Bacon Potato Puff Food

BAKED POTATO PUFFS

Steps:

• Place potatoes into a large pot and cover with salted water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and mash. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Butter 24 mini muffin cups.
• Combine water and butter in a saucepan over medium heat and season with salt. Heat until butter melts and starts to bubble. Stir in flour until mixture pulls away from the pan and comes together into a dough.
• Transfer pastry dough to a bowl. Spread in the bowl and let cool, about 5 minutes. Mix in eggs using a spatula until dough is very soft and sticky. Add 2 cups of the mashed potatoes and mix until well combined. Add a pinch of salt, cayenne pepper, and nutmeg. Give it one last mix.
• Scoop potato dough into the greased muffin cups.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown and puffed, about 20 minutes. Let rest for 1 minute before removing puffs onto a wire rack. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve warm.

VERY EASY POTATO BACON SOUP

Steps:

• Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir onion until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add potatoes, water, dill weed, salt, and pepper to onion; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender and water is almost all evaporated, at least 30 minutes.
• Stir milk and bacon bits into potato mixture; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir parsley into soup.

POTATO PUFFS

Steps:

• Put the potatoes in a medium pot and cover with cold water; season with salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook until fork-tender, about 20 minutes; drain. Pass the potatoes through a ricer into a large bowl or mash with a potato masher until smooth.
• Combine the milk, butter, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 cup water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, add the flour and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Return the saucepan to the stove and cook over low heat, stirring, until the mixture comes together and pulls away from the side of the pan, about 1 minute. Continue stirring until the mixture is slightly shiny, about 4 more minutes.
• Transfer the mixture to a stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed, about 1 minute. Add half of the mashed potatoes and the whole egg and beat until incorporated. Add the remaining potatoes and the egg yolks and beat until creamy and smooth, about 1 more minute. Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip. Set a large piece of parchment paper on a cutting board. Pipe about 24 mounds (1 to 1 1/2 inches each) of the potato mixture on the parchment. Cut the parchment between the mounds with a paring knife so each puff sits on its own piece of paper.
• Heat 2 inches of peanut oil in a large pot until a deep-fry thermometer registers 325 degrees F. Working in batches, carefully invert each puff into the oil, leaving it on the parchment. The parchment will fall off as the puffs cook; remove with tongs. Fry until golden, turning as needed, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels; season with salt.

POTATO, CARAMELIZED LEEK, AND BACON-STUFFED PUFF PASTRY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Caramelize the leeks by cooking them in 1 tablespoon olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper in a large skillet over medium heat for 10 minutes.
• Roll out the puff pastry into a 20 by 10-inch rectangle, move the pastry to a baking sheet and start by layering the potato slices on one half of the rectangle (we are going to fold the other empty half over and on top in order to seal it up, sort of like a calzone). Season the potatoes with salt and pepper, then add the crumbled bacon and leeks. Top with the Parmesan and seal up the puff pastry square, then crimp the edges. Brush the top of the puff pastry with the egg and cut 3 slits in the top of the puff pastry to allow the steam to escape.
• Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown and puffed. Serve warm.

MOM'S POTATO PUFFS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix in the mashed potatoes and egg until well blended.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or heavy deep skillet to 365 degrees F (180 degrees C). Carefully drop the potato mixture by spoonfuls into the hot oil, and fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from oil to drain on paper towels.

POTATO & BACON QUICHE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400ºF.
• Press pastry onto bottom and up side of 9-inch pie plate sprayed with cooking spray; trim edge.
• Layer potatoes, bacon and cheese in crust.
• Whisk remaining ingredients until blended; pour over ingredients in crust.
• Bake 30 min. or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand 10 min. before cutting to serve.