History Dish Mondays: The Bone of the Potato

While doing research for the upcoming event at the Merchant's house, I came across an interesting account of how Irish immigrants in the mid-century cooked potatoes:

"We have all wondered why our Irish servants persist in bringing half-boiled potatoes to the table, notwithstanding our repeated orders to the contrary. Dr. James Johnson, in his tour in Ireland, discovered that it was almost a universal custom among the poor of the country, to only half boil their potatoes, leaving the center so hard, that it is called the bone of the potato." (Breakfast, Dinner and Tea, Viewed Classically, Poetically, and Practically, 1859)

"...I have since read further descriptions of 'potatoes with a bone' as early as 1812. The preference developed in hard times, for the undercooked potato was harder to digest, and seemed to stop hunger for a longer time." (The American History Cookbook, Mark H. Zanger, 2003)

Essentially, the Irish way of making a potato is grossly under cook them. In addition to Zanger's theory that the raw potatoes staved off hunger, it seems even more logical that by boiling the potatoes for half the time, they were also using half the fuel for their fires. It seems the Irish developed a taste for the half-raw potatoes, and brought the tradition with them to America. Irish women were often hired as cooks for American households; potatoes with the bone in did not go over well with their mistresses. The appropriate way of preparing vegetables in the 19th century was to boil them to a mush--up to three hours for fresh veggies.



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Potatoes with the Bone In

Modern Recipe from The American History Cookbook by Mark Zanger



1. Peel potatoes.

2. Put whole potatoes in a pot with water to cover by one inch and one tablespoon salt.

3. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer with lid off or ajar.

4. After 15 minutes, begin testing by pushing a fork into the center of a potato. When it goes in halfway and meets a hard part, the "bone," the potatoes are ready.



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Zanger suggests this would have been eaten with a cup of milk; a meal I'm familiar with from my Tenement Diet days. A starch and some protein will fill you up.

Rating: D. It's actually not as bad as I expected them to be; but it tastes pretty "green." Like a raw potato.

Fear not, however. There will be plenty cooked food to eat tonight as well. I have four perfect cider cakes and a pot of spiced carrot soup for the event tonight, as well as some mid-19th century cocktails up my sleeve.

The Battle Creek Diet, Day 2

Eggs Baked in Cream, I love thee.

Breakfast: Egg Baked in Cream, Whole Wheat Gem, and an Orange.

As I was preparing my baked eggs in cream, I suddenly remembered another reference to this recipe in the book Julie & Julia, the story of a woman who cooks every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It was a favorite dish of the book's author, and she had referred to it as the perfect hangover cure. I looked up Mrs. Child's recipe for Oeufs en Cocotte, which was slightly more refined than the one I made. She recommends heating the cream first, then dropping the eggs in, and covering it with more cream and a little butter before putting them in the oven. It's important to set the egg dish in water, "otherwise the intense heat of the over toughens the outside layers of egg before the inside has cooked...The eggs are done when they are just set but still tremble slightly in the ramekins."

Child recommends cooking them 7-10 minutes at 375 degrees. I left my eggs in a little long and they got over cooked (the yolk was not as runny as I would have liked) but still tasted AWESOME. When it came out of the oven, I garnished it with more salt and some fresh cracked pepper. The cream and the egg white melded together, and become something that transcended a mere egg to taste like the most creamy egg-like thing in existence. I sopped up the creamy-egg-goo with my whole wheat gem, and slurped the rest off a spoon. After finishing the meal with a perfectly ripe orange, I decided that this might have been the best breakfast EVER.


Lunch: Scalloped Potatoes, String Beans, and Cottage Cheese.

The scalloped potatoes were another huge success: the combination of the onions and the milk gave the potatoes an addictive, sweet flavor, and the butter tied everything together. I was literally licking the bottom of my bowl. I would definitely make this again. Hell, I'd take it to a potluck!

The beans I simply blanched and salted, and the cottage cheese came from a regular old Breakstone's container.

Dinner: Walnut Roast with Chile Sauce, Mashed Potatoes, Radishes.

My second night of making meatless meat was slightly better than the first. I halved this recipe and I used a seasoned bread crumb. It is important to let it sit in the cream and milk for at least 10 minutes. It coagulates into a surprisingly thick goop. When it came out of the oven (40 minutes at 375 degrees) it poofs up on top and looks all brown and yummy. For the chili sauce, I used tomato paste and thinned with a little water in place of "condensed tomatoes." It was actually good, just a bit strong. I could have thinned it out a little more. Combined with the Walnut Roast...well, it was okay. I ate about half, but it was kind of intense and weird. I don't think we have a winner yet.

The were no cooking suggested in Ms. Cooper's book for mashed potatoes, so I made them the classic way, with some butter and a shot of cream. Ditto with the radishes. I ate them in the French fashion, smeared with butter and sprinkled with salt. The fat cuts the tart bite of the radish, and it's very tastey.

Walnut Roast. It would be nice to eat a dinner that doesn't look like kitty catfood barf.

On day two, I have to say that these meals are consistently well rounded. Produce plus a starch plus a protein keep me full and give me energy. And my bowels are immaculate!

Temporal Fusion Cuisine: Fiamma's Gnocchi

I wanted to share with you an amazing food I recently consumed. I did a video with Josh Ozersky of The Feedbag at Fiamma restaurant here in New York.

Chef Fabio Trabocchi prepared a gnocchi recipe, exceptional in it's preparation of the potatoes, which are placed in a dutch oven with hay, and left to smoke and smolder on a stove top. The result is a potato that is infused with the smokey flavor of a dish cooked over an open fire. The recipe also calls for the addition of a pinch of nutmeg, a flavour very common to 19th century cooking.

When I took a bite of the tender potato dumplings, the combination of the nutmeg and the smokiness instantly transported me back to my time at a living history museum, and the hearth-cooked meals we would prepare. This is a dish I would dub "Temporal Fusion Cuisine," a phrase I coined to describe food which relies heavily on flavors or techniques from culinary history, and combines it with contemporary culinary culture. Although Trabocchi did infuse the hearth-cooked flavor intentionally, I don't think he intended the strong references to 19th century American cookery that this dish contains. Additionally, it was incredibly delicious, and I encourage the home chef to give this one a whirl.

You can get the full recipe here, and watch Trabocchi prepare the dish in the video below.

The Feedbag Makes Gnocchi with Fabio Trabocchi from The Feedbag on Vimeo.