Q: Your potato column a couple of weeks ago reminded me of the potato topper that you made for an event at Lawrence High School. Will you share the recipe?

A: Oh wow, what a good memory! A year or two ago I made a Beef Stroganoff and Cheesy Vegetable potato topper that was shared with the teachers during a parent-teacher conference. I’m not sure which one you’re thinking of, so here’s both of them. For more great potato topper and other recipes, take a look at www.healthypotato.com/recipes.

Beef stroganoff

Meatballs:

1 3/4 pounds ground beef

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

4 teaspoons bottled steak sauce, i.e. Heinz 57

1/3 cup packaged dry bread crumbs

1 egg

Nonstick vegetable spray

Sauce:

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

1/2 pound sliced mushrooms

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon ketchup

1 (10 1/2 ounce) can condensed beef broth, undiluted.

1/2 (1 5/8 ounce) package dry onion soup mix

1 cup sour cream

In a large bowl, combine ground beef, salt, pepper, steak sauce, bread crumbs and egg. Using hands, gently shape mixture into meatballs, 1/2-inch in diameter. Spray a large skillet with nonstick vegetable spray. Brown meatballs well all over. Reduce heat and continue to cook about 10 minutes or until meatballs are done. Remove meatballs from skillet.

To make sauce, add the butter or margarine to the skillet. Saute mushrooms for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in flour and ketchup. Gradually stir in broth. Add the onion soup mix; bring to boiling while stirring. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Add meatballs; simmer gently 5 minutes, or until heated through. Stir in sour cream. Heat gently over low heat. Serve over baked potatoes. Makes 8 servings.

Cheesy vegetable topper

5-6 cups frozen loose-pack broccoli, carrots and cauliflower

6 strips bacon, cut up

1 (8-ounce) jar cheese spread with pimiento

1 (8-ounce) package low-fat cream cheese, cubed

1/2 cup low-fat milk

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tablespoons snipped parsley

Cook frozen vegetables according to package directions until crisp-tender. Drain well. Meanwhile, cook cut up bacon until crisp; drain bacon on paper towels. Crumble bacon; cover and chill.

In a clean saucepan, combine cheese spread, cream cheese, milk and garlic powder. Cook and stir over low heat until cheese is melted and sauce is smooth. If necessary, beat with a rotary beater to smooth sauce. Stir in drained vegetables and parsley. If desired, transfer cheese mixture to a storage container; cover and chill until ready to serve. At serving time, stir bacon into sauce. Gently heat through over low heat, stirring occasionally. To serve, spoon a small amount of the mixture over baked potatoes. Makes 3 1/2 cups.

As we are on the subject of potatoes, I want to share a sweet potato recipe that was demonstrated and shared by Chef Kenneth Baker, executive chef and owner of Pachamama’s Restaurant, at the Kansas 4-H Foundation’s Gourmet Getaway Benefit. With the amount of heavy cream, butter and cheese in this recipe, it’s definitely an “occasional food,” but is well-worth having in your recipe repertoire. It is heavenly.

Sweet potato gratin

4 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick, tossed with a small amount of heavy cream

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 tablespoon dry marjoram

1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 cup bread crumbs, moistened with melted butter

2 cups heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole. Place a layer of the sweet potatoes in the casserole and dot with half the butter. Sprinkle generously with marjoram, salt and pepper, and cover with half of the Parmesan cheese. Repeat as many times as there are sweet potatoes. Top with bread crumbs and pour the cream around the sides. Dot with the remaining butter and Parmesan cheese. Bake until the sweet potatoes are tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

– Susan Krumm is an Extension agent in family and consumer sciences with K-State Research and Extension-Douglas County, 2110 Harper St. She can be reached at 843-7058.