French Fry Diary 628: Cabanas - TCM Cruise Day Two

For apparent health reasons (we are in the middle of a worldwide ebola scare, and cruise ships are well known for spreading germs like wildfire, so I do get it, but still…), Disney is attempting to kill the all-you-can-eat buffet concept with guilt. As I mentioned in an earlier post, you may no longer serve yourself. *

If say, a huge percentage of the reason you choose Cabanas is for the breakfast potatoes, you can only get a small serving of them. And if you ask nicely for more please, they will give you a proper non-verbal shaming before finally, after an appropriate pause, giving you another small serving.

Another negative to having a server in front of each station to give you your food at the 'all-you-can-eat' buffet is bacon. A serving of bacon is two small strips, period. Try, just try asking for more. And there is no longer any such thing as crispy bacon and not so crispy bacon. If you wanted one of the other previously, you could just pick them out and put them on your plate. Now, The Bride who likes crispy bacon and I who like it not so crispy, got the same bacon, despite our instructions. You have zero control on what you get to eat at a buffet.

The same goes for the wonderful breakfast potatoes on board. These are great chunked broiled, spiced, and marinated small red potatoes that are a number one reason to go to Cabanas for breakfast. Suppose you want them soft one day and crispy the next, the server will just plop a small spoonful on your plate willy-nilly, crispy or soft. The image you see is three servings by the way.

What I did get was very good, but you should never have to leave an all-you-can-eat buffet hungry, right? I did. And don't even get me started on asking for those tiny paper cartons of milk, especially if you want one for cereal and one or two to drink. Talk about a server stink-face! Perhaps it's not just health reasons, maybe Disney is running out of food…

* The situation did resolve itself, check here.

Wild West Wedges with Cranberry Catsup

I found this one on the Just-Potatoes Yahoo! Group, but it's originally from the Ocean Spray website.

Ingredients: 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch thick lengthwise wedges, 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided, 3 teaspoon sea salt, divided, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 cup chopped red onion, 2 tablespoons chopped seeded jalapeno chiles, 2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice, 1 cup Ocean Spray Fresh or Frozen Cranberries, 3 tablespoons Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice, 1 teaspoon chipotle flavored hot sauce, 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place sweet potatoes on large baking sheet with sides. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil; sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of the salt, the chili powder and onion powder. Toss to coat; spread on pan so potatoes aren’t touching. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until fork tender, turning once half way through cooking.

Meanwhile, in large skillet, heat remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and jalapeno chiles; cook for 5 minutes. Add garlic, cumin, allspice and remaining 1 teaspoon salt; cook for 1 minute. Stir in cranberries, cranberry juice, hot sauce and maple syrup. Cook until cranberries start to pop. Pour mixture into food processor bowl with metal blade. Process until smooth. Serve with sweet potato wedges.

Makes 4 servings

French Fry Diary 587: Iron Hill Brewery Sweet Potato Fries

Attending a social event at the Iron Hill Brewery with the South Jersey Writers (quick plug, membership is now open!), I finally had a chance to try the sweet potato fries.

On a previous trip, I was stunned by the amount of favorite fried foods that were served at this chain, and pledged to return and try some of the variations. It was a toss up between the onion rings and the sweet potato fries, and based on the opinions of the folks I was eating with - one a dedicated Iron Hill fan - I settled on the latter.

So while talking about writing techniques and other shop talk, I got my regular, a burger, plus a side of the sweet potato fries. The burger was big, juicy, and very filling, definitely something to come back for again. The fries were also big and thick, soft hot wedges of sweet sweet potato. They were very good while hot, but not as much as they cooled, but I would definitely get them again. Recommended.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #102

From the On the Border menu - Avocado Fries.

French Fry Diary 464: Olive Garden

Olive Garden is the quintessential Italian restaurant chain in the United States. There's very little on the menu that doesn't come with some form of pasta. So as you might imagine, being a catastrophically picky eater who's not really into pasta, there's not much for me to get there. Surprisingly though, they do have one or two items I really like, so yeah, I do dig Olive Garden quite a bit.

