The best omelette on the face of the planet...

Though I have not posted, I have been cooking. I made this about a week ago.
The Spanish tortilla is a giant omelette traditionally made with potatoes. It's very simple and very delicious, and it's usually found in various tapas bar in Spain. This was my attempt at it.

cooked potatoes

I saw the recipe for it in NY Times, and well, it turns out that you don't really need a freaking recipe for it. It's that simple. Just potatoes, eggs, onions, salt and pepper.

Spanish Tortilla

3 or 4 medium sized potatoes
2 medium sized shallots, thinly sliced
5 to 6 eggs
salt and pepper
oil to fry

1. Peel and thinly slice the potatoes. It is faster to use a mandolin, but since you don't really want paper thin slices, a knife will suffice. You want 1/8 inch slices. Submerge in water to prevent discoloration.
2. Heat oil in a 8 to 10 inch nonstick skillet. To test the temperature, put a slice of potato in the oil. If small bubbles appear around its edges, the oil is ready. Fry the potatoes just until they are tender, not brown!
3. Take the potatoes out and drain on a paper towel. Reserve around 2 tbs of the oil for frying the omelette later. Let the potatoes cool for a couple of minutes before mixing it with the eggs, salt, and pepper. Remember that during this stage, you are seasoning the whole thing!
4. Heat the skillet back up over medium heat. Sautee the shallots in reserved oil until it becomes soft.
5. Add the egg and potato mixture. As soon as the edges firm up, lower the temperature slightly, and cook for 5 to 6 minutes.
6. Insert a spatula around the edges of your omelette to loosen it from the pan. Slide it off on to a large plate, one that would cover the top of your pan. Carefully put the top of your skillet on top of the omelette, and flip it over. There's enough residual oil on the skillet to cook the other side. Don't worry!
7. Cook the other side for 5 to 6 minutes, and slide it off on to a plate. Serve at room temperature. 

It's almost always served with bread, specifically bocadillo. I didn't have any baguette or bocadillo laying around the house, but I did have my potato bread. It's extreme potato bonanza.

Delicious.

The good potato bread and the bad potato bread

Yes, there is such a thing as bad potato bread.

I found the recipe for the bad potato bread above here. It's just... uh. It turned out all crumbly, dry, and just... uh. I still have a whole loaf left. I don't know what the hell to do with it.

Now, let us move on to the good (awesome) potato bread. I found the recipe for this potato bread in an old issue of Sedap Sekejap: Khusus Pemula from 2004. My mother and I loved this magazine. Most of the recipes are well-tested and kind of foolproof. Now, the bad thing for you American cooks who don't own scales is that measurements are all in metric. God, just invest in one. I promise you that it'll be worth it.

GOOD Potato Bread

400 g of high protein flour

100 g of potatoes, boiled and mashed

50 g of sugar

about 7 g (or 1/4 oz) of dry yeast

2 egg yolks

150 ml of lukewarm water

100 g of butter

1/4 tsp of salt

about 100 ml of milk (for brushing at the end)

1. Grab either a stand mixer or hand mixer, and attach the dough hook. Don't make this any harder than it has to be.
2. Put the flour (all of it), yeast, sugar and egg yolks in a bowl, and mix.
3. While the machine is on, slowly pour in the water.
4. Add butter and salt. Mix until the dough is elastic and separates for the mixing bowl. It should all stick to the dough hook by now.
5. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes. If it's warm enough in your kitchen, you can let the dough rest on the counter with a kitchen cloth covering it. If not, you can do what I did and let it proof in the oven. You can find the instructions here.
6. Punch the dough, and dump on to a floured surface. Portion the dough into balls weighing about 50 grams each. You can make it bigger if you want, though.
7. Let it rest on a lined baking sheet for 30 minutes. Brush the dough with milk, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes at 340 degrees Fahrenheit.

Fabulous.

I don't use that word a lot, but these are totally fabulous. Man, I sound like teenager. Wait, I am a teenager.

Anyway, you should definitely try these. They have this wonderful crusty, but not tough, outsides. But, in the inside, they are so soft and fluffy. It's good bread--tremendously good bread. I've had two already.

Gratin Dauphinois with Sweet Potatoes

I LOVE SWEET POTATOES.
They're good and good for you. Did you know that? It's especially rich in beta carotene, providing 377% of your daily vitamin A needs per serving. And, since my eyesight is horrible with a capital h, I'm totally stoked.

So, by show of hand, how many of you follow La Tartine Gourmande? If you're not raising your hand right now, shame on you. I love Bea. She is an amazing cook and photographer.
Her food always look stunning. Hell, she can put dirt in a bowl with sprinkles on it and it'd look amazing. Anyway, I saw her post for Gratin Dauphinois maybe a week ago, and I've literally been dreaming about it.
The original recipe called for potatoes, sweet potatoes, and pink turnips. But, I couldn't find any turnips at my local grocery store, so I settled for just potatoes and sweet potatoes. It's still awesome.

Gratin Dauphinois with Sweet Potatoes (original recipe here)

2 garlic cloves, halved
1 tbs of butter
1 cup of milk
1 cup of heavy cream
1 twig of fresh thyme, or 1 tsp of dried thyme
about 1 pound of potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 medium-large sweet potato, peeled and thinly sliced
salt and pepper
pinch of nutmeg
1 oz. of Swiss Emmental or Gruyere (I think they're more readily available than Comte.)

1. Rub a 12 x 8.5 baking dish with two halves of one garlic clove. Then, butter it generously.
2. Slice the halves of garlic and put at the bottom of the baking dish.
3. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
4. Heat milk, cream, the remaining garlic, and thyme. Bring to a simmer and stop the heat. Let it infuse for 30 minutes and reheat.
5. Tightly arrange the potatoes and sweet potatoes in alternating order.
6. Strain the milk and cream mixture over the potatoes. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Keep in mind that in this step, you are seasoning the whole thing. Top with shredded cheese, and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Let it cool before serving.

I know that this is supposed to be a side dish, but I had it for dinner. Love the sweetness with the salty, cheesy crust. I also have a bunch of potato slices leftover. I might just make some chips with them tomorrow.