Meat and Potato Napoleon Recipe

Here's a new take on a meat and potato dish. I pan-fried patties and potato slices, then stacked them into a charming presentation to create a napoléon. I flavored the savory napoléons with goat cheese pesto and placed them on a bed of garlic and basil tomato sauce. I think the tomato sauce helps cut the heaviness of the dish. 

I've started receiving photos and messages from those of you who pre-ordered my book "Haute Potato" and I'm so happy with the amazing responses I've received so far! If you're planning on cooking potato dishes for the holidays, here are some recipes from my new cookbook to consider: Cream of Rosemary Roasted Beet and Potato Soup; Pommes Château with Fried Calamari, Basil, and Tomato Cherry Relish; Timbale with Roquefort; Veal Hachis Parmentier; Pommes de Terre Rôties au Four and maybe try my family's favorite potato dessert: Lavender Peruvian Purple Potato White Chocolate Torte.

Crispy Potato Flower Recipe

The preparation of this visually striking potato dish is fairly easy if you own a mandoline. Very-thinly-sliced potatoes are parboiled, then brushed with a butter and oil mixture. The slices are then stacked in individual ramekins to mimic flower petals.

It’s an elegant and innovative way to have potatoes as a part of your Thanksgiving table. With my first cookbook on shelves very soon (it's due out on December 18th), I'm going to be posting a lot of potato dishes that didn't make into to the book. If you’re interested, you can pre-order it on Amazon or Barnes and Noble!

Olive Mashed Potatoes

I came up with the idea of making olive-flavored mashed potatoes (purée de pomme de terre aux olives) while strolling through Parisian open-air markets. Most of them carry the most delicious varieties of olives that are not overly salty. After tasting many varieties, I bought delicious bright green olives that are large, meaty and slightly sweet with a nutty taste to the palate.

Parisian kitchens in general are tiny and contain the bare minimum when it comes to cooking. I mashed the potatoes using the back of a fork, pitted and coarsely chopped the olives and finally mixed them into the purée, adding a little crème fleurette (cream). My husband Lulu loved it and was totally impressed that I was able to pull it off in our tiny kitchen!

Besides visiting museums and monuments in Paris with Lulu, I have to admit that perusing the Parisian open-air markets was my favorite activity! Tasting and seeing the wonderful colors and produce gave me so many ideas and inspirations for new flavor pairings. I’ll be sharing them soon.

Potato Timbale (Potato Cup Recipe)

Timbale means "drum" in French. Potato timbale is just a fancy name for a potato dish baked in a drum-shaped round mold. What I like about this dish is that it's very convenient when we host dinner parties because the servings are individual. Plus it makes a nice, appealing presentation.

Potatoes are par-boiled, sliced and placed in the shape of a round mold. Then, it's filled with whatever you like. I packed the potato cups with braised fennel, water chestnuts and blue cheese. This is what I call true comfort food if you want to serve a feast ("un repas de fête" in French) for Christmas.

Mashed Purple Potatoes

My husband Lulu and I are spending the holidays with my family and friends in Paris. We just arrived and have enjoyed our first couple of days in the City of Lights, despite the cold weather. The sights are wonderful, but the real treat is the wonderful products and ingredients that France has to offer. We went to an open air market this morning and brought back some Vitelotte potatoes.

You might know them as purple Peruvian fingerling potatoes, négresse or truffe de Chine. They are small-sized waxy potatoes, with a skinny and oblong shape. The flesh is dark-violet blue surrounded with a white rim. The texture is quite flour-y and have a different flavor than regular potatoes. I prepared them by boiling, mashing and then mixing the potatoes with butter, cream and milk. I flavored the mashed potatoes with blue cheese and dill. It was a delicious way to start our Parisian vacation!