Irish Potato Cakes aka Boxty

I don't know whatever possessed me to cook 5 huge russet potatoes on Thanksgiving day to make mashed. I mean 5 of them and there's only 2 of us? Was I crazy? Everything happens for a reason though because I've been meaning to make these Irish potato cakes for a long time but never seemed to have any leftover mashed potatoes hanging around. I love my taters!

These are not at all like the crisp, light and lacy potato latkes that we all know and love made from grated potato, flour or matzo meal and egg. Oh no, these are pancakes in every sense of the word. Created from mashed as well as grated potato, self rising flour and buttermilk, they're a heavy duty, stick to your ribs won't be hungry for a week kind of pancake and boy are they tasty.

I snitched the recipe from Mary at One Perfect BIte and as usual she can always be counted on to provide a recipe that she's tested and worked out all the kinks; however, saying all of that I think I need to practice making them a few more times. (Darn, ha,ha) Mine were on the heavy side and kind of doughy, likely due to the fact that I mixed 'em too much before cooking them and it could also be that I didn't cook them long enough, or maybe they're just supposed to be that way. Hit the link and head to Mary's site to read what she has to say about them and collect her recipe!

We had our boxty with Italian sausage of all things that I browned in a pan before adding sliced onion, green pepper, garlic, mini pearl tomatoes and a little tomato sauce then braised for 25 minutes. Nothing like mixing the Irish with Italian, but darned if those spicy sausage weren't the absolute bomb!

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Comments

[Lea]

I love my taters, too. These look so good, June! I will have to try them for sure! I, too, made extra cheesy mashed for thanksgiving and made simple potato pancakes one day - this would have been much more interesting for sure!

[June]

I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever hit the bottom of the potato container; however, there's just enough left to make potato bread and that will be that. Also thanks for the inspiration - think I'll add some cheddar to it!

[Shaun]

Oh wow these take me back to my teens growing up in Ireland, after a few (a lot) beers we used to get these with chips and curry sauce from the chippie on the way home. I seem to remember they were studded with cheddar cheese too, lovely!

[June]

Gosh, would they ever be great with curry sauce! I must make 'em again. They're so delicious.

[Shaun]

Ah but chip shop curry sauce June, not the finely spiced rogan or bhuna but a powder mixed with water, gorgeous while hot but turns gelatinous by the morning, but its work soaking up many Heinekens and just about getting me past my parents to bed long since done! On reflection yes they were studded with very finely diced cheddar so (like your quiche) intead of a cheesy flavour you had potato with little explosions of cheese, and it was always the orange cheddar which was a great visual contrast....memory lane...Lol!

[June]

Shaun - you're making my mouth water again. Darn it all and as for the memories - bet they made you smile, didn't they?

[Shaun]

Oh yes they did...numerous ex's...long past but the best one ever...sat on a wall, three shheets to the wind, sharing a bag of chips and potato cake with a fox at 2 in
the morning!!!

[June]

Ha, ha, ha. Sweet memories indeed.

[Shaun]

When I say fox I mean the animal...lol, he became almost a pet, as long as you had some battered sausage or potato cake to feed him, but those cakes(boxty is just for the tourists)deep fried in beef dripping were awesome, got to do these soon, fortunately my son now works in a fish and chip shop so I now have a large jar of said curry mix...!

[June]

I was going to ask whether the fox was of the two legged or four legged variety but was too polite. LOL

[Shaun]

Never be too polite with me, I'm an open book lol. The old fox used to hang around the chip shop. I used to walk my g/f home then on the way back he would be eating the scraps left over outside when everyone was gone, I would save mine to share with him,it was surreal looking back but thats life...potato cakes this weekend...no fox though!!!