Mountain Cat
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- 12 Apr 2019
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- Hilltowns of Massachusetts
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A recipe from The City Tavern Cookbook: Recipes from the Birthplace of American Cuisine, by Walter Staib. This one is on page 218. Part of the CookingBites Cookbook Challenge, #6.
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Heat 4 tablespoons of the butter and the oil in a large skillet over high heat, add the mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes, until light brown and tender. Remove from the skillet and reserve.
In the same skillet, sauté the onions and garlic for 3 minutes, until golden brown. Reserve.
Pat the sliced potatoes dry with paper towels. Place half the potato slices in the bottom of a large baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the parsley, the reserved mushroom and onion mixtures, and the remaining potato slices. Sprinkle again with salt and pepper and dot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter.
Bake for 15 minutes.
Pour the cream evenly over the potato mixture, top with the Parmesan cheese, and bake about 10 minutes more, until the potatoes are fork-tender and the mixture is bubbly. Serve hot.
Photo: My serving - here we can see the inner mushroom, onion and parsley layer.
(ED FEEDBACK: I used avocado oil instead of "vegetable oil", which I have not purchased in at least 30 years. Assuming I ever did. There is no confounding taste to either oil.
The onion took longer to start browning - about 8 minutes. This did not surprise me. A truly great Maillard reaction for onions mushrooms will take even longer. I kept them at "slightly golden". Mushrooms were spot-on.
I'm never sure how one measures a "bunch" of anything. I used my own home-grown parsley, and simply went by "feel" on it. Which I think is entirely appropriate.
Final cooking time once one added the cream and parm was about 15 - 17 minutes. Ovens do vary in temperature.
While I think this was a good recipe, it does tend to confirm my Yukon gold bias. I think I'd love this recipe were I to use just about any "gold" potato. I would also not skin my potatoes, although I know there was a period in time where everyone apparently skinned any potato they cooked. Most of the nutrients are in the skin -- and frankly, they really don't taste bad, and they add texture. (Yes, I did use the red-skinned potatoes with skins removed. The chickens got a treat!)
The seasonings, mushrooms and onions were excellent with this!
I would also like to brown the top of the casserole, by putting my oven on "broil" for a couple of minutes at the end.
Overall, I do appreciate this cookbook, and will cook more things from it in the future.
Herein, the recipe's author combines cookery ideas from both Mary Randolph (The Virginia Housewife, ) and Martha Washington's related recipe ("To Dress a Dish of Mushrumps"). Yes, that Washington. She likely didn't invent the recipe (OR cook it), but it would be served in her household.
Photo: a detail of the casserole before slicing in.
Potato, Mushroom & Onion Casserole
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (PS: Find a good and healthier substitute that doesn't impart flavor. Avocado or grapeseed oil come to mind.)
- 6 cups sliced button mushrooms (about 1.5 pounds)
- 2 large onions, sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 8 medium red-skinned potatoes (about 1.5 pounds), peeled and very thinly sliced.
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper
- 2 bunches fresh parsley finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese.
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Heat 4 tablespoons of the butter and the oil in a large skillet over high heat, add the mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes, until light brown and tender. Remove from the skillet and reserve.
In the same skillet, sauté the onions and garlic for 3 minutes, until golden brown. Reserve.
Pat the sliced potatoes dry with paper towels. Place half the potato slices in the bottom of a large baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the parsley, the reserved mushroom and onion mixtures, and the remaining potato slices. Sprinkle again with salt and pepper and dot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter.
Bake for 15 minutes.
Pour the cream evenly over the potato mixture, top with the Parmesan cheese, and bake about 10 minutes more, until the potatoes are fork-tender and the mixture is bubbly. Serve hot.
Photo: My serving - here we can see the inner mushroom, onion and parsley layer.
(ED FEEDBACK: I used avocado oil instead of "vegetable oil", which I have not purchased in at least 30 years. Assuming I ever did. There is no confounding taste to either oil.
The onion took longer to start browning - about 8 minutes. This did not surprise me. A truly great Maillard reaction for onions mushrooms will take even longer. I kept them at "slightly golden". Mushrooms were spot-on.
I'm never sure how one measures a "bunch" of anything. I used my own home-grown parsley, and simply went by "feel" on it. Which I think is entirely appropriate.
Final cooking time once one added the cream and parm was about 15 - 17 minutes. Ovens do vary in temperature.
While I think this was a good recipe, it does tend to confirm my Yukon gold bias. I think I'd love this recipe were I to use just about any "gold" potato. I would also not skin my potatoes, although I know there was a period in time where everyone apparently skinned any potato they cooked. Most of the nutrients are in the skin -- and frankly, they really don't taste bad, and they add texture. (Yes, I did use the red-skinned potatoes with skins removed. The chickens got a treat!)
The seasonings, mushrooms and onions were excellent with this!
I would also like to brown the top of the casserole, by putting my oven on "broil" for a couple of minutes at the end.
Overall, I do appreciate this cookbook, and will cook more things from it in the future.
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