Spinach Madeline Stuffed Potatoes

A favorite in southern Louisiana, spinach Madeline is a cheesy casserole or one-pan side dish. For this version, I used it as a filling to make spinach Madeline stuffed potatoes. Y'all, it's so good! 

One of the first cookbooks I ever received was one called River Road Recipes, published as a fundraiser by the Junior League of Baton Rouge. The very first edition, released in 1959, contained a recipe for Spinach Madeline, a thick and creamy spinach dish flavored with garlic and onion plus, the star of the show, jalapeño cheese. 

Spinach Madeline Stuffed Potatoes

In this version, I used my favorite habanero cheese for even more spiciness but any flavorful cheese will do. These stuffed potatoes can be made ahead and baked to heat through before serving. 

Ingredients

4 smallish Russet potatoes (approx. weight about 10.5 oz or 300g each)

2 (12 oz or 340g) packages frozen chopped spinach

3/4 cup or 180ml water

1/3 cup or 75g butter

4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup or 80ml milk

1/4 cup or 60ml cream

7 oz or 200g jalapeño (or habanero) cheese, grated

3/4 teaspoon celery salt

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

fine sea salt to taste

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C.  

Scrub the potatoes and lightly pierce the skin with a pointy knife. Microwave on high for 6 minutes to get them started, then bake uncovered, directly on the oven rack for 35-40 minutes or until cooked through. If you’d rather not microwave them, cook in the oven for 55-60 minutes or until they are cooked through.

While the potatoes bake, put the frozen spinach and water in a saucepan over high heat; bring to a full boil. 

Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook for 8 minutes. Separate with a fork and cook for 2 more minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup or 120ml of the cooking liquid.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add flour, stirring until blended and smooth, but not brown, 1 to 2 minutes. 

Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft but not brown, 5 to 7 minutes.

Slowly add the milk, cream and the reserved spinach cooking liquid, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. I like to use a whisk for this step.

Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and thick, 3 to 5 minutes. When you pull the spatula through it, it should be thick enough not to run right back together immediately. 

Add the grated cheese, celery salt, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper and cayenne.

Cook, stirring frequently until the cheese is melted, about 2 to 3 minutes. 

Stir in the cooked spinach and set the mixture aside. (This is the original spinach Madeline now. It was eaten as is, or baked in a casserole dish.) 

When the potatoes are baked, cut them in half lengthwise. When they are cool enough to handle, scoop the insides out. 

Use a potato masher to mash the parts you scooped out. 

Add half of the mashed potatoes to the spinach mixture and mix well. (Save the rest of the potatoes for another dish like silver dollar potato pancakes or mashed potato muffins.) Taste and add salt as needed for your taste. 

Spoon the mixture into the potato skins and bake for 30 minutes to serve.

Enjoy!

It's Sunday FunDay and today my friends and I are sharing side dish recipes for your barbecue or cookout since that season is upon us! Check them out below: 

• 45 Minute Hamburger Buns from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
• Avocado Salad with Fresh Herb Dressing from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Carrot Apple Salad from Mayuri’s Jikoni
• Pressure Cooker Pork Dry from Sneha’s Recipe
• Quinoa Salad with Fennel & Garbanzo Beans from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Spaccatini Rolls from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Spinach Madeline Stuffed Potatoes from Food Lust People Love
• Sweet and Tangy Cucumber Salad from Palatable Pastime
• Sweet Potato and Fennel Fronds Salad from Cook with Renu

 

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Spicy Beer Shrimp Potatoes

Spicy Beer Shrimp Potatoes are flavorful main course, made with golden baby potatoes, garlic, tomatoes, Old Bay Seasoning and, of course, shrimp and beer!

Today, August 8th, is International Beer Day so I’m celebrating along with my Sunday FunDay friends. Our host, Rebekah encouraged us thusly: "Share your favorite recipes cooking or baking with beer - or if you don't like beer, cook or bake with your preferred alcohol!" I love the flexibility!

