Tuesday Meals…Mardi Gras Edition!

Mardi Gras Parade!

So as you all know (if you’ve been reading the blog!) I visited New Orleans just about a month ago.  Well, today is Mardi Gras, otherwise known as Pancake Tuesday/Shrove Tuesday/Fat Tuesday.  In honour of today, I decided to go all out and make pancakes! 

Pancakes=easy right?  Well I guess it depends on what kind of pancakes you’re making.  Since I decided to make pancakes for dinner, I tried to recreate a favourite recipe of my gramma’s (and yes I know I spelled grandma wrong, but that’s just how I spell it!)- potato pancakes.  It’s never really been a super fave of mine…I’m a texture person, and frankly pancakes in general are just a tad too mushy for me.  HOWEVER, when I was in San Fran- blog about that still to come (I’m in the process of writing it!), we went to a German restaurant/bar, and we had the BEST potato pancakes EVER!  They weren’t even really pancakes, they were more like cakes.  Super good potato cakes.  Mmmmmm!

So, I looked up some recipes, and they all basically said you have to grate potatoes, and all of them basically said that grating them sucked.

I don’t really know what kind of potatoes they were grating, but it look like 4 minutes total, and it was pretty fricken easy.  Take that potato pancake recipe writers!

Ok, so you basically grate potatoes, then…. well to be honest I didn’t really follow a recipe.  As per usual I guess!  Matt came home and got on the computer, and wouldn’t get off it, so I kind of remembered what was in most of the recipes, and just went from memory. 

Here’s what I did put in them:

• grated potato
• an egg
• about 2 table spoons of flour
• chopped onion

I think that’s it.  Oh- I did use seasoned salt.  But that’s it.  I basically just mushed them into balls, put them in a frying pan, and waited until they looked brown.  Mine didn’t really ever get brown.  In fact, while cooking I got really disappointed because they looked almost green.  I think it might have been the EVOO I used in the pan, but I can’t really be sure- I’ve never made these before!

fry 'em up!

Anywho, I only made 4 because I wasn’t sure about them, but they were actually really good, and Matt was sad I didn’t make more.

Because we were still hungry………

I ALSO MADE CREPES! 

I was very ambitious tonight!

So a little side story here…. when I was little my gramma used to make me “pancakes”.  I loved them.  She’d put apples, or blue berries in them, or just make them plain with a bit of sugar.  They were delicious!  She still makes them today and I love them.  However, she was making crepes.  I did not know this.  Then one day I slept over at a friend’s house, and her mom said she was making us pancakes for breakfast.  Well they were much different from my gramma’s, and I didn’t like how mushy they were.  Those were real pancakes.  😛  So tonight my friends, I also attempted to make apple cinnamon crepes!

I did follow a recipe.  But really it’s just all about a good balance between flour, milk, eggs and water.  Seriously.  Matt was shocked that there was nothing really special about the ingredients.

Here’s how I made them:

1. Mix 2 eggs, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup water, and 2 tablespoons of melted butter until it’s smooth.  (Use a whisk!)
2. Whisk in 1 cup of flour until it’s smooth.
3. Cut up an apple into tiny pieces.  Add them to the mixture.
4. Add sugar and cinnamon to taste. 
5. Cook in a frying pan, or griddle like I did!!! (We got it as a wedding gift, and it was so handy and awesome!)

Gooey-appley crepey goodness!

Not sure why, but I didn't actually take a picture of the crepes cooking. None the less, here's the griddle!

Mmmmmmm!

That’s it yo.  If you want them thinner, add more liquid, if you like them thicker, do a tiny bit less water/milk.

Yay to pancake Tuesday!  Now I have pancakes for lunch tomorrow too! 🙂  Woot woot!

PS  I’ve been following a blog lately called One Wild and Precious Life.  The writer lives in NOLA, and blogs about everyday life there.  For the past couple weeks she has written about the days leading up to Mardi Gras.  It’s really pretty interesting.  Especially if you’ve never been to Mardi Gras!  Check it out fo sho!