POTATO CAKES WITH PIQUANTE PEPPER SALSA

Today's post is not so much about a recipe but more about one of my favourite food products, the Peppadew pepper.

    

I'll start by saying that I was not paid to write about these little beauties, nor do I work for the company - I just love them.  The combination of the wonderfully sweet brine which they are preserved in together with the heat from the peppers is a marriage made in heaven.  I'm not sure about you but I have succumbed to buying those stuffed peppers that they sell on the High Street on market day and I'm disappointed every time.  They generally tend to be a bit squidgy and break down into nothing when you try to pick one up.  Well, the answer is to buy  a jar of these little lovelies and fill them yourself with some cream cheese. You won't be disappointed, the crispness of the peppers together with the smooth, creaminess of the cream cheese.  Delicious.

 

Now I may be accused of being slightly biased towards this product because they originate from South Africa but try them for yourself. 

 

It will be love at first bite. 

 

If not, I will send you my postal address and you can send me the remainder of your jar. 

 

 

 

Enough said about the peppers. The meal below is my idea of comfort food. If you have left over mashed potato then make up a batch of these potato cakes . You don't need to be too precise with the ingredients. A bit of this and bit of that is normally what goes on. You can't really go wrong with hot, fried mashed potato and of course topped with the Peppadew salsa it is heaven.

 

 

Because I've used leftover mashed potato I am going to submit this to Turquoise Lemons - No Waste Food Challenge which is being hosted over at Elizabeth's Kitchen for this month.

For the printable version - click here


Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: 25 mins

 

Yield: 1 serving

 

 

Ingredients

 

SALSA

• 1/2 tblsp olive oil
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 150 g Peppadew mild piquante peppers, sliced in half
• 1 tblsp balsamic vinegar
• small handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped

 

POTATO CAKES

• 1 cup mashed potato
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 tblsp flour
• 1 tblsp red onion, finely chopped
• small handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Cooking Directions

To make the salsa

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the sliced onions and peppers and cook for 5 mins, or until the onion is softened.
2. Add the balsamic vinegar and basil, season and warm through for 2 mins.
3. Remove from the heat and keep warm.

To make the potato cakes

1. In a mixing bowl, combine the potato, cheese, flour, chopped onion and parsley.
2. On a separate plate, have some flour ready for dredging the potato cakes.
3. Measure out equal parts of the potato mixture and shape each one into a pattie using your hands. Dredge in the flour.
4. Add some sunflower oil to a non stick frying pan and lightly saute each pattie for a couple of mins on each side until golden brown and crisp on the outside.

To serve

1. Stack the potato cakes on your serving plate, spooning your warm salsa over and around them.
2. Add some fresh basil leaves on top.   

 

Written by : Angela Darroch