Crochetti di patate (potato "crochettes")
When I asked my grandma who she learned this recipe from she just laughed and waved her hand behind her head, motioning backwards over and over (an Italian gesture which means "this is older than old"). She says she remembers making these with her mother and sisters growing up, and that her mother learned it from her mother, who learned it from her mother...you get the idea. She also got a good laugh telling me a story of how she went to visit my parents in Portland, OR when they first got married, and when she got there my father immediately asked her to make these potato crochettes. She made him a batch and he ate them all in one sitting, then was sick for the rest of the night. Yes, they are that good.
Ingredients
- 7 small yellow potatoes (yukon golds, use the smaller ones because they cook faster)
-parsley
-grated Parmesan cheese
-salt and black pepper
-4 eggs
-fresh mozzarella
First, boil the potatoes, with the skins on, until they are soft. It's important to use yellow potatoes because they won't soak up too much oil in the frying process (and get too greasy) and they also won't break apart in the frying pan because they are starchier.
Peel the potatoes and mash them up (very fine).
Now add salt, black pepper, parsley, and Parmesan cheese. Use your judgment about quantities: if you like the taste of cheese, then add a whole bunch. Same with pepper and parsley. Garlic can also be added here if you like. Mix around with your hands.
Next, beat the eggs in a bowl with a fork, then add to the potato mixture. Mix it all up using your hands--Nonna says "no spoon." The amount of eggs you add depends on how many potatoes you used/the size of the potatoes you used. You want the mixture to have the right consistency--Add enough eggs so that the mixture is glued together and can be formed into a ball, but not so much that it is sticky and gooey.
Next, form the potato crochettes into log shapes. During this step, you may also slip a cube of fresh mozzarella cheese into the middle of the log! I think it's better this way!
Next, prepare a frying pan with vegetable oil (about 1 inch) and put on med/high heat. Test the oil with a small amount of batter to be sure it is hot enough before you add the potato crochettes. Then, add them to the pan, flipping them over when they become golden brown on one side (see the picture below!).
YUM!
Here's Nonno with our platter of potato crochettes. Notice how there are ~15 of them. They were all gone withing 24 hours. No lie.
