Ham and Cheese Rösti with Spinach and Pan Roasted Asparagus

Rösti.  Seriously, I think that is just a fun word. Don't ask me why... maybe it's because with those little dots over the 'o' it looks like the 'o' is ready to eat a slice of this ridiculously easy and yummy dinner, lunch or breakfast.  I don't know where this idea has been hiding my whole life either, but it was so good, everyone loved it and dinner was ready in 15 minutes flat.


Not too shabby, huh?!


So. It is basically a thinnish, pan fried, potato pancake with extras mixed in - ham and swiss cheese and spinach in this particular case.  You could vary what you mix in there however you like I'm sure, but those are ingredients I generally have on hand.


For a double bit of green with our dinner I also quick pan roasted some asparagus.  Including all the prep (which isn't much) and cooking time on everything, seriously, who wouldn't want dinner ready in 15 to 20 minutes tops (including very little to clean up).  Genius.


Speaking of genius moves... PheMOMenon is being redesigned in the next couple of weeks, so I hope you'll stay tuned for lots of fun changes! I'll be taking a little break in the meantime while all those details are worked out, but I'll be back soon!

Ham and Cheese Rösti 

Printable Version

1 large egg
5 ounces (approximately 1 cup) diced ham, whatever you have - I just used deli ham
1 cup shredded cheese, swiss, gruyere or whatever you like
1-2 shallot cloves, minced or about 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary or other herbs of your choice, finely minced (or 1/4 teaspoon dried)
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 large russet potato, peeled, grated and rinsed in cold water, then patted dry between paper towels
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
pinch of freshly ground red pepper flake or ground cayenne pepper
1 cup baby spinach leaves, chopped

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, except for the olive oil and 1/4 cup of the cheese, and beat well.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet (9 to 10 inch) over medium-high heat.  Pour the potato mixture into the pan and cook until golden, about 6 to 7 minutes.  Cover the pan with a plate (or use the pan lid) and flip the potato cake out onto the plate by holding it over the pan and flipping the pan over (like you would a cake out of a cake pan onto a rack).  Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the skillet and slide the potato cake - uncooked side down - back into the pan.  Sprinkle the remaining cheese onto the top (cooked) side of the cake and cook the cake until golden, about another 5 to 6 minutes and the cheese is melted.  Remove the cake from the pan, cut into wedges and serve warm.

Pan Roasted Asparagus

1 lb asparagus spears, ends trimmed
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add the asparagus spears, cook 1 minute moving the spears around the pan gently and season with the salt and pepper.  Cook 1 to 2 minutes more until bright green, still crisp and hot. Sprinkle with a little lemon juice and serve hot.

Kid Friendly Friday #1: Mr. Crunch Sandwich

In an effort to keep track of ideas for things to feed the crazy five-year old monster (and yes, monster is a term of endearment in our house) I live with (and an effort to be more creative in feeding him) I am instigating Kid-Friendly Friday's. It is pretty much to keep me in line.

I need more ideas of easy to make, easy to eat, Aidan friendly meals that, hopefully, are somewhat healthy. I'm not saying these are going to be earth-shattering ideas or that they will be super duper nutritious. But, it will help me keep track of what he likes and what works.

Since Aidan's main source of food is still currently pretty much pancakes all the time, well, things could pretty much only go up from here.

For my first attempt I made something I am hereby dubbing a "Mr. Crunch Sandwich." Why? Well, to protect the innocent in this attempt and not have anyone accuse me of butchering any sacred cooking traditions I am not calling this what the idea was inspired from. The long and short of it is this is a grilled cheese and ham sandwich, dipped like french toast in a simple mixture of egg with a little salt, pepper and milk and fried in a little butter until hot, melty and a little crispy on the outside.

The Kiddo rated this one as five stars - which for him is the tops! We served along side some cold, crisp apple slices. We will be doing this one again I can tell.

Mr. Crunch Sandwich
Makes 1 sandwich

2 slices of sandwich bread of your choice, I had white on hand
1 slice American cheese (not my favorite choice, but this is what the kiddo likes)
1 slice black forest ham
1 teaspoon butter
1 large egg
1 Tablespoon non-fat milk
salt and pepper to taste

In a small, shallow bowl, beat the egg with the salt, pepper and milk to combine well.

Heat a grill pan to about 350 degrees (moderately high heat). Briefly heat the slice of ham to heat it well. Butter each slice of bread on the 'inside' of the sandwich and layer with the cheese and ham. Put the bread slices together and briefly dunk the sandwich on both sides in the egg mixture. Lightly butter the grill/griddle pan surface and place the egg-dipped sandwich in the buttered area. Cook until well browned and golden. Flip the sandwich and repeat the browning process on the other side, pressing the sandwich as flat as you can with the back of the spatula and browning the sandwich well.

Slice and serve.

Side ideas: Apple slices, carrots and ranch dressing, red seedless grapes, tomato soup, honey mustard sauce.