You may have heard about this World War II dish from the book by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows titled ‘The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society’. If you want to bake your own potato peel pie recipe, we are here to help.
What is a Potato Peel Pie?
Before delving into the different variations of potato peel pie recipes, we shall know about their origin first. Made famous by the book ‘The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society’ by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, the potato peel pie is a popular recipe in bookworm circles.
Since the food ratio during World War II is scarce, people develop particular recipes to make the most of their food. During the 1940s, Guernsey island is overrun by German soldiers. The German occupation leads to food scarcity.
The livestock of the residents of Guernsey Island is confiscated.
People can’t afford to throw their food, leading to wartime recipes. That is when the potato peel pie is born.
Even though the word pie is present in its name, potato peel pie doesn’t have an actual pie crust or any pastry dough. Instead, people used the peel of the potatoes as the base for their pie. The primary ingredients of the pie are potatoes and beetroot. Root crops that are readily available and cheap. Although milk is more challenging to find, it’s still prominent on Guernsey island.
Ingredients
1-2 pieces of peeled potatoes (separate the peel)
A piece of beetroot
Milk
Method:
- Wash the potatoes and boil them for 3-5 minutes.
- Then, let the potatoes cool down and peel them. Make sure that the potato peel strips are big enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
- Line up the peels into a pie pan. Make sure that you coat the base and the sides of the pan.
- Let the pie bake in the oven for a couple of minutes until the potato peel crust is brown. The usage of an oven is a modern take. The people back then have limited appliances and fuel. Instead, people used firewood for cooking and baking. If you want to stay true to the original technique, you can use a cast-iron skillet and place it on top of an open fire.
- Wash and peel the beetroot and cut it into cubes.
- Smash and mix the peeled potatoes and beetroot together. Gradually add milk as needed.
- Once you mix the ingredients, put the mashed potato and beetroot into the potato peel crust and bake it again. ingredients
- After pulling it out of the oven, let the pie cool down for 15 minutes before serving.
That’s it! You now have the original potato peeled pie recipe.
Now, let’s get into modern times. Since the Netflix movie adaptation of the book, there is an increase in people who wants to make their own potato peel pie.
Chefs and home cooks made their own variety of potato peel pie. Both professional and homey versions of the dish are present.
Read further down to know more versions of this dish.
11 Best Potato Peel Pie Recipes
1. The 1940’s Experiment
This version of the potato peeled pie doesn’t veer much from the original recipe. The author added seasonings such as salt and pepper to make them palatable to modern times. The additions are a few seasonings such as salt and pepper, the optional margarine, and spring onion.
Since people now have access to these staple spices, the author made adjustments to satisfy the palate.
2. Guernsey Chef Version
In this version, Guernsey’s local chef Tony Leck demonstrates how to make the most popular and original version of the potato peel pie recipe from his hometown.
Although, some ingredients are incorporated to make it tastier. Eggs, chives, and milk are also present in the dish.
He based his potato peel pie on the accounts of the locals of Guernsey Island.
3. Nancy Miyasaki’s Potato Peel Pie
After reading the book, Nancy decides to search for the original rendition online. Once she found it a bit bland, she settled on making a recipe of her own.
This serving is enough for eight people, so be sure to bring your friends or book club members to eat this with you as you read and socialize.
4. Modern Potato Peel Pie by Sherburne Public Library
As a part of their Recipe Wednesday, the Sherburne Public Library decided to make their version of the potato peel pie recipe. Although, this version strays a bit from the original procedure.
Instead of using potato peels as their base, they used modern hash browns. They also added ingredients that will make your pie taste more delicious.
5. Humbled Homemaker with Erin Odom
After searching the internet for a potato pie recipe that can satisfy her, Erin turned up empty-handed. It didn’t discourage her. Instead, it inspired her to make her own potato peel pie recipe.
Since she wanted to make it more palatable to her family and friends, Erin decided to use a more modern approach while making her own version of the potato peel pie.
6. Modern Guernsey Potato Peel Pie
Tony Leck continues to make another version of the potato peel pie recipe. This time, he goes all out with the dish and incorporates ingredients that aren’t available in the war times. The addition of choices, meats, and spices is a great way to elevate the recipe.
7. Pleasing Potato Peel Pie by Downtown Abbey Cooks
This version of the potato peel pie strives for tastiness. As the author pointed out, the recipe in the book can be a bit bland and tasteless.
She decided to add a little bit of seasoning to spice up the potato peel pie recipe.
By adding adjustments while staying true to the original recipe, she ensures that her recipe will be delicious and satisfying.
7. Chef Irfan Pabaney’s Version
This version is more gourmet compared to the examples above. His interpretation of a potato peel pie is a bit complicated but delicious.
You can clearly see his expertise in the field with the finished product of his potato peel pie.