I have made MANY sweet and savory recipes using beer, like my Beer Cheddar Fondue, Spicy Cashew and Feta Beer Muffins, London Porter Cake, Oatmeal Stout Loaf and Beef and Guinness Pie, to name just a few. In short, we are fans of beer for both recipes and drinking.

One day I'll tell you about our youthful excursions down the Guadalupe River on innertubes when the rallying cry over the rapids was "At all costs, save the beer!" It was not uncommon to see a person completely underwater with a single arm visible, beer can held aloft. And we all survived. 

I’d already taken some shrimp out of the freezer to thaw for dinner so that was my jumping off point. Searching both "beer" and "shrimp" I found a ton of recipes online for beer shrimp, typically an appetizer, and thought, I can work with that! 

Spicy Beer Shrimp Potatoes

The addition of potatoes, parboiled then pan-fried till golden, turns what might have been an appetizer into a main course. My recipe is adapted from one on Rasa Malaysia. I served this with a tossed green salad and I recommend you do the same. Extra points if you also make my passion fruit vinaigrette or Amy's beer vinaigrette in the link list below to dress it with.

Ingredients

1 lb or 450g baby new potatoes

1 lb or 450g peeled and deveined shrimp

2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 Roma tomatoes

1 cup or 240ml beer of your choice. I used Corona. (Because: International Beer Day!)

Optional for garnish:

Chopped green onions (or sub parsley - I just like the flavor the green onions add)

another light sprinkle of Old Bay Seasoning

Method

Parboil the potatoes in salted water until a pointy knife can poke into them easily but they still have a hard center, about five minutes from when they come to a boil. 

Rinse the shrimp with cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels and season with Old Bay. Set aside.

While the potatoes parboil, use a sharp knife to score the tops of your tomatoes in a cross. Put them in a heatproof bowl. 

Drain the hot potato water into the tomato bowl and set aside for a few minutes.  Tip the water out and slip the peel off of the tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes in half and remove the cores and seeds. Dice the tomatoes. 

On a cutting board, use a wide knife or your flat palm to mash the potatoes down, one at a time. My photo is of the knife, which I did use for the first ones seen here, but I actually had more success just using my hand. 

Heat up a non-stick pan on high heat and add the olive oil. Add the potatoes a few at time and cook till golden on both sides. Turn them carefully so they don't break apart but if a piece gets loose, no worries. 

Remove them from the pan and set aside until all the potatoes are browned on both sides and on a plate.

Add a drizzle more olive oil, if needed, and sauté the garlic in the pan until aromatic but not browned then add in the chopped tomatoes. 

Cook for a few minutes until the diced tomatoes start to slump. 

Add the seasoned shrimp. 

Stir to combine well. As soon as the shrimp turn a bit pink, add the beer.

Bring the beer to a quick boil.

When the shrimp are cooked through, add the browned potatoes back in. Tuck them amongst the shrimp. 

Tilt the pan slightly and spoon the shrimp and sauce over them. 

Cook a little longer to rewarm the potatoes. When the potatoes are warmed through, turn off the heat and add the chopped green onions and a sprinkle on a little more of Old Bay Seasoning. (Don't overdo the Old Bay. It's super salty.)

Enjoy!

As I mentioned, it’s Sunday FunDay AND International Beer Day. What a time to be alive! Check out the delicious recipes made with beer below. Many thanks to our host, Rebekah of Making Miracles. Pop open a cold one and join us!

• Autumnal Spinach Salad with Beer Vinaigrette by Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Braised Pork with Dunkel Bier Gravy by Palatable Pastime
• Dum Chicken Rum Biryani by Sneha's Recipe
• Irish Beef Guinness Stew by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Slow Cooker Beer-Braised Pot Roast by Making Miracles
• Spicy Beer Shrimp Potatoes by Food Lust People Love
• Whole Wheat Beer Pretzel Nuggets by A Day in the Life on the Farm

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Sparkling Strawberry Lemon Cocktail

Lightly sweetened homemade strawberry vodka is the main ingredient of this sparkling strawberry lemon cocktail, refreshingly cold, perfect for summer!

