Old-Fashioned Potato Pancake

I made some "Old-Fashioned Potato Pancake" for one of our Sunday late morning breakfast. It was one of those lazy Sunday morning when everyone woke up late, and nobody wants to go out for breakfast in the hot weather! So guess who has to stand over the hot stove in this hot weather????   

Yummy Old-Fashioned Potato Pancakes

The russet potatoes are peeled and grated coarsely. Place them in a clean tea towel and wring out the excess moisture. I did not use any tea towel. I squeezed out the excess moisture using my hands, as I was lazy to wash my tea towel!  Wow, there's a lot of juice from the potatoes!

The squeezed potatoes are then mixed with eggs, bread crumbs (of which I have used up my leftover toasted homemade bread crumbs, about 3 tablespoons), onions, salt and pepper to taste. I have added in some fresh thyme leaves since I had some in my fridge which I wanted to clear. Mix them all up till evenly combined.

You could use some other herbs if you want to, like chopped fresh corianders, parsley, spring onions or even chives. If your kids do not like any herbs, then follow the original recipe, the pancakes would be just as good.

Heat up some oil in a frying pan, scoop about a heaping tablespoon of the potato mixture, place it in the pan, and use the back of the spoon to flatten it slightly,  and fry on both sides until golden brown.

Drain on kitchen paper towel to remove excess oil. This is the first one I fried, to check on the seasoning of salt and pepper. It was perfect, so mommy had the first pancake all to herself!

The pancakes I've made was about 3" across and yield about 15 pancakes.

These Old-Fashioned Potato Pancakes are really delicious.  Perfect for breakfast, lunch, or as a snack in a lunch box.

A simple breakfast but good! The next time when I make this again, I'll add in some chives or spring onions from the garden pot. And some chopped ham would be lovely too! :)

Old-Fashioned Potato Pancakes
(adapted from "The Bread Bible", Beth Hensperger)
makes eight 4-inch pancakes
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium shallots or tiny white boiling onions, finely chopped
3 large (about 1-1/2 pounds) russet potatoes
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons matzo meal or fine dry bread crumbs
salt to taste
fresh thyme leaves, about 1 tbsp (my addition)
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
canola oil cooking spray

1. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook 1 minute to soften. Set aside.
2. Peel and coarsely grate the potatoes for a total of 2-1/2 to 3cups. Place the grated potatoes in a tea towel and wring out the excess moisture. Place the grated potatoes in a large bowl and immediately add the eggs, matzo meal or bread crumbs, and onions, (and thyme leaves, if using). Stir to combine evenly. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel and spray heavily with oil. Heat the skillet over medium-high heat. Using a heaping 1/4-cup measure for each pancake, pour the batter into the skillet and flatten each slightly with the back of a spoon. Cook about 5 minutes, turning once, until crisp and golden brown. Serve immediately.

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I'm linking this post to  Little Thumbs Up - July 2014 Event: Potato - organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY and hosted by Jasline of Foodie Baker .

Cook-Your-Books #14