I love potatoes. Who doesn’t? Even a bad french fry, when the potato has behaved like a sponge and soaked up a bit more oil than intended, is good. And who did not live off of the classic baked potato when they were in college? With some broccoli tossed on, and a sprinkling of cheddar cheese, an entire, homey meal, made for a king– or a college student. Boiled, steamed, hash-browned, or sauteed, I am an equal-opportunity queen of the starches.

The potato is like the little black dress of the culinary world. However you decide to dress it, it is infinitely adaptable. So when it is dreary out, cold and gloomy, when you wake up each morning, put on your glasses, and gaze out the window toward the barren, bud-less trees, hoping that maybe tomorrow, you will see a burgeoning bit of greenery, sometimes the only thing left to do is retreat into the kitchen with your good ol’ friend– the potato.

My mom sent me this recipe, for a crispy potato cake. It’s been sitting in my inbox, just waiting for the right, somber day to do a little savory baking. Perhaps little is not the correct word, rather, fat or heavy might be more appropriate, because that is what this cake is. Made by ricing 5 lbs. of potatoes, the batter is mostly that– potatoes. Mixed with prosciutto, bechamel, Parmesan, et al., this cake is not for the timid. It is for the hungry, those that have a gaping hole where their stomachs used to be, waiting for some starch to come by and spackle it.

Delightfully neutral, the potatoes get warm and crisp on top, smooth and hearty on the inside. The recipe is a bit labor-intensive, with the boiling, ricing, mixing, making bechamel, etc., but it proved to be the perfect meal to make when the only thing you wanted to do was to curl up inside anyway. Just make sure and do your calisthenics beforehand. With eight potatoes, this cake weighed a ton.

Crispy Potato Cake

8 med. boiling potatoes (about 5 pounds)
salt to taste
4 tablspoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
3 large eggs
1/4 lb. sliced prosciutto or baked ham, diced
2 tablspoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg
1 cup bechamel sauce (recipe below)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup fine dried bread crumbs

Put the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover them generously with cold water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until the potatoes can easily be pierced with a long knife, 25 to 35 minutes. Drain the potatoes and let cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 400 and butter a 10 in. springform pan and coat the bottom and sides with the bread crumbs.

As soon as the potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel them and pass them through a food mill or a potato ricer into a large bowl. (Do not use a food processor to mash the potatoes; it will make them very gummy.) Season with salt.

Melt the butter in a small pan (or microwave) and add to the potatoes. Beat 2 of the eggs in a small bowl and add to the potatoes, along with the ham, flour, parsley, nutmeg, bechamel, cheese, and mix thoroughly.

Put the potato mixture in the prepared pan, shake the pan lightly to distribute it evenly, and smooth the top with a spatula. Beat the remaining egg and brush it over the top of the potatoes. Bake on the middle rack of the oven until the cake has a crisp brown crust on top and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean (about 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Remove the sides of the pan and transfer to serving dish. Serve warm or at room temp.

Bechamel Sauce

1 1/2 cups milk, plus more if needed
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoon flour
pinch of salt

Heat the milk in a small saucepan over low heat. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan over med low heat. When the butter begins to foam, beat in the flour with a wooden spoon or a whisk and cook, stirring for about 2 min. making sure not to let the flour brown.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the hot milk all at once, whisking energetically to prevent lumps. Put the pan back over low heat, add the salt, and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is med. thick, about 5 minutes. If the sauce is too thick, stir in a little more milk, too thin, cook it longer.