Potato Bacon Soup

This is a favorite here in the Harseverse.  It's a meal-in-a-bowl!  Warm and delicious, perfect for those chilly winter nights.  Leftovers are even more yummy reheated next day.  Serve with garlic bread or crusty rolls.

Ingredients
1 large onion, diced
6 slices bacon, chopped, plus extra slices for garnish
5-6 large potatoes, cubed
1 liter chicken or vegetable stock
4 stalks celery, sliced
3 cups milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus extra for garnish
1/2 cup chopped chives
freshly ground pepper

Method
Cook chopped bacon and onion together on medium high heat for 5 minutes.  Add potatoes, celery, and stock and bring to a boil.  You want enough stock to come up within an inch of covering the vegetables, but not to cover them entirely because you will be adding milk later.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  While soup is simmering, cook extra bacon slices until crisp, chop them and set aside for garnishing.  Once vegetables are tender, roughly mash with a potato masher.  Don't completely obliterate them - you want some chunkiness.  Add milk (add more for thinner soup, less for thicker soup) and the cheese and half of the chives.  Serve with the remaining chives, crispy bacon, shredded cheese and pepper for toppings.   

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are often mislabeled as "Yams." You won't often find real yams here in North America. See the differences here. If it's smooth with a creamy orange colour and can fit in your hand, it's a sweet potato!

What you need

Two large sweet potatoes
1 onion
thyme
salt
olive oil

What to do

Peel and cube potatoes and onions. Put into a 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with thyme (or your herb of choice) and salt. Toss to coat evenly. Roast in a 400 degree oven for approximately 20 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time. You want some good carmelization as it really brings out the flavour.
At this point you can serve as is, but sometimes I dump them into a bowl, add a scoop of butter and mash with a potato masher.

Swiss Chard

Swiss Chard with Bacon and Garlic

2 slices bacon, chopped
1 pound Swiss chard, coarsely chopped
1 tbsp chopped fresh garlic
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet cook bacon until crisp; drain on paper towels. Pour off fat.
Cook chard in the skillet over medium heat until it begins to wilt. Add garlic and cook and stir for 2 minutes.
Place chard in a lightly greased baking dish and sprinkle with bacon and Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Ratatouille

Ratatouille

1 large zucchini, cut into ½ inch slices
½ large eggplant (or 1 small) cut into large dice
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, cut into 1 inch dice
4 cloves garlic
1 can diced tomato in juice
2 tbsp tomato paste
Olive oil
Chopped parsley
Bay leaf
1 tsp thyme
salt and pepper

Stir fry onion, zucchini, and eggplant in a deep pot with olive oil for 2 min. Add garlic and peppers, and stir fry an additional minute. Add tomatoes, paste and herbs and bring to a boil. Turn down to minimum and simmer for 30 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Alternatively, place pot in the oven at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving!