Friday, January 6, 2017

Potato Waffles

Every now and then you have to think outside the box. I stumbled on this recipe in the food section of the newspaper, and I had to try it. It’s easy, except maybe the part about squeezing the potatoes, but that’s a great way to work out your frustrations (pretend you’re strangling someone).

As it happens, I have a waffle iron—a wedding present—that sees action about once a year. New Year’s resolution: if it doesn’t work, throw it out. Let’s see if the trusty waffle iron still works. (It did.)


Potato Waffles

Ingredients:

2 eggs, beaten
You'll notice I included three graters. The one
on the right is a vintage model, and it would
make really big shreds! I didn't try it.
 

2 shallots, finely chopped
1/4 cup neutral vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste
2 russet potatoes (you know, the floury baking kind, not the waxy kind—it makes a real difference. Together they should weigh about 2-1/2 pounds. But I warn you: a single potato weighing over a pound is one BIG potato!)

Additional oil for the waffle iron


Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees (low). Get out your trusty waffle iron and heat it. (If like me you rarely use it, make sure it actually is heating!)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the eggs, shallots and oil in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper.




Grate one of the potatoes. You can use the big holes on a box grater (I’m always sure I’m going to grate my fingers on those things), or you can use the coarse shredding blade of your food processor, if you have one. You want big shreds, either way!



Wrap the grated potato in a clean cloth towel and wring dry—twist hard! Add the squeezed potato shreds to the egg mixture and mix to coat the shreds. Do the same with the second potato. (You may be wondering why you do these separately: you need to have a smallish lump of potato shreds when you squeeze them dry, so you get as much liquid as possible out. You can put all the shreds into the same bowl with the egg mixture after they’re squeezed.)



Brush the waffle iron with vegetable oil. Add about 1/4 of the potato mixture to the center of the waffle iron and spread out a bit. Close the top of the iron (I recommend leaning on it a bit, to flatten the waffle and make sure it cooks through) and cook about 7 minutes, or until the potato waffle is golden brown and crispy. Remove it (it will come out in one piece, I promise) to the lined baking sheet and put in the oven to keep warm.

I think if I practiced it would look tidier!
Repeat with the remaining potato mixture.

Serve as a side dish, or get fancy and add yummy things like smoked salmon and chives. Feel free to experiment—or eat them hot just the way they are! BTW, they also reheat well, if you happen to have any left over.


BREAKING NEWS!

It's a Sale! One day only! On Monday, January 9th, Watch for the Dead (Relatively Dead Mystery #4) will be a BookBub Featured Deal, on sale for only 99 cents.

If you haven't read it, here are the details:

Looking to take a break from busy home renovations, Abby and boyfriend Ned Newhall jump at the chance to vacation on Cape Cod. Not only do they plan to get away from the dust and grime, but since Abby has no known ancestors in the area, the trip promises to be free of the unsettling ghostly appearances that have darkened her recent days. 

Dreams of a relaxing vacation are soon dashed, however, when a storm blows in and brings with it a scene from the past more disturbing than any Abby has ever experienced. The long-dead woman who appears to Abby is someone she’s met before, but this time her presence defies any explanation at all.

Determined to unravel the mystery of the woman’s recurring appearances, Abby follows a trail of family history and upheaval that spans generations and may yield the biggest revelation of all, not just about Abby’s ancestors but about her living relatives as well.

It's a nice summer story for a cold winter's day. Find it at Amazon and Barnes and Noble and most other e-book platforms.


And then there's Cruel Winter, coming in just over two months! What do you do when you're snowbound in an Irish pub? Solve an old murder, of course.

You can pre-order it at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.



5 comments:

  1. Potato waffles look yummy, thanks for sharing. Appreciate the book information too.

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  2. Interesting--so they're like potato pancakes but waffles instead? A lot easier than frying potato pancakes! One thing I have learned is to wash the dishtowel right away--the potatoes will stain it otherwise.

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  3. New to me, never heard of potato waffles, might try them! The books look great!

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  4. Isn't this a great idea? IO tried it awhile back, but I don't remember the squeezing the potatoes dry tip. I'll have to try again.

    Peg, thanks for the tip about the dishtowel. Good to know unless you have a designated potato towel.

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  5. My mom makes potato pancakes that my husband loves! I just starting reading Cruel Winter and I love the wintery weather! I don't think I will take my Christmas lights down until I finish it.

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