Column from March 19

Last Friday, we welcomed my new grandson into the world.

For the next few weeks, his mommy has to take it pretty easy, so I’ll be doing the majority of the cooking. However, with my busy schedule, I’ll need quick and easy meals.

Living in Washington state means everyone in the family loves potatoes.

Our state is the second largest producer of potatoes in the U.S., producing 23 percent of the nation’s crop. In fact, the state’s potato crop is valued at $685 million.

That’s a lot of potatoes!

In 2007, Washington growers raised 165,000 acres of potatoes with an average yield of 62,000 pounds per acre. That equals over 10 billion pounds total. And 87 percent of those potatoes were processed into frozen potato products, such as French fries, hash browns, tater tots, etc.

Potatoes are good for you, too. They provide vitamins C, B6, thiamin, niacin and folate, as well as iron, magnesium, phosphorus, trace minerals and more potassium than a banana.

They also contain dietary fiber and carbohydrates.

There are many recipes for potatoes. Some very unique ones can be found at the potatoes.com, which is the Web site of the Washington State Potato Commission.

Just about every recipe book on my shelf has quite a variety of choices for potato dishes. One of my family’s favorites is a twist on scalloped potatoes and is made with frozen hash browns. It is super easy and goes great with a ham.

If I have leftovers, I will chop up the ham and mixed it into the potatoes for a complete meal the next day.

Hash brown casserole

½ cup melted butter

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

½ cup diced onion

1 can cream of chicken soup

2 cups grated cheese

1 pounds shredded hash browns, thawed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine butter, salt, pepper, onion, soup and cheese. Gently mix in hash browns. Place in a greased 13x9-inch pan. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes. Serves 6.