Kick Ass Yummy Veggie Pancakes

When I was little, some of my favorite treats were the pancakes my dad used to make from leftover mashed potatoes. They weren't quite latkes (which are also amazing and delicious, but made with grated raw, rather than cooked, potatoes), but were instead a totally separate and differently yummy experience. I'm about to flee the country for 2 weeks, and in my effort to clean out the crisper I came up with this very loose adaptation of my dad's recipe. My boyfriend declared them "so good that [he] couldn't imagine ever eating anything so delicious again," which is high praise, indeed. Since we're off for England tomorrow, this might be my last post for a bit, so I'd advise you to make these, eat them, and let me know your thoughts!

Ingredients:

~1 tbsp. olive oil

~1 tbsp. minced garlic

~1/2 cup chopped onion

~1 cup chopped mushrooms

~1 tsp. each: garam masala, curry powder, parsley, salt, black pepper

~2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, cooked and mashed

~1 large sweet potato, cooked and mashed

~1/4-1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour, enough to bind everything together

~Additional oil (about 2-3 tbsps.) for frying

Directions:

~Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.

~Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a skillet over medium heat; add garlic and onion and saute about 3 minutes.

~Add the mushrooms and seasonings, and saute another 5 minutes.

~Remove from heat and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and   flour and mix thoroughly to make a thick, gloppy batter.

~Wipe out your skillet, then heat the 2-3 tbsps. olive oil. Once it's hot but not smoking, form the batter into golf-ball size patties, flatten them into little "burgers" and fry over medium-high heat, about 3-4 minutes per side. Keep cooked patties warm on a cookie sheet in the oven while you finish up the remaining batter. 

 ~ Serve on top of a big salad or in a sandwich for lunch, or alongside rice, veggies, and dal for dinner, or for breakfast, or a snack, or whatever; it really doesn't matter!