Recipe Swap: Boxty Potato Cake Salad

It's another double post Friday!! For this round of recipe swaps, Sarah chose the theme of Potatoes, since February is Potato Lovers Month and boy-oh-boy have I been loving potatoes!! This week alone I made three potato-based dinners, can you believe that?? Great for my hungry tummy, but not so great for the diet ;) One of our regular swappers wasn't able to participate this month, so I stepped in to cover her - hence the double post today :) And what a nice addition to my menu...this Irish recipe from Caitlin over at Caitlin's Cooking, was a perfect nod to my Irish heritage and a great addition to my recipe book. I enjoyed every single little cake...all by myself. And yes, I realize the insanity of that, but they were good. So good. 

I'm really glad I was able to fill in for this recipe, because it truly was amazing...try it and you'll see!

Boxty Potato Cake Salad
Source: Caitlin’s Cooking

Ingredients

• 1 lb. potatoes, scrubbed
• 4 oz. bacon, finely chopped
• 3 scallions, sliced
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1-2 cups chopped salad greens
• 1-2 Tbsp balsamic vinaigrette
• 2-3 Tbsp sour cream

Preparation

1. Cover the potatoes with cold water in a pan and add a pinch of salt.  Bring to a boil, continuing to simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until tender.  Drain well, and set aside to cool.  This can be done the day before.
2. Once potatoes have cooled, peel away the skins and grate into a bowl.  (I used the grater on my food processor, and didn't bother to peel the potatoes.)  Heat a pan over medium-high heat and cook bacon until crispy, 2-3 minutes, draining away most of the excess fat. 
3. Remove 2-3 Tbsp of bacon crumbles from the pan, and reserve for garnish.  Add scallions, again reserving some for garnish, and cook for another minute, until soft.  Transfer bacon and scallions to the bowl with the grated potatoes.  Add the egg yolk and flour, season well with salt and pepper, and mix until just combined.
4. Divide potato mixture into four and shape into patties, dusting with more flour if necessary.  Lay on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for 1-24 hours.
5. Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan, add the butter, and then add boxty cakes once butter has stopped foaming.  Cook for 2-3 minutes per side, until cooked through and golden brown.
6. Place one cake on serving plates, and dress greens with dressing.  Arrange greens on plate, and top with reserved bacon and scallions, and sour cream if desired.