Potato Pancakes

When I was little, my fathered loved potato pancakes.  I hated them.  When we had them for dinner, he would make me stay at the table until I ate my serving of them.  Hours would pass with me trying to swallow a bite of those nasty cold disks until finally he would relent and I could go to bed.  I couldn't even look at potato pancakes for years.  As I aged and came to terms with people and their unkind behavior, I learned how to like these classics and make them the way they should be made, my dad's were nasty and he ate them with creamed corn....hurl!

 I start mine off by sauteing some diced onion and garlic with thyme and salt and pepper.

 Shred your potatoes and soak them in water.  I used about 6 medium potatoes.  Drain the water and wrap them in a towel to dry.

 Place them in a bowl and add some flour.  The measurements all depend on how many you are making.  I added about 1 C. of flour.

 Beat 2 large eggs and add them to the bowl. Mix thoroughly.  You don't want them too doughy but you do want them to hold together in the pan.

 At this point you can add chives or parsley or any other flavoring you like.

 I like to use a cast iron skillet to fry these.  Heat some oil (about 1/4 inch) to slightly over medium heat and scoop a little over half a cup of the mixture into the skillet for each cake.

 Be patient and let them cook until they turn golden on the bottom.  Flip them over and do the same on the other side. Remove and drain on paper towels.

 Sprinkle them with some sea salt.  Some people like to eat them with apple sauce.  I like to serve them with sour cream and caviar.  We have lots of Russian food markets around here so I can get really decent caviar at a very affordable price.  Plus, you don't need much, a little goes a long way.