Cheesy mash with cabbage and bacon
This is a take on the French dish Pommes Aligot which is a marriage between mashed potatoes and lots of melty cheese. The addition of just-cooked cabbage and crispy bacon takes this to another level. A really tasty, stick-to-your-ribs style dish for the colder nights.
Servings: 6 people
Ingredients
- 1 kg floury potatoes Maris Piper, King Edward or Desiree
- 125 g butter
- 1 bulb of garlic you will only need to use two of the garlic cloves in the recipe
- 250 ml milk
- 125 ml cream
- 300 g Cornish Yarg grated (you can substitute this for Cheshire, Caerphilly or Lancashire)
- 170 g Parmesan grated (or equivalent)
- 1 tsp salt
For the cabbage
- Olive oil
- 2 medium cabbages hispi or sweetheart are best
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 60 g breadcrumbs
- 30 g pine nuts
- 1 sprig of thyme
- 1 tsp salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
To finish
- 8-12 slices of streaky bacon
- Flat leaf parsley or coriander freshly chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan/Gas mark 6. Prick the potatoes with a fork, add to a baking tray and cover with a little olive oil and salt. Roast the potatoes in the oven for at least an hour, or until the skins are crisp and brown and a knife goes through the flesh easily. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
- For the roast garlic, take the whole garlic bulb and cut the top off, so you expose the top of the garlic cloves. Put the bulb in the middle of some tin foil and add a pinch of salt and drizzle of olive oil. Wrap the bulb tightly in the tin foil, like a little parcel. Place on a baking tray, add to the oven and roast at 200°C/180°C fan/Gas mark 6 for about 25-35 minutes, or until the garlic cloves are soft. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
- Slice each potato in half and remove the flesh from the skins. Mash the potato using a potato masher or ricer to get rid of any lumps. You can add the potato skins back to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes to crisp up.
- Cut each cabbage into quarters lengthways and drizzle with a little olive oil. Heat a griddle pan on a fairly high heat. Fry the cabbage for a few minutes each side, so you get some nice char marks. Add the cabbage to a ovenproof dish, drizzle with some more olive oil, the lemon juice, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add a splash of water to the the dish and cook in the oven at 200°C/180°C fan/Gas mark 6 for about 15-20 minutes. You want the cabbage to be cooked, but still have a some bite.
- In a frying pan add the breadcrumbs, pine nuts, thyme leaves and about a tablespoon of olive oil. Fry over a medium heat, stirring regularly so the nuts and breadcrumbs become evenly toasted. Remove from the heat and add the lemon zest.
- Fry the bacon in a pan or add to a baking tray and cook in the oven at 200°C/180°C fan/Gas mark 6 for 15-20 minutes. You want the bacon to be very crispy.
- In a saucepan add the mashed potatoes, butter and cream. Squeeze the two garlic cloves out of their skins and add to the pan. Place the pan on a medium heat and stir regularly with a wooden spoon to incorporate all the ingredients. Add the grated cheeses to the pan a little at the time, beating the mixture after each addition. Season to taste with salt and stir again to make sure you get rid of any lumps. The mash is ready when it is smooth and thick with a slight elasticity to it.
- To serve, remove the cabbage from the oven and top with the fried breadcrumb mixture. Spoon the mash onto plates or add to a large serving dish. Top with the crispy bacon and finish with a scattering of chopped flat leaf parsley or coriander. You could also top the mash with some of the fried potato skins to provide some extra crunch.
Notes
The remaining roasted garlic can be used in many other dishes. Add to a homemade tomato sauce with some fresh basil for a quick and easy pasta dish. Mix with butter and parsley and smear onto toast for the ultimate garlic bread. Add a few cloves to hummus to amp up the flavour.