More than a month ago I shared the how-to instructions for making simple strawberry vodka so I hope you all got right on that! If so, you are ready to make this cocktail today. 

If not, what are you waiting for? It’s one of the easiest ways of preserving the flavor of sweet summer strawberries to enjoy all year round. 

Sparkling Strawberry Lemon Cocktail

I am not a fan of the flavored vodkas you can buy in the stores because they always taste artificial to me but if you are a fan, feel free to use one in this cocktail. You’ll need to add a little simple syrup as well though, if your store-bought strawberry vodka isn’t sweetened. Most are not. 

Ingredients

1/2 oz or 15ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 oz or 60ml simple strawberry vodka

2 1/2 oz or 75ml club soda

Curled lemon peel or strawberry for garnish (optional)

Method

Fill a cocktail shaker 2/3 full with ice cubes. Add in the strawberry vodka and lemon juice. Shake until well chilled, about 15 seconds.

Fill a glass with ice. Strain the cocktail mixture into the glass. Top up with club soda and stir gently. 

Garnish with a strawberry plus a curl of lemon peel, if desired.

Enjoy!

It's Sunday FunDay and it's all about berries today! Check out the recipes below. Many thanks to our host, Renu of Cook with Renu and her Sunday helper, Rebekah of Making Miracles.

• Berry Spinach Salad by Making Miracles
• Blackberry Spinach Salad by Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Blueberry & Grape Smoothie by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Blueberry Picking and a Summer Salad with Microflowers and Berries by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Eggless Strawberry Banana Muffins by Cook with Renu
• Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Sandwiches with Blackberry Jalapeño BBQ Sauce by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Kokum Sherbat by Sneha’s Recipe
• Sparkling Strawberry Lemon Cocktail by Food Lust People Love
• Summer Berry Turnovers by Karen's Kitchen Stories

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

Pin this Sparkling Strawberry Lemon Cocktail! 

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Tiny Taco Bites #MuffinMonday

These tiny taco bites are made with oven baked tortillas filled with spicy ground beef and extra sharp cheddar, then topped with a fresh pico de gallo made with onions, tomatoes and jalapeños. They’d be great as an appetizer for your next cocktail party, especially if you are serving margaritas.

Saturday night we were invited over to my brother-in-law’s home for an early birthday dinner of fajitas and margaritas. (He turns 50 on Thursday!) Of course, I always ask what we can bring. “An appetizer,” came the response. It just so happens that my Muffin Monday friends are going rogue this month, that is to say, using our muffin pans for deliciousness other than actual muffins. Otherwise I’d have made some savory mini muffins. Perhaps even my artichoke dip mini muffins. We all LOVE those. I also considered my sincere pumpkin patch cheese ball, because Thursday is Halloween, after all. It's not just adorable but tasty too.

But I’ve long been wanting to make tiny taco bites using Tostitos scoops. They are already perfect little bowls! I floated that idea by my younger daughter and she shook her head. Apparently she finds Tostitos too salty. And anyway, I thought that was an idea for another day, since it didn’t use a muffin pan. Then inspiration struck. I could make the tiny taco bowls myself with fresh tortillas and a mini muffin pan, killing two birds with one stone, so to speak.

As with most of my other fabulous ideas, when I checked the interwebs, there were almost 4 million results. It would seem tacos in a muffin pan are a thing. Never mind. These are delicious and bite-sized, and everyone at the dinner party loved them! Make sure you scroll down and check out all the other fun non-muffin recipes you can make in your muffin pan.

Tiny Taco Bites

For the taco seasoning, I use a brand called Tone’s. It comes in a large container so I just scoop out how much I need when seasoning taco and enchilada beef and even fajitas, rather than buying those little pouches of spice mix. Such a waste of packaging. You can always make your own, of course. Plenty of recipes online. For the tortillas, I love the ones at my local grocery store here in Houston, called mitad y mitad: half and half, by which they mean half corn and half flour. This is Texas, after all, where many aspire to be bilingual. They are flavorful because of the corn and supple because of the flour. Use whichever fresh tortillas you can find or your personal favorite.

