (for easier clean up) and preheat on high.

In a medium saucepan, add the milk, 1 cup half-and-half, 1 tablespoon butter, and polenta. Season with salt and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly to keep the mixture lump-free. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Pour the mixture into the slow cooker and cook on high for 2 hours, stirring once or twice per hour. Once you are ready to serve, open the slow cooker and whisk in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, remaining 1/3 cup half-and-half, and Parmesan. Salt and pepper conservatively since the polenta will be served with a robustly salted dish.

Roasted Balsamic Onions

Ingredients

• 3 large white onions, peeled and quartered
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, toss the onion quarters with the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sugar, and season with salt and pepper. Place in an ovenproof, large, nonstick skillet, spreading them out in an even layer. Cover the skillet with aluminum foil. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, and then remove the foil. Toss the onions well to coat with the reduced balsamic glaze and put back in the oven to roast another 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm.

Roasted Garlic-Rosemary Potatoes

2 1/2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

About 5 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed

2 1/2 Tbsp. chopped fresh Rosemary (be sure and strip the needles from the stem before chopping them)

2 1/2 Tbsp. coarse-grain or Dijon mustard

Coarsely-ground black pepper

1 1/2 lb. fingerling (or other very small potatoes), washed; try and pick the potatoes that are as bite-sized as possible

Kosher salt

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  While the water is heating, combine olive oil, minced garlic, rosemary, mustard, and some black pepper.  Set aside.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. When the water is boiling, add the potatoes and boil for about 10 minutes or until they are easily pierced with a fork.  Drain, return the potatoes to the pan, and then toss with the mustard mixture.

Spread the potatoes out evenly and sprinkle with Kosher salt.  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the skins begin to brown and sizzle.  For fancy presentation, place the roasted potatoes on a platter, scrape those delicious bits off the foil sprinkle them over the potatoes, and then garnish with a few sprigs of rosemary.

Note: You can do most of the work ahead of time and then refrigerate the potatoes until you're ready to finish them off or you can do it all at once.  Either way, you're not going to spend more than 30 minutes making these beauties and they're so elegant that you could seriously serve them at the fanciest dinner party.