May 11, 2010

Small Joys: Potato and Zucchini Pancakes

Potato Pancakes ...

They're cooking on my stove right now.

I made them healthier ... 1/3 grated zucchini & 2/3 grated potato (the zucchini lowers the overall calories and adds an array of vitamins and minerals). This makes me happy too, because it means I can eat with greed and abandon! Without a care!

Oh, pretty little potato pancakes. How I love you!

Small Joys: Potato and Zucchini Pancakes
I always think potato pancakes are a lot of work. But even with my paltry plastic grater, they are so quick.

2 large organic potatoes (such as Yukon gold)
1 medium organic zucchini
1 medium-small organic onion
2-3 organic eggs
1/4 cup of bread crumbs or matzo meal
salt and pepper
organic oil
Greek strained yogurt

1) Grate the potatoes, zucchini, and onion into a bowl.
2) Put the grated vegetables into a clean cloth, and twist in order to get out as much liquid as possible. (See the photos below!)
3) Crack two eggs in a bowl and beat with a fork. Add the drained grated vegetables, bread crumbs, and salt and pepper. Mix the "batter" thoroughly.
4) Drizzle some oil to a non-stick pan. Not a lot. Just a thin, thin layer of oil--just enough to saute the pancakes. Heat on a medium flame.
5) Scoop the batter onto the heated pan. Quickly flatten the scoops of batter to form flat, thin pancakes.
6) Cook about 10 minutes on each side until a nice deep golden brown.
7) Drain on paper towels. This recipe makes about 15 pancakes.
8) Serve with yogurt!

Meaner, Greener, Leaner!
* I use a non-stick pan so that I can use less oil. But the manufacture of non-stick pans causes a lot of havoc, toxins released into the environment from the factories, etc. I don't think I'd buy another one. But since I've had mine for a long time--well before I knew about the problems with non-stick--I continue to use it. In the future, when it comes time to get a new one, I plan on getting a cast-iron skillet instead.
* I use cloth kitchen towels to drain the extra liquid. Over time, they get stained and dim; they're no longer as pretty white as when I first got them. But they're machine washable, clean, and reusable.
* There's a lovely array of protein sources in this meal--from the veggies, eggs, and the yogurt. No need for meat! These potato pancakes make for a complete meal.

Check out the nutritional information on zucchini and potatoes.
About 124 g of zucchini: 20 calories, lots of Vit C, some Vit A, and even some protein.
About 138 g of potato: 128 calories, lots of Vit C, some iron, fiber, and protein.

Here are more pictures from the process.

Pretty veggies on their own "beach towel" ...


The beginning of twisting out the liquid. I squeezed out about about a cup or so ...


I love pretty brown organic eggs. Look at those babies' freckles!


Sizzlin' up in far less oil than the average recipe would say you need. Speckles of green and earth brown ...


Beautiful pancakes got a nice tan ...


My husband and I ate them all! All 15 pancakes, and now we're happy and full!

This Game is Called: What Could I Cram Up That Commercial's A**?

Grr. Commercials. So dumb.

The dumb commercials take up my brain energy by making me have to constantly argue with them in order to just defend my mental turf of intelligence and reality.

I end up finding myself just looking at the tv and mumbling over and over:

Up yours.

Up yours.

My husband is worried, and he should be.

I mean ... I'm sure no one out there, no one I know, the average person in the world, would actually think it wise to dump out all their bad soaps and cleansers and replace them with green soaps and cleansers. Because we all know that either through use or through throwing them out, the toxins in the standard soaps and cleansers will make their way into our water supply or fill up our landfills. Right? We all know this. So, the most efficient and green thing would be to use up the bad guys and then buy the good guys.

But the commercials show happy, bouncy people bringing boxes of standards cleansers (presumably full or partially full bottles) out to the curb. Waste, waste, waste!

Stupid commercials. Acting as if they're green. But portraying a vapid, wasteful message. Making me worried about the masses out there, you know the ones ... the ones who voted for Voldemort or demand to see birth certificates ad nauseum. That's what really grinds my gears. (Just like Peter Griffin in Family Guy.)