Potato Croquettes

When we went to Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast a couple of years ago we ate potato croquettes at a local restaurant. Our bed and breakfast made us a reservation and arranged for someone at the restaurant to come pick us up. I think this is fairly common in Sorrento since no one rents a car. Anyway, the restaurant came and got us in their little Fiat. He took through these winding streets that got increasingly more and more narrow. “Street” is really not even the right word. I think that sidewalk is a better description. At one point the driver had to fold in his side view mirror to make it through the street. I had read good reviews about this restaurant on trip advisor but I was a little concerned when we got there. It was pretty empty. I know that people eat late in Italy so we had made a reservation around 8pm, which I consider pretty late. We usually eat with the geriatric crowd, closer to 5pm. Despite the fact that the restaurant was empty we had a pretty amazing meal. By the time we were done with our meal the restaurant was packed. I guess 8pm is still too early for Italians! One of the highlights of our meal was potato croquettes. After years of talking about these potato croquettes we finally decided to make them for ourselves. Why did we wait so long?

We used a similar technique as we did with our arancini. They turned out pretty amazing. I love(LOVE!) mashed potatoes so fried mashed potatoes are like totally my thing! If you  have leftover mashed potatoes then this is actually pretty easy. Just form into balls and coat with egg and panko and fry. Not too bad. If you don’t have leftovers then you will need to make fresh and it will take a little longer. So, just remember to make extra potatoes next time you have mashed potatoes. One problem that I have with frying food is keeping it hot and fresh. We fried these, taste tested some and then set them aside. We reheated them in the oven that night for dinner and they were just as good. This makes a lot of croquettes, I think we ended up with about 35. We were even able to freeze some and they reheated very well. We served these with pesto but marinara might be good too.

Here is what you’ll need

Mix in the shredded cheese

In one bowl whisk the eggs and the other add the panko

Form the mashed potatoes into balls and coat with egg and panko

Fry in batches

So glad I still have some left in the freezer!