18 September 2011

Potato pancakes


Potato pancakes were one of the highlights of my childhood. We had them with applesauce ("Himmel und Erde") or with blueberries, both of which my mother had canned in special glass jars during the season. The applesauce was made with a special gadget - a sieve with a pestle (a "seed remover canning colander") - and the jars of blueberries ended up as half liquid with berries floating on top - Mom thickened this with a bit of cornstarch to make a sauce - delicious... Mind you, the pancakes with their crispy edges are damn fine food on their own!

Per person: grate one large potato and "some" of an onion (for 4 people I use an onion of whatever size is handy). Add an egg (but if you're making it with 2 or 3 potatoes, still use only 1 egg; use 2 eggs for 4 people). Optionally, add 1 tablespoon flour per person/potato, to soak up the liquid a bit, and some salt.

Heat a frying pan and add a little oil, then put in spoonfuls of batter and spread them thin (to get the crispy edges). I use a 10" pan and make 3 little pancakes at a time. When the edges are brown, turn over and cook a bit more.


3 comments:

Jane Housham said...

They look lovely. Is this a German tradition, then, of potato pancakes with sweet sauce?

Margaret Cooter said...

It's probably widespread in middle and eastern Europe - mind you, I haven't researched this at all...

Cate Rose said...

Jewish tradition! Potato latkes! We called that gizmo a Foley Food Mill (Foley was the brand, here).