Q.
Could you get the recipe for Baked Potato Soup served at Dalts Grill on Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale? I’m really keen about it. – Georgia Smith, Fort Lauderdale
A.
My call to the Dalts restaurant (1245 N. Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale, 1-305-565-2315) was fielded by general manager Jim Lasley. Imagine my puzzlement when the recipe he sent did not contain baked potatoes. I called Lasley about that.
He told me the soup got its name because of its toppings – cheese, scallions or chives and crumbled bacon, all things you serve atop a baked potato.
Our warm weather is not particularly conducive to hot-soup meals, but when you have a recipe this tasty, you make it. The seasonings are subtle – it all comes together in a most delectable way.
DALTS’ BAKED
POTATO SOUP
3 medium white or red waxy potatoes, peeled and quartered
4 tablespoons butter
2 medium onions, diced (about 1/4 inch)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups chicken broth or 2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans reduced salt chicken broth and 6 tablespoons water
1 cup dried potato flakes (I used Martha White “Spud Flakes”)
2 cups half-and-half
1/8 teapoon white pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
6 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 ounces Colby cheese, shredded
3 tablespoons chopped chives, or thin-sliced scallion tops
Place potatoes in a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Boil gently about 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain, cool and cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 3 cups), set aside.
In a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions, turn heat to low and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Do not brown.
Stir in the flour and let bubble for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Raise heat to medium and whisk in the chicken broth. When the broth is hot, whisk in the potato flakes and continue whisking until mixture is smooth. Let simmer on low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Whisk in the half-and-half and simmer an additional 10 minutes; do not boil. Stir in the seasonings and the potato cubes.
To serve, divide among 6 large soup bowls. Sprinkle the tops with the bacon, cheese and chives. Makes 6 (1 1/3-cup) servings.
Per serving: 379 calories, 11 grams protein, 24 grams fat, 31 grams carbohydrates, 65 milligrams cholesterol, 375 milligrams sodium, 58 percent calories from fat.
Q.
Several years ago, I had a recipe that was like a vegetable quiche, but instead of a pastry crust, the pan was lined with shredded potatoes. I have lost the recipe but would like to make it again for some vegetarian friends and hope you can help. – Helen Hendricks, Deerfield Beach
A.
It pays to have a reliable filing system. Your request sent me back to a file from 1979 when Cuisinarts was about to market its first wide-mouth feed tube, and I was busily developing recipes to use with a new instruction book. I remembered one of the recipes I called Shredded Potato Pie, which was delicious but was never used. I think this quiche will please your vegetarian friends. It even pleased some non-vegetarians from Delray Beach who were present for the re-testing. If you own a food processor, by all means use the shredding disc and slicing disc to make light of those preparation chores.
Serve with salad and crusty bread.
SHREDDED POTATO PIE
2 medium baking potatoes
8 large mushrooms, thin-sliced
3 tablespoons butter, divided
3 medium onions, peeled and thin-sliced
1 large green bell pepper, cored, seeded and thin-sliced crosswise
1 clove garlic, minced
3 ounces Jarlsberg or Swiss cheese, shredded
3 large eggs
1 cup light cream or half-and-half
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano or thyme Salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste
Shred the potatoes and place in a bowl of cold water. Set 8 nice slices of mushrooms aside for garnish.
In a large skillet over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon butter. Add the onions, green pepper, garlic and the remaining mushroom slices; saute until the mixture is fairly dry, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Smear the remaining 2 tablespoons butter over the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie dish.
Drain and dry the potatoes and use them to line the bottom and sides of the buttered pie dish with an even layer, pressing down firmly (if you have another pie dish the same size, use that to press against the potatoes). Sprinkle half the cheese over the bottom, then add the cooled vegetable mixture and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
Beat the eggs and stir in the cream and seasonings. Pour over the vegetables and arrange the reserved mushroom slices decoratively on top.
Bake in the center of the oven until potatoes are browned and the custard is firm, about 40 minutes. Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Makes 4 meal-size or 8 appetizer servings.
Per serving: 443 calories, 17 grams protein, 26 grams fat, 38 grams carbohydrates, 225 milligrams cholesterol, 228 milligrams sodium, 53 percent calories from fat.
