Savory Breakfast Mashed Potato Cakes
This post for Savory Breakfast Mashed Potato Cakes with Pecan Butter is sponsored by Idaho Potatoes. As always, all opinions, recipes and photos are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Pook’s Pantry.
A great use for leftover mashed potatoes. Creamy Idaho® Potato Cakes slicked with nutty pecan butter make a great breakfast, lunch or afternoon snack. No leftovers? No problem. A recipe for mashed potatoes is included. 
Mashed Potato cakes were my favorite part of Thanksgiving as a kid. I looked forward to eating the leftovers more than the actual dinner. Probably because we ONLY had these around holidays. Mashed potatoes were not a common occurrence, so these were extra special. I enjoy them so much that now, as an adult, I make extra to ensure that I’ll have leftovers. The side dishes have always been and still are the best part of the Thanksgiving meal for me. When I was single and living alone, I made myself a Thanksgiving dinner of all the sides and a small roast chicken. It was delightful.
Potatoes and pecans may not seem like an obvious match, but trust me, it works. The pecan butter is made from only a few ingredients and you can change it up with different spices, if you like to experiment. You know you have leftover pecans from that pie you made, so give this recipe a try. Also worth noting, pecans are a super food. They are good for your brain. And not to be left out, potatoes are packed with fiber, Vitamins B-6 & C, and loaded with potassium. Now that you know, you really owe it yourself to make these. This Thanksgiving, when you’re staring at that big bowl of leftover mashed potato, scoop out a few cakes and enjoy!
SAVORY BREAKFAST MASHED POTATO CAKES
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SAVORY BREAKFAST MASHED POTATO CAKES WITH PECAN BUTTER
Ingredients
- 2 cups cold mashed Idaho® potatoes
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup parsley chopped (optional)
- 2 tablespoons chives chopped (optional)
- 3 tablespoons butter for the pan
Mashed Potatoes
- 2 pounds Idaho® russet potatoes peeled and diced into 2- inch chunks
- ½ cup whole milk
- ½ cup half and half
- 1 ½ tablespoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons butter room temperature
Pecan Butter
- 1 cup pecans
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
If making mashed potatoes
- Put potatoes in a large pot, cover with cold water, add a pinch of salt and bring to a boil over med-high heat. Boil for 15 – 20 minutes. Potatoes are done when easily pierced with a knife. Drain in colander. Let steam escape, ensuring the potatoes are dried out a bit.
- Combine milk and cream in a small sauce pot and warm over medium heat. Place potatoes in a medium bowl, add warm milk mixture and butter. Beat with hand mixer (or paddle attachment for stand mixer) until smooth, but do not over mix. Season with salt and pepper.
Make Potato Cakes
- Combine cold mashed potatoes with eggs, flour and herbs if using. Heat a tablespoon of butter in a non-stick skillet and drop ½ cup portion (4 oz) of mashed potato mixture into hot pan. With wet fingers, slightly flatten the top of the potato cake. Cook for 4 – 5 minutes, flip and cook for an additional 4 – 5 minutes, until dark golden brown on both sides. Repeat until you’ve used up all of the potato mixture, adding butter to the pan as necessary.
Make pecan butter
- In a dry skillet or sauté pan, toast pecans for 5 – 7 minutes over medium heat, until fragrant. Cool. In the bowl of a food processor, combine toasted pecans, coconut oil and salt. Let processor run for 2 – 3 minutes, then scrape down bowl. Blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down the bowl as necessary.
- Serve potato cakes warm topped with pecan butter.
Notes
- Making pecan butter may take 5 minutes if you have a new machine or 10 minutes if your machine is a little older. Stop and let the blade cool down for a minute or two if the food processor gets too warm.
- Additional add-ins for potato cakes could include sautéed onions, rosemary, marjoram, curry powder or chili powder.
- Do not overmix mashed potatoes, they will become "gluey"