Potatoes with Chorizo and Bacon (Patatas con chorizo y bacon)

This is kind of a cheat post.... I haven't actually made this recipe yet. My sister R cooked a really lovely birthday dinner for the Robber when he visited Roch in January, using recipes from the cookbook that we purchased for her for Christmas: 1080 Recipes by Simone and Ines Ortega. The cookbook is reportedly the "Bible" for Spanish cooking, the definitive collection both inside and outside of Spain. Along with the recipe below, she made us an orange flan and some lemon chicken, both were delicious! But this recipe, laden with fat as it is, was my favorite. I'm hoping to make it again, probably some time when the Robber comes or I have guests. Or I could see this being a delicious one-dish alternative to the traditional hash browns and bacon that we have every year for Christmas breakfast. Maybe I will remember and suggest to R that she make it this next year. The notations in parentheses are from R.

Ingredients:

4 T lard or 3 T butter (I used butter)
5 T oil
2 oz chorizo sausage, peeled, thinly sliced (I used chicken chorizo, which is somewhat unusual, and each sausage was 3 oz so I used 3 oz)

3 1/2 oz thickly sliced bacon, cut into half-inch wide strips
3 1/4 pound small potatoes, preferably new potatoes (I used about a pound-and-a-half each of red and white new potatoes)
1 T chopped parsley

1 clove garlic, finely chopped
salt
Directions:

1. Melt fats in a very large, thick skillet-- it needs to be big enough to fit all the potatoes in a single layer. Add meats and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for a few minutes.

2. Add potatoes. Season with salt and cook over low heat, shaking the pan occasionally, for 45-60 minutes, until the potatoes are evenly browned. (The recipe says nothing about a lid, but at about 40 minutes I got nervous they wouldn't get done because of the uni-directional heat, and put a lid on them for the next 20 or so minutes. I think that they would have gotten done anyway, although I don't think the lid hurt, either. DO NOT put on a lid any earlier, though. Steamed potatoes get very mealy rather than creamy).

3. Just before serving, sprinkle with garlic and parsley and stir for a few minutes more. Serve.

Note from R: the book says some types of chorizo become hard with prolonged cooking. This wasn't a problem for me because I used chicken chorizo. But to prevent this, it says you can cook the chorizo with the bacon and set it aside. Sounds like a bother.

Rebekka's Jambalaya

This jambalaya recipe is adapted by Rebekka from Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen and can be found on her blog: rebeatworld.blogspot.com. This makes a very spicy dish, but that is part of what makes it so grand.

Ingredients:

2 whole bay leaves
1 1/2 t cayenne pepper
1 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t white pepper
1 t dried thyme leaves
1/2 t black pepper
1/4 t rubbed sage

2 T butter
1/2 pound chopped andouille sausage, about 2 cups
3/4 lb boneless chicken, cut into bite-size pieces, about 2 cups
1 T minced garlic
1 c chopped onions
1 c chopped celery
1 c chopped green bell peppers
1/2 c canned tomato sauce (I just use a whole little can of tomato sauce)
1 c chopped tomatoes
2 1/2 c low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 c uncooked converted rice

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large skillet over high heat. Add sausage and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently. Add chicken and continue cooking until chicken is brown, 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently, and scraping pan bottom well if it's not nonstick.

2. Stir in seasonings (bay leaf through sage), garlic, and 1/2 c each of the onions, celery, and bell peppers. Cook until vegetables start to get tender, 5 to 8 minutes, stirring.

3. Stir in tomato sauce and cook about 1 minute, stirring often. Stir in the remaining 1/2 c each of the onions, celery, and bell peppers and the tomatoes. Remove from heat.

4. Stir in the broth and rice, mixing well. Transfer mixture to an ungreased 9x13-inch baking pan (I found that the recommended 8x8 was much too small). Bake uncoverd in a 350 F oven until rice is tender but still a bit crunchy, about 1 hour. Remove from oven. Stir well and cool a bit before eating.


Note: The seasonings really are quite flexible. I haven't yet used the bay or the white pepper and it has turned out plenty spicy!