When I was in Peru a few years ago, staying at Casa de Milagros and leading a yoga retreat there, we were able to have most of our meals made, at least in part, from the organically grown and very beautiful fruits and vegetables that Mama Kia grows in her garden. One such Peruvian jewel: the purple potato.
Even if you’re not living near the Andes, check your local Farmers Market for these special potatoes. They have been showing up more and more here as farmers begin growing them, probably in part for their novelty, but also since purple potatoes contain the same antioxidants that blueberries do.
There has been much discussion about Halloween over at our home for the past couple of weeks, and we will have a few spooky and sweet foods to offer up. Both of my kids decorated a couple of monsters for these Monster Mash potatoes. The original idea was to do a One-Eyed-One-Horned-Flying-Purple-People-Eater, as from the song of that name. My three year old loved doing it just so the first time, but by the time she was decorating her second monster, she was freely interpreting for herself. My one year old made his monster a pancake blob and stuck on five eyes. Well, who am I to tell them this wasn’t the way to make a monster? Their creations were pretty awesome, and all looked like scary little monsters.
Monster Mash: One-Eyed-One-Horned-Flying-Purple-People-Eater Potatoes
For the Mash:
*2 lbs. purple potatoes, very well scrubbed
* few sprigs of fresh thyme
*1/4 cup mild extra virgin olive oil OR butter
*salt and pepper to taste
For the Monster:
*sugar “eyes”
*carrots
*large rainbow radishes
With your mini-chef, place the potatoes in a pot large enough to hold them, cover them with water so that the water line comes up an inch over the potatoes. Salt the water, and float the thyme on top of the potatoes.
Big Person: Bring the water to a boil with the pot uncovered. Once there’s a rolling boil, turn the heat down to low, cover the pot, and let cook 30-35 minutes like that. When the potatoes can easily be broken with a fork, they’re ready to smash.
Meanwhile, while the potatoes are cooking, cut out these shapes and place each group of body parts on its own dish: 6 carrot horns, 12 radish wings, and 6 carrot sharp-toothed mouths. Separately, place 6 sugar eyes on another little dish.
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees F. Place 6 small ramekins, bowls, or plates on a rimmed baking sheets and warm them in the oven till ready to use.
When the potatoes are done cooking, warm the olive oil or melt the butter. Place the potatoes in a potato ricer and have your mini chef help you rice. If you do not have the fancy gadget, place the potatoes in a large bowl and mash them with a potato masher or with a fork. Whisk in the olive oil or butter and 1/4 cup of the cooking water. If the potatoes are too dry, then add a bit more of the cooking water 1/4 cup at a time, whisking well after each addition, until you have the desired consistency.
The next part is entirely interpretive. We piped the potatoes into the bottom of a warm-but not hot-ramekin. Using our hands, we sculpted a head and placed the features on our monster. Let your Yummy make their own version of a creepy, spooky purple monster. Feel free to use any other raw or steamed veggies your mini-chef likes to decorate and expand on the theme. You can place the potatoes and the finished monsters back in the oven till you are finished decorating all of the monsters.
