Potato Balls

These little balls of delight are crunchy on the outside and cloud-like fluff on the inside. 

This is another Colonial American delight Colonial Williamsburg brought to the 21st century. Their recipe is from The Virginia Housewife” written by Mary Randolph.

“Mix mashed potatoes with the yelk (sic) of an egg, roll them into balls, flour them, or cover them with egg and bread crumbs, fry them in clean dripping, or brown them in a Dutch oven. They are an agreeable vegetable relish and a supper dish.” The Virginia Housewife p. 120

Potato balls are one of the colonial dishes that is still popular today although may be more commonly referred to as mashed potato balls. This recipe is surprising to me because I’m not particularly fond of mashed potato balls, however I am a fan of this version. What’s really shocking is it has no milk or butter and I thought there was no way they could taste good. Well Colonial Americans, I was wrong again!  I think the absence of the milk and butter allows them to be fluffier. You won’t even miss those two ingredients!

Potato Balls Ingredients
2 lbs Russet potatoes
¾ tsp salt (divided)
1 ¾ tsp black pepper (divided)
2 eggs plus 1 yolk
½ c flour
1 c bread crumbs

Potato Balls Directions
makes 2 ½ dozen — 1 ½ Tbl balls
Boil 2 lbs of potatoes until a fork can easily pierce them.

Heat the oven to 350.

Cut the potatoes in half and scoop out the interior of the potato. Run the potatoes through a potato ricer (fluffiest option) to mash them. You could also use a potato masher or a large fork. Add 1 yolk, ½ tsp salt, and ¾ tsp pepper to the potatoes. Mix. Taste adjust seasoning.

In a small saucer, whisk 2 eggs until the yellow and white are completely combined.

Add ½ c of flour to a salad plate. In a second salad plate, add 1 c of bread crumbs, ¼ tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper and combine it.

Use a 1 ½ Tbl cookie scoop to scoop the potato mixture into a ball. Roll the ball into flour and put it on a greased sheet pan (you’ll need two pans). After all of the balls are made and coated, roll each ball in the whisked egg then into the bread crumb mixture.

You can either put it in the refrigerator covered until ready to bake or bake them now for 20 minutes until crisp. They will not be golden brown.

Notes
You can use sweet potatoes in place or the white potatoes for a sweeter and more colorful treat.