Marguerite Paul’s Guernsey potato peel pie recipe

June 25th, 2012 by Richard Lord

Adam Dadeby and Dr David Fleming gave a presentation about peak oil and Tradable Energy Quotas to a Guernsey audience on 23 November 2007.

Mr. Dadeby said that he gained an inkling of what it might be like living in a world of future energy shortages by reading books on the occupation of Guernsey by German troops during World War II.

There was much deprivation during this time. Basic services and food we take for granted today were in short supply. Potato peelings were not to be wasted.

Marguerite Paul’s recipe, which uses Guernsey ingredients, is a tasty and luscious recipe.

Marguerite Paul with her potato peel pie in preparation (click image to expand - ©RLLord)

During Arts Sunday on 17 June 2012 cookbook author Marguerite Paul gave tastings of her delicious potato peel pie recipe, which she said was inspired by the late Mary Ann Shaffer‘s best selling book “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society‘ which tells a story set during the German occupation.

Marguerite Paul’s Potato Peel Pie recipe serves 4

750 grams old potatoes
1 onion (approx 180 grams)
60 grams dry smoked streaky bacon
280 ml double cream
60 grams butter
1 small spring cabbage
500 ml. vegetable oil
Salt and pepper

1. Peel and finely slice the onion. Gently fry in half the butter.

2. Bring a roomy saucepan of water to the boil. Meanwhile scrub then peel the potatoes, reserving the peel.

3. Remove the onions. Cut the streaky bacon into matchstick size pieces. Gently fry in the now empty frying pan.

4. Thinly slice the potatoes and piece by piece drop them into the boiling water. Boil for 10 minutes then drain in a colander.

5. Refill the saucepan and bring to the boil. Take one leaf at a time from the cabbage. Cut out the main fibre. Stack the leaves and then finely shred. Blanch the shredded leaves in boiling water. Drain.

6. Butter the ovenproof dish with remaining butter. Lay half the potato slices over the bottom. Season with salt and pepper. Scatter the cabbage over the top, season. Scatter the bacon over the cabbage, season with pepper. Lay the remaining potatoes on top. Season then pour the cream over the whole dish.

7. Cook in a hot over 350 degrees F/180 degrees C, Gas 4 for for about 45 mins. until bubbling and golden.

8. While the pie cooks, blanch the peel in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain and dry on kitchen paper.

9. Heat the oil. Drop the peel in piece by piece making sure there is space between each piece. It takes about 2 mins. Drain on kitchen paper.

10. Remove the pie from the oven, scatter the peel over the top and serve.

Although Marguerite Paul’s potato peel pie recipe doesn’t appear in her cookbooks, the books do contain many delicious Guernsey recipes.