Ingredients
For the beef filling:
1 lb or 450g ground beef (I used ground sirloin. Because it’s lean, you don’t lose much weight as it cooks. More to eat!)
2 tablespoons olive oil – if your ground beef is fatty, you might not need as much
1/4 cup or taco seasonings
2/3 cup or 156ml water

For the tiny taco bowls:
16-18 (6-in or 15cm) soft corn, half corn/half flour or flour tortillas
2-3 teaspoons canola or other light oil for greasing the muffin pan

For the pico de gallo:
3 ripe Roma tomatoes (approx. 1 lb or 450g in weight)
1/2 large onion
2-3 fresh jalapeños
Small bunch fresh cilantro
2-3 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Pinch fine sea salt
Pinch sugar
Freshly ground black pepper

For topping:
4 oz or 113g extra sharp cheddar, grated finely

Method
Brown the beef in the olive oil over a medium high heat, breaking it up into little pieces as it browns. When it’s well browned, even crunchy in places, add the taco spice mix and the water.

Pop the lid on and lower the heat to simmer. Simmer covered for 5-7 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer uncovered until most of the water has evaporated, another few minutes. Remove from the heat and tip the pan to one side so any oil drains off and collects away from  the beef.

Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 325°F or 163°C. Grease a 24-cup mini muffin pan with a little canola.

Cut the tortillas into 3 in or 7cm circles using a cookie cutter. (Save all the scraps for making your favorite tortilla soup recipe!) With a 3 in (7cm) cookie cutter, I got 3 taco bowls per tortilla. They don’t hold much so the seasoned beef was enough for 54 tiny taco bites! The perfect bite-sized appetizer, truly.

Use the bottom of a small glass or jigger to press the circles of tortilla into the mini muffin pan. I find it helps them release if you also grease the jigger.

Bake the tiny taco bowls in your preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through so they brown evenly. Watch them closely so they don’t suddenly burn. Remove them from the oven. Some of them will be puffy and not so bowl-like anymore.

As soon as they are cool enough to handle, use a folded towel if you need to, pick the puffed ones out of the muffin pan and put the glass or jigger back in it and press the bowl back into the muffin pan. Place to cool on a wire rack. Cute, right?

Continue cutting and baking all of the tortillas, until you have about 50 of them.

While they bake, cut the onion into small bits. Stem and chop the jalapeños small as well. When chopping the jalapeños, remove the membranes and seeds if your family and friends aren’t chili lovers. At our house we say, the hotter, the better.

Put the chopped onion and jalapeños in a bowl with the fresh lime juice and a pinch of salt, a pinch of sugar and a few good grinds of black pepper. Stir well and set aside.

Cut the tomatoes in half and remove all the seeds and juice. We don't want the pico de gallo too wet or it will make the taco bowls soggy. Chop the tomatoes finely. Remove the hard stems from the cilantro and chop it roughly. Add the tomatoes and cilantro to the onion/jalapeño bowl. Mix well.

Turn your oven temperature up to 350°F or 180°C. In a large baking pan, arrange your tiny taco bowls and divide the spicy beef between them.

Top with the grated cheese.

Bake the tiny taco bites for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the beef is hot through. I actually made these through this step and then baked again for 10 minutes at 350° or 180° when I arrived at my brother-in-laws, just to warm them again. These guys are very forgiving though, delicious even at room temperature.

Top with pico de gallo or set the pico out with a spoon and let everyone top the tiny tacos themselves so they don't get soggy.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to Sue of Palatable Pastime for her fun suggestion that we go rogue for Muffin Monday and use our muffin pans for other delicious recipes. This just might be a more regularly scheduled theme, if feedback is positive. Check out the other great recipes below:

• Green Eggs No Ham (Egg Bites with Spinach and Parmesan) from Farm Fresh Feasts
• Individual Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Mac and Cheese Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Mini Cheesecakes from Making Miracles
• Mini Pumpkin Pies from Palatable Pastime
• Tiny Taco Bites from Food Lust People Love

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

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