-L. wrote:

>
> What you can do is par-boil the potatoes first before baking them in
> the sauce/cheese. I just bake mine a long time, and they are always
> pretty soft. Also, if you bake them covered for the first 20 minutes
> or so, most of the potato moisture will be retained and more liquid
> generated, so the potatoes will be softer - but the sauce may be
> thinner as well. Then uncover them so the sauce can reduce and the
> cheese can then brown a bit.
>

Thanks! When you say par-boil - does that mean partial boil, as in
boil, but not the full time? Or does it mean something else?

> Most things are trial and error in cooking - even if you cook by
> recipe, because every one's kitchen, tools, and experience level
> differs; eventually you will find a recipe and technique that works
> well for you, your oven and your skills.
>

I'm pretty good at the error part

I'm getting better though. My last batch of black bean chicken was
edible. Not nearly as good as the stuff at work, but okay. The first
batch was so bad, I rinsed the sauce off. That was when I tried the
packet seasoning. My second try was with directions from the cook at
work. I'm going to try again later this week and and see if I can get
it figured out. He was pretty good about giving me portions, but he
cooks in large batches and gave me numbers of how many spoons of each
item. I think he heaps them at different levels.

I'm going to try a new alfredo sauce tomorrow. I have two recipes that
both sound really good. So, I will do a small batch of each and see
what I like.