Sweet Potato & Leek Top Tortilla Española - 100 Days of Recipes: Day 62

If you come to Asheville (and you really should, you know!), you will find unending possibilities for good food and drink. One of my favorites, and they were even before they were a client, is Cúrate Tapas Bar, and their Tortilla Española is something I love! I also love sweet potatoes, and in fact I like them much more than white potatoes, so as soon as I had this goodness at the restaurant, I began wondering how it would taste with sweet potatoes. 

I kept wondering, and then a wonderful thing happened: chef Katie Button released her Cúrate cookbook, and included was her recipe for the Tortilla. I loved it so much the first time I made it myself, I think I made it easily five more times within as many weeks. I think it's my favorite way to eat white potatoes.

But the question remained, I wonder if I could make a version with sweets? The opportunity presented itself this week when I decided to put together some small bites to celebrate a neighbor's birthday. I was thinking of making the tortilla from the cookbook for the event, adding the blanched leek tops (see Day 59, June 26) from the freezer. Well the day did not go as planned, and I didn't get a chance to shop for the cookbook tortilla, but when I got home, I realized I had the eggs, I had some onions, I had the leek tops, and I had a good pile of sweet potatoes. Here was my chance to test out a new version!

Flipped out of the cast iron pan and onto a platter - perfect for entertaining, because
you can plate it, then get ready and it'll be at a perfect serving temperature
by the time your guests arrive!

I don't always test new recipes when I'm entertaining ... oh wait, yes I do. In fact, I think I make a point to do that, so this fit right in. In addition to the leek tops, I had some beautiful oyster mushrooms from the tailgate that just seemed to want to go in the tortilla, so in they went.

I was a bit rushed from the 'day that did not go as planned', so I didn't think to take any pictures until the plating, but I think the key to making sweet potatoes work for this is to slice them thin, and then watch them in the fry pan and turn them just as they begin to get color. The texture stays really nice in the tortilla!

The recipe below is what I made, following the original recipe out of the Cúrate Cookbook, but adapting for the ingredients I had - the result is sweeter than the original, to be sure, but if you love sweet potatoes, you'll love it. And I may add some more fresh herbs next time to offset the sweetness .. or not - this was really, really good!!

Sweet Potato, Leek Top, and Oyster Mushroom Tortilla

6 eggs, whisked well
1/3 cup blended oil (I used a little olive oil with a little veg oil)
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (a bit less than 1/8")
1/2 large yellow onion, 1/16" slices
1 cup blanched leek tops
1 cup sliced oyster mushrooms (loose pack)

Whisk the eggs in a bowl large enough to hold all the ingredients, then set aside near the stove.

Heat the oil in a 10" cast iron or other heavy-bottom pan. Stove tops vary, but you're looking for a medium heat that's a little hotter than medium. Cook the sliced sweet potatoes in batches, turning them often so they don't burn too fast. Adjust your heat as needed. Once you have a nice, light browning on both sides, use a slotted spatula and remove them, shaking off excess oil, to the bowl of eggs, and add a nice pinch of salt. Repeat until you've done all the sweet potatoes. If you still have a lot of oil, pour off the excess and leave just enough to saute the onions. Lower the heat a bit, add the onions to the pan along with the leek tops. Stir to coat with the oil, cover and let them soften for about 3 minutes. Add in the mushrooms and a nice sprinkle of salt, stir to mix, cover and let cook another 3 minutes.

Add the onion mixture to the eggs, stir to combine thoroughly. Add 2 TBSP oil to the pan, and set the heat to medium/low. Pour in the eggs, and spread it out in an even layer. Cook until the underside is golden and the center is set - about 10 minutes.

Place a plate 'face down' on top of the pan, and using towels or oven mitts, flip the tortilla from the pan to the plate. Immediately slide the tortilla back into the pan so you can get a nice browning on the other side. That'll take another 5-6 minutes. 

Loosen the sides of the tortilla with a spatula, then you can either flip it back onto your serving platter, or get a spatula under it and lift it out of the pan and onto the platter.

