Jacket potatoes, the French way — Pommes de terre en robe des champs
One of the things that I clearly inherited from my father is his love and attachment à la terre, the soil.
And Nature.
It does not come as an accident. He was raised on a farm, and his summers were filled with afternoons spent to work in the fields during hay season.
With them came potatoes which were frequently the main piece of dinner eaten at my grandparents’.
Like des pommes de terre en robe des champs–which literally translates as “potatoes wearing a dress from the fields“–a rustic dish made of potatoes simply boiled with their skin that his family ate with fromage blanc seasoned with chives, shallot, salt and pepper.
I think that he must have eaten too much of this type of food because today, he does not care so much for it.
On the other hand, I do. In fact, I am completely crazy for it and will prepare it whenever I feel like having earthy foods.
Here in the United States, it’s unfortunately almost impossible to find fromage blanc. On occasions, I manage to find some by Vermont Butter and Cheese, but I don’t like it since it is 0% fat–which is not my cup of tea.
Instead, I like my fromage blanc to be made with full fat milk so that the texture is silky and flavorful. Hence I only eat fromage blanc — and indulge as much as I can — when I travel back to France.
Making the sauce is easy. Instead of fromage blanc (which I also like to combine sometimes with petits suisses), I use Greek yogurt made with whole milk. I add lemon juice, a generous amount of chopped chives, a few spices and shallot and the result is a thick flavorful sauce that accompanies beautifully the potatoes–Lulu more particularly enjoys dipping her potatoes into the sauce. Choose your favorites: potatoes that are dense in texture, like fingerlings, or others like Russet that will crumble more easily. Peel them before serving or leave them on the table with the skin on, for your guests to decide. I personally prefer to peel the potatoes before serving them.
In all cases, it’s humble food at its best. Something delicious that makes a light dinner if you eat a green salad on the side; or something more substantial if you accompany the food with cured meats, grilled meats and other fresh summer salads.
Even my dad tends to agree…
You need:
- 20 fingerling potatoes or 12 to 16 Russet potatoes, according to size
- 1.5 cups Greek style yogurt, whole milk (or full fat fromage blanc)
- 1.5 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
- 1 shallot, chopped finely
- Dash of ground cumin
- Sea salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
For the sauce:
Steps:
- Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are cooked through (about 15 minutes, depending on size). Drain and let cool before peeling; set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients to make the sauce. Serve the potatoes with the sauce.
51 Comments »
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I love yours pictures !!!
And thank you for the recipe.
Comment by Lorena Rossi — On June, 28th, 2010 at 1:02 pm
Mmm… tu me donnes envie d’en manger. Des pommes de terres et surtout des Petits Suisses… Pourquoi personne n’a pensé à en importer en Amérique du Nord ?
Les photos sont sublimes, comme d’habitude ! Merci de nous régaler… aussi les yeux !
Comment by christelle is flabbergasting — On June, 28th, 2010 at 1:11 pm
I especially love it when the skin gets super crispy. Love it doused in butter. Your photos are the best!
Comment by Shaheen {The Purple Foodie} — On June, 28th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
And a burger on the side. I have to make this. The idea of yogurt and chives (which we have a plenty of in our garden—chives, not yogurt). Beautiful and light. Oh yes, I will make this for fourth of July weekend. I will!
Comment by Tracy — On June, 28th, 2010 at 1:20 pm
Nothing tastier than a well dressed potato! Just need a chilled glass of wine to go with them.
Comment by Rose D., Frenchtown, NJ — On June, 28th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
Wow- these look so simple and pure- its amazing how sometimes that type of food is far better than the elaborate.
Your photos ARE gorgeous! Thank you for sharing!
Comment by A Boston Food Diary — On June, 28th, 2010 at 2:02 pm
Mmmm. May have to try this for 4th of July weekend. Sounds delicious. Perhaps with a grilled flank steak. Thanks for the great recipe and gorgeous photos. I am continuously inspired by your posts.
Comment by Sarah W — On June, 28th, 2010 at 2:20 pm
moi aussi j’adore le fromage blanc! superbes photos comme d’habitude!
Comment by Charlotte — On June, 28th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
I make a similar yogurt sauce for dipping roasted potato wedges, but it never occurred to me to use small boiled potatoes instead!
Comment by caroline — On June, 28th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
What a pretty way to describe potatoes in skin. I must agree with you on requesting that full fat dairy products become more normal in America. We shouldn’t be afraid of natural fat. It makes eating real food so much more worthwhile, and you don’t need so much of it.
Thank you for the substituted suggestion of fromage blanc. I will have to try it!
