Day 36 - In Praise of the Potato

My heritage is Irish, and I love the potato. I think it is the most versatile of veggies and has been much maligned since the advent of diets such as South Beach and Atkins.  It really has taking a beating, bearing the brunt of the carbo - hating crowd. Today I sing I am here to sing praises to the potato. Let us not forget, it is a vegetable and it does contain great amounts of potassium, proving its nutritional value in addition to its versatility. It is the perfect accompaniment to meat loaf, when mashed, and what better complements a steak than the ever perfectly baked potato? When there is French onion dip around, who doesn't want to grab the biggest potato chip and just dig right in? And when left unpeeled and cut up into quarters then baked with bacon bits, green onions and cheeses topped with sour cream, doesn't  it make the superb appetizer known as potato skins. And who doesn't like the potato sliced thin, with onions cheese and cream served as scalloped potatoes with all its ooey-gooey delicious-ness? My mom made the best beef stew and when guests unexpectedly would show up, no worries, to make the stew go further, she would just add more potatoes. I must admit, my favorite is the mashed potato whipped light and covered with gravy, especially the turkey gravy served on Thanksgiving. And I just visited a joint that served Irish Nachos, potato chips with melted cheeses and sour cream with green onions. A remarkable veggie - the potato, it really brings out the Irish in me!