Ecuadorian Potato Cake Recipe - LLapingachos

These Ecuadorian potato cakes are called llapingachos (yah-peen-GAH-chos). They're typically served with a fried egg and a simple salad, but they also make an excellent side dish. The cooked and mashed potatoes are shaped into balls and stuffed with cheese and chopped green onions. The achiote oil adds color, but you can substitute paprika. Although it sounds unusual, the peanut sauce is the perfect accompaniment to these savory pancakes.
Make the mashed potato mixture the day before, if possible, so that it has time to chill, or start with leftover mashed potatoes.

Prep Time: 1 hours

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 pounds white potatoes
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 2 tablespoons achiote oil
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 cup shredded white cheese (queso fresco, farmer's cheese, or mozzarella
• 4 green onions, minced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Peanut sauce (see link to recipe below)

Preparation:

1. Peel the potatoes and add them to a large pot of boiling salted water. Cook until tender when pierced with a fork.
   
   
2. While the potatoes are cooking, sauté the onion in the achiote oil until soft. Set aside to cool.
   
   
3. Whip the boiled potatoes in a standing mixer to mashed them, or run them through a ricer. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (If using paprika instead of achiote oil, mix the paprika in with the mashed potatoes).
   
   
4. Mix the cooked onions and the egg yolk in with potatoes.Chill potato mixture for at least two hours, or overnight.
   
   
5. Mix the grated cheese with the minced green onions.
   
   
6. Shape the mashed potato mixture into balls slightly larger than a golf ball. Make a large hole with your finger in the middle, and press about a tablespoon of the cheese mixture into the hole. Close the mashed potato mixture over the cheese center, and then gently pat the ball into a pancake about a half inch thick. Chill the pancakes for 30 minutes.
   
   
7. Heat 3 to 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a skillet. Fry the pancakes in batches, about 3 minutes on each side. Keep pancakes warm in a 200- degree oven until ready to serve. Serve with peanut sauce.

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