Wild Rice & Purple Potato Pancakes

Put wild rice into boiling water. Cover pot and simmer for an hour. Drain if any water remains, but drink liquid, or save for soups, don’t pour down the drain. In the meantime, steam unpeeled potatoes until easily pierced by a knife. Do same with this liquid. Mash potatoes with a fork in a medium bowl. Add rice.

Place 2 tb oil in a medium pan and sauté onion until soft. To bowl with rice and potato, add cooked onion, salt, pepper, and eggs. Mix lightly with fork. Don’t smush with spoon. In same sauté pan, add just enough oil to cover the bottom. Over medium heat, warm oil and then spoon large tablespoons of the potato mixture into the hot pan. Allow to ‘fry’ for four minutes on one side. Flip. Repeat on second side. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature. (Yes, you can cook a day ahead and reheat on serving platter in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes and bring to table.)

Can you bake these wild rice and potato cakes? I like to pat potato mixture into a couple of well-oiled pie plates, brush generously with oil, bake until lightly browned around the edges. Cut into wedges, just like for pie, and serve.