Cast Iron Crispy Hash-Brown Cake with Fried Peppers

The cool thing about this hash brown cake is it has just the right balance between a crunchy outside and buttery inside. Cut this in wedges for serving. It is perfect for an unrushed weekend breakfast or brunch but really goes well with just about anything - especially as a side to a good steak. It also makes a satisfying vegetarian main course. 

Just a word of caution - this really has to be done in a cast iron skillet for best results. You will have to flip over the hash browns halfway through so become familiar and think through the procedure first or you might end up with a mess.

Ingredients

2 1/2 pounds (3 to 4) russet potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled

Fine sea salt

1 1/4 sticks salted butter

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 medium sweet onion, diced

8 ounces green frying peppers, such as Hungarian wax, cubanelle or baby poblano, leave whole if small, halved if large. You can also find mixed color baby bell peppers in most supermarkets now days.

Directions

Put the potatoes in a saucepan and add enough water to cover generously. Salt the water, bring it to a simmer over medium heat, cover partially, and cook until the potatoes are tender enough to stick a fork into but still on the firm side of done, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and let cool. (You can boil the potatoes up to a day ahead of time and keep them in the refrigerator, if you like.)

While the potatoes are cooking, clarify the butter: 
Heat the butter in a small skillet over medium heat until it foams and starts to turn dark blond on top, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let the butter sit for a few minutes. Then tilt the skillet toward you and gently spoon off the layer of foam. Pour the clear golden butter into another bowl, and then pour the dark dregs at the bottom of the skillet into the bowl containing the foam.

Grate the potatoes coarsely, skins and all, onto a baking sheet, making sure to keep them loose and not pack them down. Combine 1/2 teaspoon salt and the black pepper in a small bowl, sprinkle over the potatoes, along with the diced onion, and gently mix to combine.

Heat a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, and add half of the clarified butter. Add all of the potatoes in an even layer, keeping them loose. Reduce the heat to medium and cook the potato cake until the bottom turns dark amber brown, about 15 minutes. (Peek on the sides: If it's browning too quickly, turn the heat down to medium-low.)

Be careful here because the cast iron skillet is going to be heavy and the handle will be hot - Put a large plate upside down over the skillet, and using two thick oven mitts, grab the sides of the skillet and turn it upside down, releasing the hash-brown cake onto the plate. Put the empty skillet back on the burner and add all but 1 tablespoon of the remaining clarified butter. Slide the potato cake back into the skillet. Cook until the underside turns dark amber brown, 10 to 15 minutes.

While the potato cake is cooking, fry the peppers: Heat a large saute pan over medium heat and add the remaining tablespoon of clarified butter. Add the peppers and 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cook, flipping them often, until they blister and feel tender throughout, about 10 minutes.

To serve, lay the large plate upside down over the skillet, and using oven mitts, invert as before. (If the first side was prettier, invert the cake again onto another serving plate.) Top with a jumble of fried peppers. Cut into wedges and serve immediately.