Leek Cakes Recipes

POTATO AND LEEK CAKES

Steps:

• Add the potatoes to a boiling pot of water and cook until soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and mash with the butter and milk. Set aside.
• In a medium skillet set over high heat add one teaspoon of the butter, the leeks and garlic. Cook for 5 - 8 minutes. The leeks should be soft and slightly golden in colour. Set aside.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, parsley, salt and pepper. Transfer the mashed potatoes to a large bowl and stir in the mayonnaise mixture and the bread crumbs. Stir well.
• On a clean flat surface, start making your little potato cakes. I usually take a small handful and start forming a little patty by using two hands and going around the sides until I get the desired shape. Repeat for the following potato cakes. For this recipe you should get 6 - 8, depending on how big you make them. Once you have done this, gently roll them all in flour.
• Cover and refrdgerate for 30 minutes to allow them to set. This will make them easier to cook.
• In a large non stick skillet, heat enough vegetable just to cover the bottom. Once it is hot, add as many potato cakes to the pan as you can. Don't over crowd the pan or it will be difficult to flip them. I do mine 4 at a time. Cook each side for about 5 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels, Repeat for all potato cakes.
• These potato cakes are best served fresh. If you choose to make them in advance and serve them later they will not be crisp and may lose their shape.

LEEK AND POTATO CAKE

Steps:

• For the dough: Add the flour, butter and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer. Run the machine at its slowest setting for 5 to 7 minutes. Add the yolk, and as the butter starts breaking into the dough, you will notice that your mix will start looking like coarse crumbs. As time goes by, the crumbs will become smaller and smaller until the dough will start forming. This is the only tricky part: in case the dough is not forming right (it's usually because of a small egg yolk), slowly add the cold water, not all at once, just the right amount for the dough to come alive and start detaching from the sides of the bowl. Remove the dough from the mixer, form it into a disc and put it to rest, covered in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Butter an 11-inch tart pan.
• For the filling: In a pot of boiling water, cook the potatoes half way, for about 15 minutes, then remove from the hot water and set aside to cool off. Once cool, slice into thin slices.
• In a medium pan, saute the leeks and shallots over medium heat in the oil and butter until soft and just golden, about 7 minutes. (Or saute the leeks and shallots with the guanciale.) Let cool.
• In a bowl, beat the eggs, milk, Parmesan and some salt and pepper. Add the leeks and shallots to the egg mixture and stir well with a fork until all the ingredients are evenly distributed.
• Dust some flour on a flat surface. Lightly dust your wood rolling pin and start working the dough. Do not press too hard, give the dough some time to respond to the pin and start softening up. Flip it a couple of times, dust it with flour, and mostly importantly do not guess the size. Keep the buttered pan close and prop it on top of the dough from time to time. Keep in mind that you will have to roll the dough a bit wider, as the pan has edges that need to be completely covered. Place the dough into the tart pan and, using a fork, poke holes into it to prevent swelling during the cooking process.
• Pour the egg mixture slowly into the dough, using a spoon to make sure you create an even layer. Get creative and place the sliced potatoes very gently on top of the egg mixture, creating a pleasant concentric pattern. Sprinkle the top of the cake with freshly grated Parmesan, 3 or 4 small tabs of butter and some ground pepper. Place the pan on a sheet tray.
• Cook in the oven for about 45 minutes, but make sure you check the cake after the first half hour, turn it around once or twice, and keep an eye on its color, which is the best indicator. The cake will be ready when the crust looks golden and the butter and cheese on top have become crisp and irresistible! When ready, let your new creation rest and settle for about 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and serve warm. Buon Appetito!

LEEK AND POTATO CAKES

Steps:

• Boil the potatoes.
• Meanwhile, slice the leeks thinly and make sure you wash off any dirt from in between the layers.
• Melt the butter in a shallow pan and cook the leeks over a low heat, stirring occasionally, until they are very soft, about 20 minutes.
• Bring the milk to a boil in a small saucepan and then take off the heat.
• When the potatoes are tender, drain and mash, pouring in the warm milk as you go.
• Stop adding milk when the consistency is thick enough to make into patties. You don't want a sloppy mash.
• Stir in the leeks, season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
• Shape into rough patties.
• Warm oil in a shallow pan and slide in the patties.
• Let them take on a golden colour, about 3-4 minutes per side.
• Like out and drain on kitchen paper.

PEACH UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Make the topping: In an oven-safe 10-inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add the brown sugar, lemon juice and salt, and whisk until the brown sugar melts, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Let cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture starts to smell like caramel and darkens slightly, about 1 minute longer. (Don't walk away or the mixture may burn.) The mixture will clump and separate, but that's OK.
• Add fruit, gently tossing to coat with the caramel. Remove from the heat and arrange fruit into an even layer on the bottom of the skillet. Ignore any sugar clumps; they will dissolve during baking.
• Make the cake: In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, sugar, vanilla and lemon zest until thoroughly combined. Whisk in eggs, one at a time. Add sour cream and whisk until well mixed. Sprinkle in baking powder, salt and baking soda into the batter, one at a time, whisking vigorously after each addition.
• Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in flour until just incorporated. The mixture will be lumpy, but that's OK. Don't overmix. Scrape batter into the skillet over the fruit and spread evenly.
• Bake until surface is deeply browned all over (with darker brown edges) and the fruit is lightly bubbling around the sides of the skillet, about 35 to 45 minutes, rotating halfway through. A toothpick inserted into cake will come out clean.
• Once the cake is out of the oven, immediately run a butter knife or offset spatula around the edge of the skillet. Let sit for 10 to 15 minutes to cool slightly. Carefully invert cake into serving platter. If some fruit sticks to bottom of skillet, gently remove using offset spatula or knife and place back onto cake. Let cake cool until the fruit topping sets, at least 30 minutes to 1 hour, before serving. Cake is best served on the day it is baked.

LEEK CAKES

Steps:

• Prepare the batter. Mix the leaks into it.
• Fry like little pancakes in a bit of olive oil.