Baby Potatoes with Figs & Gorgonzola in Port Sauce

Potato skins are good for you.  That was a first for my husband and armed with the new knowledge, he went home still disbelieving what he just heard and confirmed at the internet.  God, I hope so.  I had been eating potato skins half of my life.  They actually taste good.  If only I can remember how they were cooked when I used to eat them.  With melted cheese perhaps, because I remember accompanying them with a cold bottle of beer.

Most of the minerals and fibers are actually found in the skin or just under it.  And when the potato is cooked with the skin on, it traps the nutrients inside.  You shouldn't eat them when the sprouts are already coming out and if they are green because they can be toxic. 

I felt like browning the potatoes on a saucepan this time, not in the oven.  Maybe because I was pressed for time or just hoping for something tastier than oven-roasted potatoes.  I was wrong about my timing though because in the end, it took me much longer than I anticipated.   I wanted to mix them with gorgonzola but I needed something else to complete the taste.  That's when I noticed that the package had a picture of figs with the cheese.  I didn't know gorgonzola and figs go together.   I bridged the blending with Port.  Then crossing my fingers, I commenced my experiment.  If it fails, I would be wasting a kilo of potatoes, without a side dish and would be confronting two hungry cross kids for the unpunctuality of dinner.  

The potatoes were a lovely shade of dark amber brown, caramelized by the figs and Port.  A tad sweet with the pleasant saltiness of the gorgonzola.  You can also go without the cheese but I suggest you do because it takes out the flavors of the dish.

Baby Potatoes with Figs & Gorgonzola in Port Sauce

Ingredients:
Serves 4

• 1 kilo baby potatoes, cleaned & scrubbed, leaving the skin on
• Bunch of rosemary
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup water 
• 100 grams dried figs, quartered
• 1 cup Porto
• Salt 
• Pepper
• 30 grams gorgonzola (or any blue cheese substitute), crumbled

Directions:

1. Over medium heat, in a saucepan with extra virgin olive oil, sautè the potatoes & rosemary for about 15 minutes.  Toss them in the pan so that they don't burn.  
2. Add the water & cover. Simmer over low heat until the potatoes are tender.  Check by piercing them with the point of a knife.  
3. When the water is reduced, add the dried figs & Porto.  Cook uncovered on medium fire. Season with salt & pepper.
4. When the sauce is becomes slightly thick, turn off the fire.  Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil & sprinkle with the crumbled gorgonzola.