This pie is typical Irish fare: comfort food at its best. It can be served for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I make this with only a bottom crust. I find a top crust too starchy with the potato being the main filling. There are many variations of the dish. This particular recipe is my version after reading and tasting some of these potato pie recipes. I hope you enjoy this perhaps on a cold, wintery evening. I serve it with a Caesar salad for an easy but delicious meal. Reheat for breakfast.
I had a very similar version of this pie in Navan, County Meath, very near where I lived in Trim. My Irish friends Anne and Eddie would take me a couple times a month to a larger grocery store in Navan so I could get large quantities of food. During the week when I ran out, I would walk downtown to the smaller shops and bag-drag the items home. I learned to be very organized, or I would send Erin or Eli to buy something I needed right then. I never had a car except for one month when we toured so stayed thin because we walked so much. When I returned home, I realized walking was a mindset. Since I did not have a car, I thought nothing of walking walking two miles for a loaf of bread. Back in Delmar, if I needed that loaf of bread, I drove the two blocks to get it never thinking to walk.
...So by the next morning the rain had stopped, and I had yet to know it would rain 6 times a day on many days during our stay in Ireland. Miriam made us a breakfast of tea, juice [or what the Irish passed off as juice, more on this later,] cereal, sausage, and apples. The agenda for the day was to enroll Erin and Eli into school which was starting the new year that very day and go to the auctioneer [real estate agent] to find us a home. We first went to the Christian Brothers school St. Michael's and were directed to the principal who also taught fourth year which is grade 4 in the States. He spoke with us in the hall outside his classroom and said Eli could start right then and that he would be in his class. I was a little surprised by this and was not yet willing to let go of my nine-year-old son, so I said that tomorrow would be fine. The door to the classroom had glass on the upper portion giving us a clear view of what was taking place inside. It reminded me of a stereotypical scene in a movie about an English boys' school: sheer bedlam. I could barely hear Brother Brehaney above the roar of the students. They were all up out of their seats, running around, throwing things, standing on radiators, etc. I had to laugh, but when I looked at Eli I saw that he was terrified. His eyes were like saucers just staring at this chaos he would soon be entering.
Then we went to Scoil Mhuire, the Convent of Mercy School to enroll Erin. It was hectic there as well since the new term was just beginning. We met with Sister Michael, the head Sister of Mercy, and she asked us to come back the next day. So we went and purchased Eli's uniform: grey slacks, powder blue long-sleeved, button down shirts, navy ties--his first real tie--and navy V-neck sweaters. He looked like Dapper Dan. Now keep in mind Erin and Eli had always gone to public schools in Delmar, Bethlehem Central School District, and they were not raised in a formal religion. So enrolling them in religious schools was something of a daunting experience for them. Miriam showed us where the post office was, and I purchased my first stash of postage. I spent a fortune on postage during our stay as mail was my lifeline to my former life and former self.
Next stop was to find a house to rent. We went to two auctioneers and were told they would have places for us to view the next day, but there was one we could see that afternoon. We went to Griffin Park and saw the most disgusting rental--ugly, dingy, dirty, moldy. I was looking at furnished places, and when I turned the bedding down, there were bugs crawling all over. We got out of there fast. I suppressed depression and forced myself to believe something wonderful would be found the next day. We went back to the B & B, and Miriam made us grilled cheese for lunch. I can still see the huge chunks of raw onion inside the sandwich. I thought I might possibly vomit. I thought for sure Erin or Eli would, but they rose to the occasion and just took out the onions. I was proud of them. Miriam was none too pleased with us as I recall. I thought it was the Irish way of preparing a grilled cheese sandwich but later discovered it was simply Miriam's way. We went on a brisk walk, and Miriam showed us some of Trim. It was a charming town with the River Boyne slowly ambling its way through it creating many bridges and many opportunities for swan sightings. I would take many wonderful, leisure, peaceful walks along its banks over the many months of our stay. I always felt rested and renewed after these walks.
Eli in his school uniform in front of our townhouse
Miriam made Irish stew for dinner, and her husband Con [short for Cornelius] asked if I ate the skin on the potatoes. We were informed he was a local
garda or policeman. I said that I did and his response was one of amazement. I found out why when I ate a potato and discovered the peel was filthy. I guess Miriam never developed the habit of washing the potatoes before baking them. Eli watched some telly--we were beginning our vocabulary transformation, and Erin talked to Miriam's daughter Grainne who was her age and went to Scoil Mhuire. Eli went to bed at 9 to be well-rested for his new school adventure the next day. Erin and I stayed up until 10 and drifted off trying to envision what the next day would bring.
IRISH POTATO, BACON, AND CHEESE PIE [Serves 6]
Ingrdedients:
Crust for bottom layer
4 large potatoes, peeled and sliced very thinly
16 pieces of crisp bacon, broken into pieces
16 ounces of extra sharp cheese, grated
½ cup of romano cheese, grated
½ stick of butter plus a few pats for topping
¼ cup of flour
2½ cups of milk
1½ T. of Provençal herbs [Blend of lavender, thyme, savory, basil, and fennel]
Salt and pepper
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375º. Prepare pie plate. I use a 10-inch for this recipe. It makes a large pie. If you want to make a 9-inch pie, just reduce the ingredients a bit or it will spill over into the oven when baking. [If you are in a hurry, use the refrigerated crust already rolled, but do not bring the crust to the top of the pie plate as it might overbrown in the oven since they are for 9-inch pies. Again, if you are making a 9-inch, this crust will fit perfectly.] Place the crust onto the plate. Make the cream sauce by melting the butter, adding the flour to make a light roux. Add the milk and gently bring to a boil. Reduce heat and stir in the Provençal herbs continuing to stir until thickened. Place ⅓ of the potatoes in a swirl formation on the bottom of the plate adding ⅓ of the bacon, ⅓ of the sharp cheese, and ⅓ of the cream sauce. Lightly salt and pepper each layer. Layer the rest of the ingredients in order. Top with a few pats of butter and the romano cheese. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until golden brown, potatoes are tender, and fork comes out clean.
Next: Part 6 of our Irish adventure--Eli's first day of school at St. Michael's, the fiasco of enrolling Erin into Scoil Mhuire, and starting the arduous task of finding a house to lease.
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