*Don't cook it until it's solidly firm all the way through, or you may end up with an over-done tortilla. Let it have a little give in the center, and you'll have a nice moisture (think 'over easy' eggs in creaminess, but not as runny) inside.

This is best at room temp, so you can do it up to an hour before serving.

Swirls and layers of flavor, perfect for a small Swirl Plate!

Pig Out at Cúrate!

Anyone who knows me knows about the little piggies, and how much I love them. You also know how much I love the client who sells them, Cúrate!

They have featured the piggies, and me, on their current blog in a lovely and detailed chronicle of the pig-making process, which you can get to by clicking on their name above or the images below, reprinted with their permission. 

A pig holding toothpicks for tapas dinner at Cúrate.
Photo courtesy of Instagram.

Lori Theriault with Cúrate pig toothpick holders.

Lori throws the pig bodies on her pottery wheel.

Pig bodies, air-drying.

Pig legs and ears are attached by hand.

Pigs drying before their first kiln firing.

Lori saves space in the kiln by firing pigs inside mugs.

Lori's assistant Tamsen, aka 'Exec. VP of Porcine Affairs', applies
iron oxide to the pigs. 

Pigs loaded in for the second firing, the "sauna after the mud bath".

The finished product! Each pig is unique.

Pigs are boxed up, ready to travel to Cúrate and beyond!

What a Summer, and What a Fall!

I was amazed to see my last post here was in June, and more amazed to think about all that's happened since then:

Glaze testing continues on the Potters Mark glazes. I may have mentioned it's a slow process. I may never match the glazes, but I'm getting close to getting ... something.

recent tests for Potters Mark Red

I feel grateful every day that I am working at what I love to do, and even more so that I get to do it in a studio with people I love and respect. Studio traffic has been steady and Gallery sales continue to grow as we prepare to celebrate our third anniversary at The Village Potters, I am happily working hard just to keep up with inventory demands. It gets even better when I look through the work I make for my clients, who are all inspirations as business leaders and as people. If you're in my area, you should check them all out:

These little piggies are on their way to Cúrate!

New design for Biltmore Village Inn! (photo by Camilla Photography)

Asheville Bee Charmers, where you'll find an incredible honey tasting bar,
along with some of my mugs, honey pots, and even these sweet necklaces.

Can't wait to see the new boutique at the new
French Broad Chocolate Lounge location!

Have a nice cup of tea after your mass-aaaah-ge
at Sensibilities Day Spa!

And add to that, The Village Potters have been named Finalists for Martha Stewart's American Made Awards in the Crafts Category. It's an exceptional opportunity, and we are humbled to be considered and thrilled to be among so many fine Makers. Did you know you can vote six times a day? 

You know I believe "homemade tastes better on handmade", and I've been fortunate to have some good experiences on the 'homemade' side a bit more lately. I cook regularly at the studio, to a ridiculously receptive crowd, which only makes me want to do it more (hmmm... I see their plan!). And I was honored to cook a love-filled special meal for a good friend, and with a good friend. It got even better as we got to pick from the absolute cream of the crops and design the entire meal around what was fresh from the Farmer's Market. Watch the homemade tastes better food blog for recipes from that.

And now I'm off on another culinary adventure: I'll be cooking for private groups of eclectic folks gathering to study the hammered dulcimer, and I'll be doing it for three weeks at Virginia Beach. A reasonable question would be 'why am I leaving the studio for three weeks?!' In the final analysis, I tried out two statements: "I got to cook for folks for three weeks at Virginia Beach" and "I passed on a chance to cook for folks for three weeks at Virginia Beach". Adventure wins. And this wasn't a bad motivation either:

Sunrise at Va. Beach (photo by Laurie McCarriar)

And when I get back to Asheville and back in the studio, I get to dive into crazy production to make pots for the holiday season and refill inventories. It will no doubt be highly stressful, extremely exhausting, and at times a tad bit frustrating, but I still wake up every day and think "I get to do this!"