summary

Not only is this a delicious and easy way to make potato pancakes, it’s also the most fun! This is actually a terrific job to give a teenager if you are looking to dole out kitchen jobs at a holiday dinner. The trick is to get as much moisture out of the potatoes as possible so you can achieve those crispy edges. If your waffle maker is big enough, you may be able to make a couple potato waffles at a time.

ingredients

2 russet potatoes
1 egg
1 tablespoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ cup sour cream
3 tablespoons snipped chives
Applesauce
6 apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼-inch diced cubes
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt

directions

Applesauce

Combine the apples, lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon, salt and ¼ cup of water in a non-reactive saucepan. Set over medium heat and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until the fruit is very soft, about 5-10 minutes.

Potato Pancakes

Preheat oven to 300°F.
Peel and shred potatoes. Transfer to a clean saucepan and squeeze as much moisture out as possible. Add shreds to a mixing bowl and stir in the egg, salt and pepper. Place something under your bowl (such as a folded up kitchen towel) that raises only one side of the bowl, and push the shredded potato mixture to the raised side of the bowl. You are doing this so liquid from the potatoes will continue to drain. In order to get crispy potato waffles, you need to get rid of as much liquid as possible.
Heat a waffle iron (if yours has temperature control, set it to medium-high). Spray both sides of iron with non-stick cooking spray, then put ? cup of shredded potato mixture into the middle of the waffle iron (it will not cover the entire waffle iron). Use your fingers to flatten it out a bit and close the iron, letting it cook until the waffle is crispy on the edges and cooked through, about 6–8 minutes. Immediately sprinkle with additional salt and transfer to a baking sheet to keep warm in the preheated oven while you make the rest.
Serve potato waffles with the applesauce, sour cream and chives on the side.

notes

Before making the applesauce, taste the apples you will be cooking. If they are super sweet (like a Honeycrisp), you can probably skip the sugar. Other tart varieties (such as Granny Smith) will likely need the sugar to sweeten the sauce.

Timing on this potato waffle recipe will vary depending on how hot your waffle iron gets.

Potato pancakes and waffles are best served as soon as they are made. You don’t want to make these ahead of time.

Spray the waffle iron generously with non-stick spray as it will give the waffles a nice golden color.