Let’s be real, here.. is there a food that can outshine the potato? I’ll wait…

French fried, mashed, scalloped, totted, loaded, baked… The list goes on. Filling enough to be a meal but light enough to be considered a salad. Potatoes can be the main course or a side dish. Enjoyed as a breakfast food, lunch accompaniment or delish dinner eats. Potato rolls, gnocchi (potato pasta), soups, pancakes, snacks and don’t forget vodka!

Steamed, boiled, baked, roasted, fried… You can even use them to conduct electricity. Potatoes were grown in space in 1995. Other uses are in the garden, especially to grow roses and make certain flowers more vibrant. Bio plastics can be made from… you guessed it! Potatoes! You can use potatoes to remove rust, due to the oxalic acid which naturally occurs in the spud. And of course, “potato parcel” which will mail a potato to your choice of recipient with your face on it!

And it can also devastate. Let us never forget the great famine in Ireland. “Between 1845-52 Ireland suffered a period of starvation, disease and emigration that became known as the Great Famine. The main cause was a disease which affected the potato crop, upon which a third of Ireland’s population was dependent for food.”

So… between the fun facts and the 100+ ways to cook and eat this particular starch which is considered the “original superfood” (because it was cultivated in 8,000 BC) and the fact that it holds healing powers that aids in digestion, lowers blood pressure, and prevents cancer! While sporting vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber and more potassium than bananas! 98% of humans are potassium deficient… So…EAT THOSE FREAKING FRIES!!!!

Yours while geeking out and looking for a good food debate,

The CR