I know St. Patty’s Day is over and this recipe for Spinach Potato Cakes with Parmesan has the festive green motif, plus the potato thing going on, but I just had to get it out because it’s absolutely delicious!
I’ve been experimenting with potato pancakes over the last three years or so. This started after my husband told me that they are one of his favorite foods from his childhood. His culinary upbringing was a bit Pennsylvania Dutch, so the version of potato pancakes that he lovingly remembers are pretty much left over mashed potatoes, flour, egg, and a bunch of grease. Not so healthy… Plus, I like a little more spice in my cooking! After experimenting with probably a dozen recipes, I’ve settled on this one being my absolute favorite. It’s cheesy and savory, but not greasy. Plus it incorporates spinach and green onion which rounds out the starchiness of the potato. Dare I say potato pancake perfection (perhaps that’s a little audacious)? Anyway, they are sooo good, so enjoy!
Spinach Potato Cakes with Parmesan
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 35 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs yellow potatoes
- 1 bunch fresh spinach (about 4 cups raw)
- 1 egg
- 1 C fresh coarsely grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 C diced green onion
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/3 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp water
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
Directions
1. Steam your potatoes until they are just fork-tender. The time will depend on the size of your potatoes.
2. While your potatoes are steaming, prep your spinach. Rinse it, remove the stems, and coarsely chop. Sauté over medium heat using 2 Tbsp of water instead of oil until the spinach is wilted and all of the water is cooked off.
3. Allow your potatoes some time to cool so that you can handle them. If you’re impatient like me, putting them in ice water speeds up the process.
4. While your potatoes are cooling, coarsely shred your parmesan and finely dice your green onion.
5. Using the coarse grate of a box grater, grate your potatoes and place them in a large bowl.
6. Add your spinach, green onions, parmesan, egg, paprika, salt, and pepper to a bowl and gently stir to combine.
7. Form your potato mixture into 12 pancakes. Each pancake will be about 1/4 C of your mixture. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a pan or a griddle, add your cakes and cook, flipping midway, until they are browned on both sides. My pan on held 6 potato cakes at a time, so I evenly divided my Tbsp of olive oil. Once your potato cakes are browned, you’re ready to serve.
- 1.5 lbs yellow potatoes
- 1 bunch fresh spinach (about 4 cups raw)
- 1 egg
- 1 C fresh coarsely grated parmesan cheese
- ½ C diced green onion
- ¼ tsp paprika
- ⅓ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp water
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- Steam your potatoes until they are just fork-tender. The time will depend on the size of your potatoes.
- While your potatoes are steaming, prep your spinach. Rinse it, remove the stems, and coarsely chop. Sauté over medium heat using 2 Tbsp of water instead of oil until the spinach is wilted and all of the water is cooked off.
- Allow your potatoes some time to cool so that you can handle them. If you're impatient like me, putting them in ice water speeds up the process.
- While your potatoes are cooling, coarsely shred your parmesan and finely dice your green onion.
- Using the coarse grate of a box grater, grate your potatoes and place them in a large bowl.
- Add your spinach, green onions, parmesan, egg, paprika, salt, and pepper to a bowl and gently stir to combine.
- Form your potato mixture into 12 pancakes. Each pancake will be about ¼ C of your mixture. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a pan or a griddle, add your cakes and cook, flipping midway, until they are browned on both sides. My pan on held 6 potato cakes at a time, so I evenly divided my Tbsp of olive oil. Once your potato cakes are browned, you're ready to serve.
Abby says
I am trying this recipe soon. I have a question regarding cooking the spinach….. for how long approximately should I sauted it?. Spinach releases a lot of water so I am confused when you say “until all water is cooked off”. Thanks for your comments.
Rachel says
Cook the spinach until it releases all it’s water and then continue to cook it until the pan becomes dry from the water “cooking off” in the form of steam. They reason you want to do this is so that your potato cakes aren’t soggy. I hope that helps!