Potato Fritters for Sher

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Last Sunday, the food blog community lost one of its own. Sher, of the popular blog What Did You Eat? passed away unexpectedly from a heart attack. I didn't know Sher well, but what I did know, I liked very much. She was smart and funny and caring. Her blog was a great read, with terrific recipes and beautiful photography. I enjoyed myself whenever I visited and I will miss her.

My heart goes out to Sher's husband, Bob, and the rest of her family and friends. It is always a tragedy to lose someone you love, especially so suddenly and without warning.

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As a tribute to Sher, Mary of Bread Baking Babes and Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen have organized an online memorial to her. Fellow food bloggers all over the Internet have been preparing recipes from Sher's blog and will be posting about them today. I think that this is a wonderful idea and I am proud and happy to participate.

There were so many great recipes to choose from, it was hard for me to decide what to make. I finally settled on her recipe for Potato Fritters with Sweet Pepper Relish. These are not fritters in the traditional sense of the word as I understand it, as they contain no flour in the mix. They are actually more like a potato cake or croquette. Whatever you call them, however, they are delicious!

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Potato Fritters with Sweet Pepper Relish

Adapted from Deborah Madison, The Greens Cookbook via Sher of What Did You Eat?

(Printable Recipe)

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2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

3 egg yolks

1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro

1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced, white and some of the green part

1 cup shredded jack cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup panko bread crumbs

4 tablespoons oil

Sweet Pepper Relish (recipe follows)

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Put potatoes in a steamer and cook for about 20 minutes, or until tender. Transfer to a bowl and roughly break them up with a fork. Don't try to make them too smooth.

Add the egg yolks, cilantro, scallions, and cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Shape into patties shaped and sized as you like. I let the patties rest in the freezer for about 20 minutes to firm up so that they would hold their shape better while frying.

Dredge patties in the bread crumbs and press the crumbs into the patties on both sides.

Heat the oil in a skillet until hot and cook the patties over medium high heat, until browned on both sides.

Serve immediately with the Sweet Pepper Relish.

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Sweet Pepper Relish

1 small yellow pepper

1 small red pepper

1/4 small red onion, finely diced

1/2 cup virgin olive oil

2 Tablespoons or more balsamic vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

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Trim the peppers, cut them into thin slices and dice into small even pieces. Combine the peppers, onion oil and vinegar and add salt and pepper to taste. Marinate this for about 2 hours, then drain the oil off (reserving for other purposes, like salad dressing) when you are ready to serve the fritters.

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Enjoy!