This is a most delicious way to have potatoes. I’m not sure how authentically Greek they are, but mmmm they sure are tasty.

1. Preheat oven to 200C (400F).

2. Place potatoes in a roasting tin and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with dried oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to coat with oil and arrange potatoes in a single layer.

3. Bake the potatoes for 10 minutes. Toss potatoes with garlic and bake an additional five minutes.

4. Add vegetable stock and cover tin with aluminium foil. Return to oven and cook for 10 minutes. Add lemon juice and cook 10 to 15 minutes longer, or until potatoes are tender and liquid is absorbed.

5. Sprinkle with fresh oregano (if using) and serve at once.

Makes two servings.

This is a great and easy recipe for potato wedges done on the barbecue. Mr Thrifty even declared that he likes these better than chips, which is saying a lot because his relationship with potatoes is like Homer Simpson’s with doughnuts (or donuts, as our friends across the pond prefer).

(Mmmm, potatoes, mmmm…)

We used two enormous potatoes from the allotment, the early variety Rocket. I reckon pretty much any all-purpose type of potato would work.

1. Scrub potatoes, but don’t peel them. Cut lengthwise into wedges with “fat” end of wedges about 1.5cm (5/8″) thick.

2. Bring a pot of water to boil. (I use an electric kettle before transferring water to a pot; this is more energy-efficient. I think.) Put potatoes in boiling water, return water to a boil, then turn down heat and simmer for anywhere from one to 10 or so minutes (lid on). The first time I made these, I boiled them for 10 minutes, and that was about right. The second time, with very freshly dug potatoes, they were, err, mashed potatoes after 10 minutes. You want them to soften a bit, but they should NOT be soft all the way through.

3. Drain potatoes, then gently toss with olive oil. Arrange in a single layer on a plate to cool. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Fire up the barbie. Cook potatoes for about 1/2 hour, turning several times, until lightly crusted on the outside and fully cooked on the inside. You may have to experiment with where you cook them on your barbie to achieve potato perfection. Mr Thrifty cooked them on the upper shelf of our barbie, where it’s hot but not too close to the source of heat.

5. For garlic dip, mix together vegan mayonnaise and garlic. Preferably let it sit for at least an hour. In the UK, vegan mayonnaises include Mayola or Plamil’s egg-free mayo; in America/Canada, try Vegenaise.

Makes two servings.

I am happy to announce that 2008 is International year of the potato. Okay, so I’m 6½ months late to the (dinner) plate with this announcement, but I’ve only just made the discovery myself a few short weeks ago.

The United Nations has put the humble spud on a pedestal this year, and has suggested that potatoes could help mitigate the effects of food price inflation (which we all know is nowhere near Alistair “la-la land” Darling’s 2% claim). That’s because potatoes produce “more nutritious food more quickly, on less land, and in harsher climates than any other major crop”.

All I know is that the versatile potato tastes great. To this end, I’ll be tantalising your taste buds with tater recipes in the coming months.

All hail the spud!

You’d have to be living in a cave in Mongolia (or really really not paying attention) not to have heard or read anything about “carbon footprints” of late. Simply put, a carbon footprint it is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment. Now let me digress here a moment and say that I am by no means convinced that human activity is solely to blame for global warming. In fact, I’m not convinced that human activity is even a major contributor.

However, CO₂ emissions should be reduced as much as possible for other reasons , such as not filling the air we breathe and water we drink with nasty chemicals.

Now back to the issue at hand. A few weeks ago, before our allotment potatoes were ready for digging, I walked (note the very low carbon footprint mode of transport) to the big box supermarket that is Tesco to buy some organic potatoes. And there, in the potato section, was this sign:


I thought it a bit odd that new potatoes should have such a high carbon footprint. After all, millions of tonnes of potatoes are grown in this country each year, and this is prime potato season. So I took a closer look at the bags:


Yes, can you believe it, these potatoes were from Israel, 3700 km (2300 miles) from the UK. Of the three types of organic potatoes Tesco was selling, two were from Israel, one from Egypt.

So let me get this straight. Tesco is unable (or unwilling) to source organic potatoes locally during peak potato season. Instead they source their organic potatoes from thousands of kilometres/miles away. Yet they claim to be committed to reducing the carbon footprint of the potatoes they sell.

I think that instead of patting themselves on the back for their “commitment” to reducing carbon footprints, Tesco should be commended for providing us with a good example of doublespeak.

The title of an article in the Independent caught my eye the other day: The marketing scam of the century.

I’ve never been the kind of gal to have a “shoe wardrobe” or a “handbag wardrobe”, and although I sometimes peruse articles like 10 must-have fashion essentials for summer, the items in question never seem to be “essential” enough to find their way into my wardrobe. Part of it is an aversion to being told what I “should” be wearing; another part is that I have to really like something in order to spend my spondoolies on it (why yes, I do believe there is some Scottish blood in me, why do you ask?). Weird as this may sound, I actually believe I can live without the likes of this “Nana” dress (a Marie Claire buy-of-the-day):

The gist of the Independent article is that most of us buy way too much stuff. We’ve been seduced into believing that we “need” a whole raft of things in order to find personal fulfillment / happiness / nirvana / etcetera. But it’s all a con game. We don’t need most of the stuff that’s marketed to us, and we only think we want it.

So the lesson for today, kiddies, is think before you buy, and don’t let yourself be manipulated by those ruthless marketers. Heck, you may even realise that you, too, can put that Nana dress back on the rack.