We actually used to go frequently, it was our default anniversary dinner out for quite a few years. We recently made plans for dinner with a couple of friends we hadn't seen in quite some time, and decided on Olive Garden, as we had not been in a while, and it fit one of the couple's vegetarian needs. So I figured, what better time to review their potato product?

First though, like Red Lobster, one of Olive Garden's best features is their bread, in this case, the Breadsticks. About eight inches long and an inch wide each, baked and buttered garlic bread sticks, these are a terrific start to ant visit to the restaurant.

Besides the Breadsticks, I normally get the mixed grill, steak and chicken grilled on a kabob with vegetables, including onions and peppers, all marinated in a rosemary glaze. Since Olive Garden doesn't have French fries (not even on the kids menu!) the mixed grill comes with Tuscan potatoes.

The Tuscan potatoes are lightly seasoned, sometimes peeled, and chunked potatoes which seem to be deep-fried crispy but not greasy. Perhaps they are baked, but baked to the point where one might think they were deep-fried. If they are, it certainly begs the question, why couldn't Olive Garden have French fries?

Either way, these potato chunks are very good, and worth the trip to Olive Garden for fans of the favorite fried food. A great night with good friends and good food. And don't forget the Breadsticks!

Baked Seasoned Steak Fries

This recipe comes from Six Sisters' Stuff via the Just-Potatoes Yahoo! Group. Enjoy.

Baked Seasoned Steak Fries

Serves 4-6

Ingredients: 4 large, russet potatoes peeled and cut into thin *wedges, 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 teaspoons paprika, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 2 teaspoons chili powder, 2 teaspoons onion powder

Directions: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, chili powder and onion powder. Add potato wedges to olive oil mixture and toss until evenly coated. Cover a baking sheet in foil and spread coated potato wedges onto it. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

* Note from Richard Lee Holbert of Just-Potatoes: I detest thin fries so I cut mine thicker.

Lone Star State Fries

Lone Star State Fries are big and spicy, just like Texas, the Lone Star State. Serves: 4

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon paprika, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon salt, divided, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, 6 potatoes (about 2-1/2 pounds), with skin on, 2 tablespoons peanut oil

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine paprika, chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Seal bag and shake to mix.

Cut each potato in half then each half into 4 flat wedges. Add peanut oil and potatoes to seasoning in bag then close tightly and shake to coat well.

Spread potatoes in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake 20 to 22 minutes, or until fork-tender. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and serve immediately.

Notes: Sure, you can peel the potatoes if you want, but we like the extra crunchiness of the skin. Besides, the skin is good for us!

Source: Mr. Food

Asian-Style Oven-Fried Sweet Potatoes

Tempura veggies move over! These sweet potato wedges pack great Asian flavor and crunch without frying. From Eat Better America.

Prep Time: 10 min
Start to Finish: 40 min
Makes: 4 servings (3 to 4 pieces each)

1/3 cup Progresso® panko crispy bread crumbs
1/4 teaspoon coarse (kosher or sea) salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 large dark-orange sweet potato (1 lb), peeled, cut crosswise in half, then cut into 3x3/4-inch wedges
1 tablespoon canola or olive oil
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Line 15x10x1-inch pan with foil; spray with cooking spray.
2. In small bowl, mix bread crumbs, salt, garlic powder and ginger. In large bowl, place potatoes, oil and pepper flakes; toss to coat. Add crumb mixture; toss to coat.
3. Spread potatoes in single layer in pan; sprinkle any remaining crumb mixture on potatoes.
4. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until crumbs are golden brown and potatoes wedges are tender.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.

Nutritional Information

1 Serving: Calories 130 (Calories from Fat 40); Total Fat 4 1/2g (Saturated Fat 0g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 115mg; Total Carbohydrate 21g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 5g); Protein 2g % Daily Value*: Vitamin A 270%; Vitamin C 10%; Calcium 2%; Iron 4% Exchanges: 1/2 Starch; 1 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 1 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 1 1/2 MyPyramid Servings: 1 tsp Fats & Oils, 1/2 c Vegetables

*% Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

How to Cook Chips

How to make chips, close to the last entry, but still darn tasty! This one is from "The Daily English Show."