Q.
Can you tell me what foods have psyllium? – Helen Cohen, Hollywood
A.
I asked Sheah Rarback, the American Dietetic Association spokesperson in Miami, as well as Pauline Rahn, who works at Bread of Life natural food market in Fort Lauderdale. Both said psyllium is a soluble fiber herb or seed (it dissolves in water) and is among those fibers known to help reduce blood cholesterol levels. It is available as is to be mixed with other foods. It also is found in many bran cereals on your supermarket’s shelf. And it is used in a number of bulk-forming products, such as Metamucil.
Q.
This is not a cooking question, but where can we find a restaurant in Southeast Florida that serves beer battered fried fish (preferably haddock) like they make in upstate New York? – Joan Ward, Coconut Creek
A.
After checking with friends who are seafood lovers and frequent restaurant-goers, and making several phone calls, I suggest you try the Old Florida Seafood House (1414 NE 26th St., Wilton Manors, 1-305-566-1044). I spoke with assistant manager Dara Larkin, who told me they can use a tempuralike beer batter for fried fish. But you must request it be used on any of the fresh fish available that day (scrod, grouper and dolphin, to name a few). She said they do not serve haddock because it is not available fresh. Larkin also confirmed that the other two Old Florida Seafood House restaurants have the same batter that can be requested for deep-fried fish. Those locations are (4535 NW 88th Ave., Sunrise, 1-305-572-0444, and 9980 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, 1-305-436-0200).
Q.
Many moons ago, my mother made a graham cracker layer cake. I have scanned my extensive recipe file and cannot find any such recipe. Do you have one in your files or is there someone who knows of one? – Laura Klaner, Margate
A.
Recently, my dear 95-year-old friend Donna Gifford gave me several cookbooks dating back to the ’30s. I finally found some time to browse through them and there was a recipe for Graham Cracker Layer Cake in the Win Some Cookbook (Blue Island Publishing Corp., 1939). A woman by the name of Ethel Frame contributed this unusual, but delicious cake. While assembling the ingredients, I wondered at the balance of structural (flour and eggs) with tenderizing ingredients (fat and sugar) and liquid (milk) with dry (flour). I should have listened to myself, but bowed to Frame’s experience. All went well until I inverted the layers.
Though heavily greased, the pans held the cake as if they were cemented together. I finally banged one hard on the counter, only to have half of it fly across the kitchen. I dug the remainder out. The texture was fragile, but the flavor was incredible. It was obvious it needed less liquid and a tad more structure. I made changes and had excellent results on a second try.
If you have a blender or food processor, use it to crush the graham crackers. If you don’t, place the crackers, a few at a time, in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin. If you love graham crackers as I do, you will want more than one piece of this cake. But if you have leftovers, keep this cake covered. It tends to dry out otherwise.
GRAHAM CRACKER
LAYER CAKE
Cake:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/4 cup milk 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (this took 16 2 1/2-inch squares)
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Filling:
4 tablespoons butter, softened
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted to remove lumps
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
To make cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of 2 (8-inch) layer pans. Line the bottoms with a circle of wax paper, and grease the paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Transfer to a piece of wax paper.
With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the milk. Stir in the graham cracker crumbs and the flour mixture.
Divide the batter evenly between the pans, and bake in the center of the oven until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in pans for 5 minutes. Release the layers from the edge of the pan with a sharp knife. Spray 2 cooling racks with no-stick vegetable spray (otherwise the layers will stick) and invert the cakes onto them. Cool completely before filling.
To make filling: Combine all ingredients well. Adjust amount of sugar or liquid, if necessary, to make a fairly firm filling.
Spread the filling on one cake layer and top with the second layer. Allow cake to sit for an hour so the filling will firm up. Dust top with confectioners’ sugar before serving. Makes 10 servings. Per serving: 352 calories, 4 grams protein, 16 grams fat, 49 grams carbohydrates, 102 milligrams cholesterol, 288 milligrams sodium, 42 percent calories from fat.
Have a cooking question? Need some nutrition advice? Trying to track down a long-lost recipe? Send your questions (be sure to include phone number) to You Asked for It, Sun-Sentinel, 200 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 33301-2293. Personal replies are not possible.
