Country Bumpkin Latkes

Although I don't have any Jewish heritage to speak of, latkes have graced the dinner table for longer than anyone in my family can remember. Thanks to my grandfather's insatiable love of potatoes, my hog-farming, house-keeping grandmother literally cooked with potatoes morning, noon, and night. Baked, boiled, mashed, or fried, potatoes were an inexpensive way to keep Grandpa Ewing's hungry belly satisfied.

As any Great Depression survivor -- including my grandma -- will tell you, waste nothing and save everything. Instead of following the traditional latke recipe which involves ricing or shredding potatoes, these latkes are a delicious way to use up leftover mashed potatoes. Not being a struggling farmer's wife, I like to make extra large batch of mashed potatoes so I'm sure to have some leftovers on hand for latkes the next day.

To get started, you'll need only five ingredients:
about 2 cups of leftover mashed potatoes
about a 1/2 cup of flour
a generous pour of vegetable oil
salt & pepper

Set a large skillet on medium heat. Add a hearty pour of vegetable oil, enough to cover the bottom of the entire pan. Pour your 1/2 cup or so of flour into a shallow bowl. Next, scoop out about a handful of mashed potatoes, about the size of 1/4lb burger. Gently work your potato into a little cake, much like how you would shape a burger patty. Coat with flour, and salt and pepper each side to taste. With this amount of leftovers, you should end up with 4-5 latkes.

Once your oil is hot (to test, a droplet of water should skitter across the pan), ease each cake into the skillet. You must handle your cakes with extreme care, or you will end up with a big mushy pile of mashed potatoes in the bottom of you pan. Cook each side until golden brown, about 7 minutes per side. When you go to flip, use a spatula in your strong hand, and a slightly curved spoon in the other hand to guide the cake up and over. Once the second side is through cooking, remove latke from the oil and onto a plate lined with paper towels to drain before serving.

Serve latkes with applesauce, sour cream, or ketchup for dipping.