Potato Pancakes

The versatile russet figures prominently (again) in my recipe for this week - potato pancakes. Potato pancakes are simply grated potatoes mixed with a few other ingredients and fried.

In my opinion, the perfect potato pancake has a crispy exterior with a thin and somewhat creamy interior.  To achieve this result, it's best to grate the potatoes on a fine grater as opposed to a coarse one and fry them in plenty of oil.  You can get loads of crispiness with coarsely grated potatoes, but it's much more difficult to get that creamy exterior when you grate the potatoes coarsely.  However, you might prefer your potato pancakes to be little golden nuggets of crunch.  In that case, grate your potatoes using the coarse grater.

Potato pancakes are like a blank slate.  They are delicious by themselves or with the traditional accompaniments of sour cream or applesauce.  They make a lovely side for most roasted or grilled meats.  They're a tasty alternative to hash browns at breakfast.  However, they're best right out of the skillet.

This is another recipe where it's easy to make as little or as much as you'd like.  You'll get 6-8 small pancakes or 3-4 large pancakes from each large russet potato.  Peel and grate your potatoes into a medium or large bowl.  For two large russet potato add:

2-3 T finely grated onion
1 lightly beaten egg
3-4 t all-purpose flour
1/4 t salt, or to taste
freshly grated pepper to taste

Mix all the above ingredients with the grated potatoes until thoroughly combined.

Heat vegetable oil in a skillet over medium to high heat.  Use enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet with about 1/8-inch of oil.

When oil is hot, spoon small or large amounts of the potato pancake mixture into the hot oil.  Spread lightly with the back of the spoon.

Cook until crispy and golden on one side, about 1-3 minutes, then flip and cook until the other side is crispy and golden, another 1-3 minutes, depending on the size of the pancakes and the heat of your stove.

There are many delicious additions you might want to include in your potato pancakes.  Finely chopped green onions or spring onions, finely chopped parsley, or snipped dill are a few suggestions.  You can grate some carrots in the with potatoes for color, variety, and more nutrition.

Today's bounty included:

From County Line Harvest South:  Purple scallions, collar greens, arugula, baby scarlet turnips, baby daikon radishes, red bor kale;

From Jimenez Family Farm:  Carrots, winter squash, cabbage, russet potatoes, broccoli, beets, and spinach;

From K and K Ranch:  Navel oranges, Satsuma tangerines, and Pink Lady apples;

From Silver Lake Farms:  bunch oregano, sage and rosemary.

Enjoy!

Shelley