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Mmmm... potatoes...
Aug. 14th, 2008 02:10 pmI spend more time bragging about Bruce's cooking ability than I do my own but the fact remains, I'm a pretty good cook. My forte is comfort food which means I do best in the winter. I'm the girl to come to when it's cold outside and you need a good soup. I call Bruce the better of the two of us because he's cooked longer than I and he can come up with recipes for anything anyone has lying around. I have to have a recipe.
Anyway, for Bruce's birthday in May, Mom and Dad gave him a gift card for Borders. About two weeks ago, he and I went out so he could spend it. He got Watchmen, which won a Hugo and sits on Time Magazine's 100 Best list, and I convinced him to get an Irish cookbook. I'm not talking about a cookbook as pseudoIrish as a leprechaun or The Green Man. This was written expressly for using Irish ingredients and explains the culture behind the recipes.
After having a crappy week at work, he called me yesterday and asked me to cook. After some scrambling, I remembered the cook book and found a fantastic sounding recipe for potato cakes. I've never made these before and worried about how they'd turn out. I needn't. They're silky and perfect with pork chops in Hunter Sauce.
Irish Potato Cakes
1.5 lbs potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 T butter (unsalted if you want to eat them with sugar like a pancake)
1.5 cups all- purpose flour
salt
1. Boil the potatoes until tender, drain and mash. Salt well, then mix in the butter and allow to cool a little.
*I tasted the potatoes and added salt, pepper and butter to taste which means I used more butter than they asked*
2. Turn out on to a floured work surface and knead in about one-third of its volume in flour or as much as needed to make a pliable dough *I only used a cup of flour*.
It will become easier to handle as you incorporate the flour but avoid overworking it. Roll out to a thickness of about 1/2 inch and cut into triangles. *I used a rocks glass to make circular pancakes and patted them to the desired thickness*
3. Heat a dry griddle or heavy frying pan over low heat and cook the potato cakes on it until browned and crispy on each side. Serve hot.
__________________________________________________________________________
Historical note: Yes, I am aware that potatoes are a New World crop and not native to Ireland. However, once introduced, it afforded a decent meal to the poor and as most recipes come about as a result of making due, this is no exception.
Anyway, for Bruce's birthday in May, Mom and Dad gave him a gift card for Borders. About two weeks ago, he and I went out so he could spend it. He got Watchmen, which won a Hugo and sits on Time Magazine's 100 Best list, and I convinced him to get an Irish cookbook. I'm not talking about a cookbook as pseudoIrish as a leprechaun or The Green Man. This was written expressly for using Irish ingredients and explains the culture behind the recipes.
After having a crappy week at work, he called me yesterday and asked me to cook. After some scrambling, I remembered the cook book and found a fantastic sounding recipe for potato cakes. I've never made these before and worried about how they'd turn out. I needn't. They're silky and perfect with pork chops in Hunter Sauce.
Irish Potato Cakes
1.5 lbs potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 T butter (unsalted if you want to eat them with sugar like a pancake)
1.5 cups all- purpose flour
salt
1. Boil the potatoes until tender, drain and mash. Salt well, then mix in the butter and allow to cool a little.
*I tasted the potatoes and added salt, pepper and butter to taste which means I used more butter than they asked*
2. Turn out on to a floured work surface and knead in about one-third of its volume in flour or as much as needed to make a pliable dough *I only used a cup of flour*.
It will become easier to handle as you incorporate the flour but avoid overworking it. Roll out to a thickness of about 1/2 inch and cut into triangles. *I used a rocks glass to make circular pancakes and patted them to the desired thickness*
3. Heat a dry griddle or heavy frying pan over low heat and cook the potato cakes on it until browned and crispy on each side. Serve hot.
__________________________________________________________________________
Historical note: Yes, I am aware that potatoes are a New World crop and not native to Ireland. However, once introduced, it afforded a decent meal to the poor and as most recipes come about as a result of making due, this is no exception.
