Kartoffelpuffer With Fresh Fig and Prosciutto Di Parma Salad - Hot Appetiser/Canapé Gluten-free

German potato pancakes aka kartoffelpuffer unlike the English version, which are traditionally made from mashed potatoes and then baked, are made from grated potatoes and often onions and then shallow fried. In Northern and Western Germany the potato pancake is like the wheat flour crêpe in Britanny and Basse-Normandie, the ultimate in street food and is sold in markets, fairs and holiday destinations for immediate consumption. However, unlike the crêpe, which is purely for sweet toppings, with its counterpart the buckwheat galette used for the savoury, kartoffelpuffer are used for both. The popular and traditional German dessert version would be served with apple sauce, cinnamon and sugar. As a base for a gluten-free dish therefore kartoffelpuffer are extremely versatile.

INGREDIENTS

As a general guide and for 20 small Kartoffelpuffer:

Two large potatoes
Two small onions
One small beaten egg
The figs are from our garden.

The Parma I buy as the end of the ham - the bit that no one can cut into a decent slice, so I get it at a knock down price! Bacon or ham of any sort would be just as good when matched with a fig and the vinaigrette below.

Green salad leaves, here I'm using young beetroot leaves from the garden.

The salad is dressed with a honey vinaigrette made with raw apple cider vinegar and olive oil and with just a hint of whole-grain mustard.

METHOD

Peel and grate the potatoes and onions with a coarse grater.

Using a large sieve held at an angle, over a bowl, squeeze handfuls of the grated vegetables to express the juice. The angle allows you to keep the potato mix draining, whilst squeezing further handfuls. Many people use a glass cloth or tea towel to do this but personally I find it makes for less clearing up to do it this way!

Once you have finished, allow the liquid in the bowl to stand until you see the thick creamy starch separating from it and sinking to the bottom of the bowl.

Pour the clear liquid from the starch. Discard the liquid and add the grated vegetables to the starch in the bowl.

Season with salt and pepper and incorporate the egg and grated vegetable. Meanwhile heat a large frying pan with butter or an oil suitable for frying, just a thin layer.

When the oil is hot enough so it sizzles when you add a test piece of potato, spoon in a tablespoon of the mix and flatten down with the back of the spoon. I like the pancakes very thin, that way they become very crisp and complement the salad really well.

After approximately 4 minutes of cooking, when they are golden brown, flip the pancakes over to cook on the other side.

Top pancakes with salad leaves, fig and ham and vinaigrette. They are usually served straight from the pan but actually we like them cold too!

Enjoy!

All that needs to be said now is Bon Appėtit!

Hope to see you here again for another recipe from my 100 Gluten-Free Organic Party Foods Challenge!

All the best,

Sue

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©  Sue Cross 2017 

Organic Kartoffelpuffer and Home-grown Winter Salad a delicious and inexpensive gluten-free lunch or supper dish.

When I was a child one of our favourite Winter supper dishes was poached egg with potato cakes. Later on when I lived abroad, I discovered a variation on this theme, which has also become a staple, German potato pancakes. Unlike the English version, which are made from mashed potatoes and then baked, kartoffelpuffer are made from grated potatoes and then shallow fried.

For my salad I am using the green leaf vegetables I have growing in the greenhouse; ruby chard, cabbage, oak leaf lettuce and Chinese leaf. I'm only picking them off a leaf at a time and eating them at the 'baby' leaf stage. This has allowed me to continue these plants through from mid Summer to Spring.

The Ingredients

As a general guide you will need to allow one large potato and one small onion and half a beaten egg per person. The salad is dressed with a simple vinaigrette of unpasteurised apple cider vinegar, olive oil and home-grown garlic. I also add anything else on hand, a couple of endive given to me by a fellow organic gardener and a purchased tangerine.

Preparation

Peel and grate the potatoes and onions with a coarse grater.

Using a large sieve held at an angle, over a bowl, squeeze handfuls of the grated vegetables  to express the juice.  The angle allows you to keep the potato mix draining, whilst squeezing further handfuls. Many people use a glass cloth or tea towel to do this but personally I find it less work to do it this way.

Once you have finished, allow the liquid in the bowl to stand until you see the starch separating from it and sinking to the bottom of the bowl. Pour the liquid from the starch. Discard the liquid and add the grated vegetables to the starch in the bowl. 

For this mix, which is enough for two, I use one small bantam egg. My chicks lay eggs in all different sizes, so if the amount is crucial to a recipe, I weigh them.

Season with salt and pepper and incorporate with the egg and grated vegetable. Meanwhile heat a large frying pan with a oil suitable for frying, just a thin layer. 

When the oil is hot enough so it sizzles when you add a test piece of potato, spoon in a tablespoon of the mix and flatten down with the back of the spoon. I like the pancakes very thin, that way they become very crisp and complement the salad really well. Flip the pancakes over, to cook on the other side, when they are golden brown, after approximately 4 minutes of cooking.

Wash any dust from the salad leaves, spin off excess water and add the vinaigrette. There is something so satisfying about being able to provide fresh, green leaves for the table in Winter.

A quick, delicious, organic and gluten-free meal, which can also double as a pudding, when served with apple sauce and sprinkled with a little sugar and cinnamon. At one large potato per person you will get two large pancakes, so enough for a main course and a sweet!

The dish below is a Summer version, with garden vegetables, nasturtium flowers and figs and purchased organic ham.

GARDENING TIP - Last year we had the best garlic harvest ever through following the traditional French way of planting them on the shortest day and harvesting on the longest. I then dried them in the spare bedroom on a wooden clothes dryer, after having lifted them with their stalks still and dried them initially in the greenhouse.

Please feel free to share this recipe and comment or ask questions.

Thanks for dropping by and hope to see you again, Sue.
 
Some ideas for cookware and utensils:

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© 2014 Sue Cross