Creative in the Kitchen

I don’t usually make up stuff in the kitchen. I almost always at least start with a recipe, although I may deviate from it considerably. So when I actually create a dish all on my own- and it’s actually yummy!- well, that’s a special thrill.

It all started because I knew I had spinach and potatoes I needed to use. I started by searching all the usual sites, thinking I would find something along these lines, but- nothing! So I was forced to innovate.

I started by boiling the potatoes. My secret method for roasting potatoes is to always boil them until they are either thoroughly or partially cooked. Then I toss them in oil and salt and finish them in a high temperature oven. The insides are melty soft and the outsides are crispty crunch. Like a slightly better for you French fry. Well worth dirtying the extra dish! After I took them out of the water I diced them and tried the old potato salad trick of tossing them with a little red vinegar. This is lifted directly from the Cook’s Illustrated potato salad recipe. Vinegar sprinkled on warm potatoes soaks into them and makes them extra flavorful. This was a chance I took because I wasn’t sure if the vinegar would have any effect on the texture of the potatoes once I exposed them to more heat.

Once the potatoes were vinegared, oiled, salted and in the oven, I sautéed the spinach in olive oil with some garlic. I also prepared a quick lemon vinaigrette. When the potatoes were crispy. I dumped them in a bowl with the spinach, some goat cheese and the vinaigrette and tossed it all with some tongs. Result?

Yummy! I wish I had been patient enough to let the potatoes get crispier as I think they would have held up a little better under the vinaigrette. But it was still delicious. Acidy, salty, starchy and greensy. Crunchy, soft and creamy. I will call it roasted potato salad with spinach and goat cheese.

We ate it all before I thought to take any pics.