French Fridays with Dorie: Hachis Parmentier

My mom, who is also participating in FFwD, made her hachis parmetier on Monday so that everyone who stopped into the house on Monday could try some of her food.  My kids all enjoyed her hachis parmetier, but my son really packed it in.  I dished some out for myself but ended up not eating any of the meat.  I did like the flavors and wanted more of the mashed potatoes.

I was determined to figure out a  way to do a non-meat version of hachis parmentier.  I boiled carrots, celery, cabbage, and mushrooms in some broth until they were tender and then drained them from the broth.  I put all my cooked veggies into a skillet with a couple teaspoons of tomato paste and kept them warm while I made my mashed potatoes.  I don't ever peel my potatoes, but I did this time cause I thought chunks of peel would not be very pretty on top of my casserole.

After my potatoes were mashed & seasoned, I put all my veggies in the bottom of a 9x13" pan and then topped the veggies with my mashed potatoes.  I used sharp cheddar and Swiss cheese on top of my potatoes.  I baked my casserole in the oven to give my cheese that crusty top.

The verdict: my version was OK.  It didn't have the yummy flavors that my mom's dish had, but I would definitely make the mashed potatoes with the cheese on top again.  I think the cheesy mashed potatoes would make a terrific side dish for a meal when you don't want to make gravy ... like grilled fish.  So, the potatoes with cheese on top is a keeper for me!!  Glad I played around and tried something new again.

As a side note, if you like pot roast, I think you'll love this recipe.  My hubby is a big fan of pot roast & veggies and he LOVED my mom's hachis parmentier with the meat.

Read the results of other cooks HERE.