Comment by Christine @ Fresh Local and Best — On June, 28th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
un plat simple mais si goûteux …
Comment by argone — On June, 28th, 2010 at 3:27 pm
[...] From Bea of La Tartine Gourmande, I suggest her Pommes de terre en robe des champs with yogurt sauce. She adapted her French rustic recipe to what is available in North [...]
Pingback by Delightful Mondays: Simple Summer Recipes | At Home with Kim Vallee — On June, 28th, 2010 at 3:29 pm
Si simple et pourtant ça donne tellement envie… merci pour ces belles photos!
Comment by clémence — On June, 28th, 2010 at 3:34 pm
Humble food at its best, indeed. This sort of simple vegetable dish is what I love to have for dinner most nights of the week. I can’t wait to try it!
Comment by Michelle — On June, 28th, 2010 at 4:42 pm
Great post! New steamed potatoes with a side of (in this case) quark mixed with chives, salt and pepper, and onion are also very popular in Germany. I also use greek yogurt now, the closest to quark.
Comment by Silvia — On June, 28th, 2010 at 4:50 pm
Très belles photos! Ta façon de jouer avec les couleurs est vraiment géniale! C’est plein de fraîcheur et c’est encore plus appétissant!
Comment by Amelie — On June, 28th, 2010 at 5:14 pm
Nous en mangeons au moins un fois par semaine, maintenant je servirais ta sauce avec.
Comment by Vanille — On June, 28th, 2010 at 5:37 pm
that sounds delicious! loving your photos!
Comment by kat — On June, 28th, 2010 at 6:04 pm
I love love love your photos!
Comment by peachkins — On June, 28th, 2010 at 7:23 pm
Je partage ce plaisir terrien de pommes de terre et fromage blanc, et suis prete a partager la recette du fromage blanc maison -que j’ai recu par une amie francaise aux US-
Comment by Joe — On June, 28th, 2010 at 10:07 pm
love your lifestyle、love your picture、love your food。
Comment by kissara — On June, 28th, 2010 at 10:50 pm
ici, c’est une plat d’hiver magique. Quand elles ont cuit sous la cendre….trop booooon
et tes billets sont toujours un régal pour les yeux comme pour la bouche!
Comment by Natte — On June, 29th, 2010 at 12:26 am
everyday I came here~
wait for your splendid picture
just like go in the story of your life~
Comment by YOYO love cooking — On June, 29th, 2010 at 6:12 am
I love your photos so much, and the recipe looks wonderful!
Comment by Angie — On June, 29th, 2010 at 6:14 am
the pictures are sooo beautiful, the nature amazing… superbe..
Comment by fragolina — On June, 29th, 2010 at 6:28 am
What a lovely post. The title is definitely charming – ‘en robs de champs’. Lovely countryside – makes me feel like travelling.
Comment by valentina — On June, 29th, 2010 at 7:27 am
The pictures look so amazing. I’ve never known potato can look this delicious!
Comment by Tes — On June, 29th, 2010 at 7:27 am
Moi qui n’aimais pas les pommes de terre lorsque j’étais jeune, j’en raffole maintenant, surtout servies simplement comme les tiennes.
Comment by Miss Diane — On June, 29th, 2010 at 7:58 am
How lovely. You can always manage to make even the most humble of dishes a delight to the eyes with your photography.
Comment by Alta — On June, 29th, 2010 at 8:17 am
just what i had for dinner last night
great with the hot weather that all of a sudden popped up here in Germany.
best combined with a glass of cold bottermilk! yummieh!
Comment by Anne — On June, 29th, 2010 at 9:30 am
and @Silvia: quark is fromage blanc in france
Comment by Anne — On June, 29th, 2010 at 9:30 am
Love the red/green theme running through most of your pics
Comment by mademarian — On June, 29th, 2010 at 10:23 am
Great fromage blanc tips. Thanks!
Comment by valérie-jeanne — On June, 29th, 2010 at 12:56 pm
Ta délicieuse recette me rappelle le Bibelesskase, plat typique Alsacien que prépare ma Maman et que préparait ma grand-mère avant elle.
Moi j’ai remplace les pommes de terres en robe des champs par des pommes de terre sautées…délicieux mais moins diététique. Merci pour toutes tes belles et bonnes recettes, je ne m’en lasse pas…
Comment by célineTTE — On June, 29th, 2010 at 1:21 pm
I’ve been using yougurt quite a bit lately, amazing how well it goes in so many dishes that would call for cream, mayonnaise, heavier stuff
Beautiful photos!
Comment by SallyBR — On June, 29th, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Quelles belles photos! De simples pommes de terre arrivent à nous transporter!
Comment by Gen — On June, 29th, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Looks simple and tasty.