If you want a bit of a challenge, this version might be the one for you.
8. The Hungry Bookworm’s Potato Peel Pie
Compelled to bring a delicious dish to enjoy with her book club, Megan decided to make a non-occupied version of the potato peel pie recipe.
She added a couple of ingredients to make the potato peel pie tastier without straying away from the core ingredients. If you want something to serve in your book club, make sure to give Megan’s version a try.
9. Crispy Potato Skin by Chef Jack Ovens
This dish is not a potato pie per se, but this recipe stays to the idea of the potato peel pie recipe.
The crispy potato skin includes the potato peels as a crust and a creamy potato filling. The only difference is that this version is done with individual potatoes rather than putting them into a pie pan.
10. Grandma’s Potato Peel Pie
Resting in a 2009 blog is another potato peeled pie recipe. This version doesn’t stray away from the original version that much. It includes the authentic feel that the original had.
The author also prefaced a lot of add one you can have in your potato per pie if you want a tastier interpretation. If you want an easy and fast recipe, this is the one for you.
You must be eager to try out these potato peel pie recipes but hold up! We have more tips for you.
11. Corrales Community Library Potato Peel Pie
Watch as a representative from the Corrales Community Library talk about the book while making a potato peel pie herself. If you want to have a background while you make your own potato peel pie, be sure to check the recipe out.
12. Penguin Random House’s Potato Peel Pie Recipe
This potato peel pie recipe cooks the pie as the original. The ingredients and methodologies are based on how they did it back into the 1940s. If you want an authentic look into how to make your own authentic potato peel pie, you should check the recipe out.
5 Tips with How to Make a Potato Peel Pie
Before running into your kitchen to make your own potato peel pie, we have a few tips for you.
Wash the Potatoes Thoroughly
Since you are going to use the peel of the potatoes, make sure to clean it as much as you can. You don’t want your potato peel pie to taste like dirt.
If you have an unused chainmail sponge, you can use it to scrub off the dirt.
Cleaning them in warm water will also help remove the dirt and grime. Make sure that there is no dirt left before baking your potato peel crust.
Add More Toppings and Ingredients
The original potato peel lie recipe is a bit lacking when it comes to flavor. It’s pretty understandable. The people who made the first potato peel pie recipe didn’t do it for gourmet or satisfaction.
The people of Guernsey did it to survive the German occupation. Fortunately, we are not in that era. We can now freely have and buy food we want without doing wartime recipes.
It’s alright if you want to adjust the recipe and add other ingredients to your liking.
There is no rule for cooking. Do what sounds the most delicious to you.
Don’t Use An Oven
If you want to stay true to the old-timey feel of the recipes, you don’t have to use an oven at all. The oven was not a new technology at the time when Guernsey people were occupied by the Germans, but access to ovens and fuel may have been limited.
Most people cook and bake on cast iron pans atop an open flame. If you want to have the authentic feel of the potato peel pie, you can also do it like that as well.
Don’t Be Scared to Experiment
If you read the recipes, don’t be scared to try them out and add something in.
As many of the authors noted, the original potato pie recipe is lacking when it comes to the taste department. This is due to the scarcity the people faced during World War II.
The original has three ingredients. None of them are seasonings.
If you want to have a tastier potato pie recipe, it’s alright to stray away from the original as some of the others did.
Add cheese, bacon, and a lot of spices. Potato is a pretty flexible ingredient. It can go well with a lot of spices and food. Make the best potato pie you can.
Be Patient
The recipes seem easy, especially the original potato peel pie. There is no way you will make some mistakes, right?
When it comes to any process, mistakes and errors are bound to happen. Don’t get discouraged and give up.
Your potato peel pie recipe will come together with a bit of determination and creativity.
More Potato Peel Recipes to Try Out!
If you want to try out more recipes that utilize potato peels, we are here to help you out. With these recipes, you will surely not throw away your potato peels anytime soon.
Potato Peel Crisps
To make potato peel crisps, you need three things: potato peel, oil, and salt. After washing the potato peel, put the peels in boiling water for three to five minutes.
Dry it with tissue paper and cook it in hot oil until crispy.
Potato Peel Soup
Hot and steamy potato peel soup is a great way to warm you up. If you want a great way to use potato peels, put it in a pot along with onions and garlic for a quick but tasty stew.
In conclusion
Potato peel pie recipes are a testament to Guernsey’s people ingenuity. At the hard times of war, they find creativity and strived to survive.
We hope this article helped you find the perfect potato peel pie recipe.
Michael Johnson is the founder of Pan Mastery, Inspired by his blacksmith grandfather’s legacy has a deep appreciation for hand-crafted pots and pans, he provides invaluable guides, reviews, and recipes to enhance your culinary journey.