Mediterranean mashed potatoes
Mediterranean mashed potatoes is a simple and inexpensive dish. With extra virgin olive oil and a handful of parsley, some chopped spring onions, this might be dressing the potatoes up a bit, but not by much, and what a result! Feel free to add what ever soft herbs you have.
Every so often there’s an animated discussion in the shorkk household deciding whether to add butter and milk to the mash or olive oil and herbs. In the UK adding butter and milk is the common mashed potato routine, however a mediterranean diet would persuade us to replace this with extra virgin olive oil. By adding a handful of finely chopped herbs like dill, marjoram, parsley or chives and a sprinkling of chopped spring onions, this becomes a dish not for winter nights but for a day leaning towards summer.
Popular in Lebanon during Lent, boiled potatoes are mashed with the back of a fork, seasoned with plenty of black pepper and a generous sprinkle of allspice. Served alongside a boiled egg or two, you have a delicious and nutritious meal. Zejd’s extra virgin olive oil adds a mild, fruity taste to the Mediterranean mashed potatoes, much less strident than many pungent extra virgin olive oils. A familiar dish made with a Mediterranean twist, all the more delicious and nutritious for the extra virgin olive oil.Once in a while, why not give it a go? What would you serve your Mediterranean mashed potatoes with?
serves 4
ingredients
500g mashing potatoes, peeled
4 tbsp Zejd extra virgin olive oil
a handful of soft herbs – dill, parsley, basil or chives – finely sliced
3 spring onions, sliced or chopped finely
salt and pepper
(1/2 tsp of ground allspice – optional)
method
1. Boil the peeled potatoes in salted water until soft. Strain, but keep back 75ml of the cooking water.
2. With a potato masher or the back of a fork, mash the potatoes while warm, beating in the olive oil. Add the seasoning, and a little of the cooking water until the mixture looks soft, and not too dry. Stir in the herbs, and the spring onions.
Eaten alone, it’s comfort food. Served alongside a boiled egg or two, it’s a simple lunch, with grilled fish it’s a more substantial meal. Any leftovers work wonderfully well as a base for fish cakes. A useful thing to have in the fridge.