Comment by Denise | Chez Danisse — On June, 29th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
Beautiful and yet so simple. It brought back some childhood memories. Where I live (Asia) it is also difficult to find good fromage blanc. A friend recently gave me a recipe for home made one. I tasted hers and it was sublime. I will experiment and report back!
Comment by Florence — On June, 29th, 2010 at 7:58 pm
Here in San Antonio we’re lucky to have fromage blanc from http://www.humblehousefoods.com/fresh-cheese (no affiliation with myself). Btw, I’ve enjoyed your blog immensely. All the best.
Comment by Jeff — On June, 29th, 2010 at 8:37 pm
Thank you again for the feedback and ideas. When I am settled in my new kitchen again, I’ll definitely give fromage blanc a go!
Comment by Béa — On June, 29th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
When I lived in London everyone at these tuna stuffed jacket potatoes and I thought they were so gross! Now I can make something that reminds me of my years there but that’s actually good (and French, I won’t tell!) My husband will love this.
Comment by Sage & Style — On June, 30th, 2010 at 10:33 am
What you’re describing is a dish I’ve grown up with, and an old, poor man’s meal in Germany (at least in the very North). It’s called “Pellkartoffeln mit Quark”, literally peel-potatoes with fromage blanc. In my home, we ate it with at least two different types of quark, normally a green and a red version. The green type will have chives, parsley, shallots and any green herbs you fancy while the red version will be flavoured with paprika and contain pieces of red pepper and onion. Allegedly, very poor people used to eat the potatoes just with linseed oil, salt and pepper…
It’s still one of my favourite dishes for an uncomplicated, healthy meal – and I love the earthiness about it, too. I have to admit that these days I often do this the English way, namely baking larger-size potatoes in the oven, so that the skin will be nicely crispy – smaller potatoes I prefer to boil. And there’s one perfect potato for this, the beloved Linda (recently almost pushed from the market as its licence had run out but thankfully saved by public outcry and a huge campaign of foodies).
Comment by Zeralda — On July, 1st, 2010 at 12:37 am
I grew up in Canada with the Norwegian tradition of always peeling your potatoes. After boiling they were placed on the table and everyone peeled their own potato on their dinner plate, diced it and had it with just butter, S&P or the main dish was ladled over top. I now always leave the skin on and just scrub well but funny how it is. I was just in Oslo and we all peeled our own potatoes:) Yummy post with lovely photos as usual.
Comment by Julie — On July, 2nd, 2010 at 5:22 pm
So lovely. Your posts always brighten my day.
Comment by johanna — On July, 12th, 2010 at 2:47 pm
Bonjour Béa. Ici au Québec Liberté fabrique un fromage blanc, ou fromage frais, vache ou chèvre. J’achète celui au lait de chèvre parce que je supporte mal le lait de vache… http://www.liberte.qc.ca/fr/page.ch2?uid=CheeseProducts J’ignore la disponibilité de ces produits en Nouvelle Angleterre; vous pouvez consulter leur site états-unien ici: http://www.liberteyogourt.com/
Comment by lagatta à montréal — On July, 19th, 2010 at 11:18 am
[...] say enough about Trader Joe’s Greek Yogurt Dip with chives. A brilliant solution to the fromage blanc [...]
Pingback by Saturday Breakfast On a Workday « A Loose Garment — On July, 23rd, 2010 at 8:01 am
I feel often for you when reading about your love to whole milk, whole grease products, sorry for you. Guess America isn’t a paradise for shopping products like these …
Comment by creezy — On July, 26th, 2010 at 3:57 am
Thanks for the yogurt substitution suggestion! This sounds delicious and I can’t wait to try it. For now, I’ll just stare into these pictures and bonk my head on my computer screen a few more times… so, so very gorgeous!
Comment by Valerie — On July, 27th, 2010 at 4:20 am
So, now I know what “pommes de terre en robe des champs” IS! I’ve lived in France more than 10 years now, and I’ve never been clear on it.
I keep HOPING they’ll be baked Idaho russet potatoes but, of course, they never are!
But nor have I ever seen them this way, which sounds delicious.
We’ll be (probably) moving back Stateside this year and, you mean there is no fromage blanc there? Quelle horreur!
Most excellent yogurt-mix substitute, however!
Comment by Jim — On February, 28th, 2011 at 10:39 am
[...] Jacket Potatoes – The French Way, from La Tartine Gourmande [...]
Pingback by Herbed Baby Dutch Potatoes — A Food Centric Life — On April, 6th, 2011 at 12:18 am
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Pommes de terre, pommes de terre est, je l’amour bonne à manger! J’ai faim, aujourd’hui, n’ont pas manger les pommes de terre
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