Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission. The recipe and opinions are 100% my own.

I love to make mashed potatoes when I have a nice bounty of Idaho potatoes in the house. I usually make mashed potatoes for dinner and whatever is left-over I put in the fridge for a batch of potato flautas the next day. I feel it works best if you use (more…)

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission. The recipe and opinions are 100% my own.

HASH BROWNS LOADED WITH RAJAS HAVE ARRIVED!  Yes, They are so fricken delicious I can eat them day and night.  None of this would be possible (more…)

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Society Culinaria on behalf of The Idaho Potato Commission. The recipe and opinions are 100% my own.

Even though we are experiencing June gloom here in California… the truth is 4th of July is creeping up on us. Which in my world means lots of parties and family gatherings sprinkled with friends and food. But we couldn’t have a gathering without POTATO SALAD, now could we? I decided to get a jump start on my (more…)

       This video is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission. However all opinions and the recipe are 100% my own.

Welcome to MARCH!  I love the month of March not only because it’s my birthday          month, but it is also National Nutrition Month.  As I slip into another year of age, I am happy to be more aware of what I feed my body.  Good nutrition = healthy living = great energy = baked fries.  Yes, baked fries are king!  Make them, bake them, watch my video and EAT THEM NOW!

Ingredients for Lemon Lime Chipotle French Fries:

• 4 –  Idaho Potatoes (russet)
• 1 1/2 – tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 – lemon (juiced)
• 1/2 – lime (juiced)
• 1 – tablespoon garlic (minced)
• 1/2 – teaspoon black pepper
• 1 – teaspoon Lawry’s
• 1/2 to 1 – teaspoon chipotle pepper (depending on how spicy you like your fries)

Watch the video for directions!

A special THANK YOU to the Idaho Potato Commission, Mando Lopez and Tony Molina!

I hold my love for Idaho Potatoes in a special place. I hold it there all year long and at certain times it needs to burst out of it’s cozy snuggly place in my heart and show it’s true colors. February is always a great time to let my potato affection reveal itself in the light of  Potato Lover’s Month.

I have a growing boy in my house who requests potatoes with every meal. I usually make a batch of baked potatoes at the head of the week and as we get into the middle of it I find other ways to enjoy them. One of my favorite is the mojo potato. It puts the spunk back into my step and makes me fall in love.

Watch the video below to see how to make mojo’s out of leftover baked Idaho Potatoes:

Ingredients for mojos:

• 3 to 4 – leftover baked Idaho Potatoes (cold)
• 1 – egg (whisked in a bowl)
• 1 – pouch fried chicken coating mix
• 1 – teaspoon Lawry’s
• 1 – teaspoon corn starch
• 1/2 – teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 – teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 – teaspoon garlic powder
• vegetable oil

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission. The recipe and all opinions are 100% my own. 

Thank you to my crew of two for this shoot! Mando Lopez and Tony Molina you guys ROCK!!!!!

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission. However; All opinions and recipe are 100% my own. Thank you to my Latina blogueras for their suggestions.

A few weeks ago, I was in New York as one of the top 100 blogueras of Latism. I was chosen along with 99 other Latina bloggers as one of the best Latina bloggers in the nation. We (all 100 0f us) were invited to the United Nations as part of our conference. We were there covering issues about education, health, business, and gender equality with top officials of the secretariat. While I was there I thought about potatoes and how they are so affordable and feed so many people. I remembered my trip to Idaho a year ago and decided to ask a few of my fellow Latina blogueras (Maura of The Other Side Of The Tortilla, Yoly of Savvy Mujer and Cuponeando, and Melissa of Hungry Food Love)  what they make with potatoes? I took what they said , then came home and made one of the suggested dishes. Check out the video below. Super fun, easy, and delicious…. three of my favorite things.

Ingredients for Papas Gratinadas:

• 7 – Idaho Potatoes (peeled and boiled for 20 minutes)
• 7 – anaheim chiles (roasted, peeled, and deseeded) (timesaver tip: buy them canned)
• 7 – 1/2 inch slices of pepper jack cheese
• 1 3/4 – cups of Mexican crema
• 1 – onion (sliced)
• 1 1/2 – cups sharp cheddar cheese (grated)
• 1/2 – teaspoon chili flakes
• 1 – teaspoon Lawry’s seasoning salt
• 1/2 – teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 – cups pepper jack cheese (grated)
• 10 x 8 casserole dish (spray sides with non stick spray)

Directions:

1. Peel and boil potatoes for 20 minutes. Drain and set to the side.
2. Cut potatoes into 1/2 inch slices. It’s okay of it becomes crumbly, you will use the crumbs too. Set to the side.
3. Slice chiles down the middle and stuff with pepper jack cheese slices. Set to the side.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
5. Pour 1/4 cup of crema on the bottom of the casserole dish. Smooth it out with a spatula or the back of a spoon.
6. Next place down a layer of potato slices.
7. Top with stuffed anaheim chiles.
8. Sprinkle the top of stuffed chiles with sliced onions.
9. Pour in a 1/2 cup of Mexican crema over the top of onions.
10. Generously sprinkle the top of the crema and onions with cheddar cheese.
11. Next srinkle in chili flakes, Lawry’s, and ground pepper.
12. Add another layer of Idaho potatoes.
13. Then add in another 1/2 cup of crema.
14. Top with remaining potatoes and another 1/2 cup of crema.
15. Finish the whole casserole layering with a 1 1/2 cups grated pepper jack cheese.
16.  Bake in the oven for 50 minutes, then place the casserole dish on the top shelf of oven under the broiler (on high) for 3 to 5 minutes, or until golden crisp.
17. Let cool for 20 minutes before serving.
18. Enjoy!

Idaho, Spring Time: After a tossing and turning night of sleep, I awoke from a dream. The vegetable fairy had decided to plant some russet Idaho potatoes from the fall harvest in a beautiful plentiful garden.  It had rained the night before, so the soil was damp and soft. A group of potatoes poked out of a mound waiting for the gardener to come back and retrieve them since she had taken the time to dig them up early that morning. The gardener’s name was Eugene, she had no room left in her basket of produce that morning when she placed it down in the dirt to dig her potatoes. What she didn’t notice was a few stalks of asparagus that had fallen out and rolled away. When she was done digging she picked up her basket and went inside her house to empty the basket. In that moment one of the stalks of asparagus made quick friends with the potato laying closest to it. They talked about the great possibility of being made into one of Eugene’s famous tarts for dinner that night, and how grand it would be if they ended up on the same one.

As fate would have it…. they did.

Ingredients for Baked Potato Asparagus Tart:

• puff pastry
• 1/2 – cup parmesan cheese
• 1/2 – cup queso quesadilla
• 1/2 – cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1 – baked russet Idaho potato
• 1/2 – cup sliced red bell pepper
• 9 – stalks of blanched asparagus
• 1 – teaspoon olive oil (drizzle vegetables w/ olive oil, before placing on tart)
• ground pepper
• chile flakes

Disclosure: I am proud to say this video is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission.  The story and recipe is 100% my own.  Thank you Don for being the absolute best!