The "Ultimate" Hash Browns?

Just in case you have missed this little tidbit about me: I am a Food Network Junkie. Though here are quite a few shows and hosts that I snipe (or Shrike) about, I find this channel to be mostly useful and entertaining.

So when I was watching Tyler's Ultimate on FN yesterday afternoon, my attention was immediately caught by his Baked Potato Hash Browns. So much so that I grabbed the last of our russet potatoes (hmm, that scenario sounds vaguely familiar...) and made this dish for today's lunch.

I followed Tyler's instructions and grated the potatoes on an older kitchen towel. Another note to self: Hello?! Is anybody home? You have a food processor with a grater attachment. Use it!

Wow. Tyler was right. See all the excess potato joos that came out of these things? I do hope that this towel will get clean again.

The other players. Two bacon slices*, one-half shallot (not scallion), two green onions, salt, pepper, an egg white, olive oil (Yes, I know it's in a wine bottle. It's olive oil. Trust me), and because I don't have fresh thyme or parsley (Hello! Winter in Southern Indiana!), I substituted 1/2 tsp. of my own blend of Herbes de Provence.

*I have recently taken to buying packages of fresh bacon, cutting sheets of freezer paper, laying the slices out in a single layer on each sheet and then placing them in an oversize (about 2 1/2 gallon) zip-top bags, and then freezing them. It is easy to then grab the needed amount.

We are ready for the potatoes and the sauteed bacon and scallions.

Hmm, I diced when I should have sliced. Oh well, the scallions still work.

I mixed all the ingredients together and press down before frying. Once it was time to flip I made my husband turn around so that I could flip it without making a huge mess all over my kitchen. This is something I have learned: you CANNOT air-flip the food if you do not believe you will succeed. But, he did turn around and the deed was done. Yay for me!

Once I had flipped the hash browns, I added my aluminum foil sleeve to the handle so that the pan can go into the oven. I have been using this same piece of double wrapped foil for this pan for several years. Aren't I frugal? Shouldn't my CPA husband be proud of me?

After 15 minutes in a 425 degree oven, the hash browns are inverted onto a plate. A pizza cutter works well to cut this into slices.

My husband asked for shredded cheddar cheese on top of his serving. A dollop of sour cream completes the plating.

So how was this? While I will slightly tweak the technical aspects of the recipe to better fit my style of cooking, over all it is a success. And my picky husband liked it. This is a winner in my book.

Hey! See? I did find some color! I guess I just need to venture away from my computer once in a while. In case you are wondering, this is a Christmas cactus that I put out on the front porch last summer. An impatien seed took root and grew and it has been blooming all winter. And the colors of the flowers even coordinate. How good is that?