I promised a recipe to accompany the Jenkins Jellies applesauce I picked up at Studio Root66 and here it is: Yam and Parsnip Fritters with Spiced Applesauce.
These could be called latkes too. Applesauce and sour cream are traditional accompaniments to latkes so it makes sense. But these felt more fritter-like to me, probably because the yams and parsnips are such a sweet combination. They are also really great foods for this time of year, and I guess I associate fritters with the warmth of hearth and home this time of year. In any case, call them what you like. I think you’ll find they are delicious!
I choose these ingredients because I am always looking for new ways to enjoy yams and sweet potatoes. Especially as we are entering the holiday season, so it was not a hard reach to replace the russett potatoes I usually use for a recipe like this with this red skinned fall favorite. The parsnips were a last minute addition. Partly because they were handy and needed to be used today, but also I liked the contrast they provide in both flavor and color.
If you do not have Chinese 5 Spice Powder it is not a vital ingredient. My handmade applesauce from Jenkins Jellies was so good it certainly did not need any help from me. But I went ahead and added it because the spicy quality of the cinnamon and other ingredients in the powder made a nice bridge of flavors between the yams and the apples and kept the whole of the recipe from getting too sugary sweet.
Yam and Parsnip Fritters with Spiced Applesauce
1 large yam (or sweet potato), about 1 lb
3 medium parsnips, about 1/2 pound
salt and white pepper to taste
1â„2 c all purpose flour
3 large eggs
vegetable oil for fryer
2 c applesauce
1â„2 t chinese 5 spice powder
3 scallions, finely sliced (green parts only)
1 c sour cream
Instructions
Using a box grater, or the equal sized grating disc on a food processor, grate the yam and the parsnips.
Combine them both in a large bowl. Season with salt and a pinch of white pepper. Toss to combine. Add flour and stir the mixture together well to distribute the flour evenly. Add eggs continuing to stir and mix.
In a large saute pan set over medium heat, heat about 1/4″ deep of vegetable oil.
While the oil heats form the potato mixture into 3‑inch rounds that are about 1/2‑inch thick. Using a spatula so that the fritter do not fall apart carefully add them to the hot oil, working with 2 or 3 at a time. Fry until golden brown on both sides and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate and season with more salt. Repeat this procedure with all of the yam parsnip mixture, adding more oil as necessary.
In a small bowl stir the applesauce and Chinese 5 spice powder together.
Serve with spiced applesauce, green onions and sour cream.
SERIOUS FUN FOOD
Greg Henry
SippitySup
sorry but your opening paragraph is wrong as here in the UK we have shrimp and prawns. we don’t call shrimp — prawns and vice versa because we know they are different 🙂
i would like to know how you came to the conclusion that ridgeback shrimp are being over fished? i am in the industry and have heard nothing from the ca. dept of f & g that the are being over fished. did you know that the season is closed during their mateing season? did you also know that they only live for 5 years? contrary to what most people learn from the media, we have healthy sustainable fish stocks on the california coast. do your homework before you sign a petition against something. a lot of groups have hidden agendas for what they are promoting and you could be putting your neighbor out of business with your signature. there are a few groups with a lot of money and celeberty faces behind them that are trying to close sport and commercial fishing on the ca. coast. where do these geniuses think our fish is going to come from? china? where they have chicken farms over the manegroves where they cultivate the shrimp they send here. just please do your homework before you back something, even if it SEEMS to be for a good cause.
That the environmental concerns attached to fishing are complex. In all my posts (and there are several) regarding this subject I have never taken a stand against eating shrimp. And it is true California is doing a great job. In fact the Santa Barbara area where a lot of the cold water shrimp fisheries are are particularly well self-regulated. But the term overfishing is very broad and takes into consideration many more factors than population size. There is still a higher than necessary level of by-catch in my opinion. This is why the Seafood Watch gives Ridgbacks a “yellow good alternative” rating as opposed to “green best choice”. Steve is also correct that farmed shrimp from unregulated areas are best avoided. But I still feel that more can be done in the wild Ridgeback fisheries. The Spot Prawn is a good example of the market finding profitable, safe ways of harvest, and should be a model for more shrimp fisheries. All of these are merely my opinions however. GREG
Great writeup! I never knew the difference. I kind of always thought they were the same thing 🙂
Conversation I had last night with the Fish Guy at Whole Foods:
Me: Hey man. I’m looking for some prawns.
FG: I have large shrimp
Me: I need prawns.
FG: They’re the same thing.
(I think he is wrong but cannot prove it.)
Me: Oh ok. I’ll take some.
Next time Fish Guy… next time…
On Hubert Keller’s Top Chef Mac and Cheese w/Prawns. You did a better job with the explanation than I! Besides the gill structure, it’s also a cultural thing, as some people in Europe, for example, will call shrimp prawns when they are really shrimp. So we all decided not to worry about it and just enjoy the food 🙂
That said, I was in Spain last year, and was trying to order with my very poor Spanish. I asked the waitress what the dish was, and she said “Little fish. Little pink fish”. And, they were prawns (or shrimp!), and most importantly, delicious 🙂
A really good post! Shrimp or Prawn — I’ll eat em!
i never knew the difference between prawn and shrimp until now! this is great info
You say tom-ay-to and I say to-mah-to and I really say whatever they’re called I could eat all 12 of those babies cooked this way. Fabulous!
I knew they were different but just didn’t know exactly how! Thanks for this info!
I like when you get all fishicational.
I’d always wondered what the difference was. I used to catch my own shrimp in Florida and could catch some huge jumbos in the grass beds. I thought there was a difference between REEEEEAAALLY big shrimp and prawns but didn’t know what.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go work on my second abdominal segment.
“They both come in a wide range of sizes from itty-bitty to whoa-mama!”
— hilarious and informative, my favorite combination. Whereas before I was confused, NOW I know the difference. Thank you Greg!
damn those are some large.….shrimpy thingy’s heads and all. I gotta tell you they almost look like a prawn! Looks good. Real good. I cant wait to crash your party!
You know I’ve wondered a little about that once before. I did think the large kind were prawns and small were shrimp. But I just usually thought they were the same thing and end up calling them shrimp by the end of it. At least now, I know the difference between the two, so I won’t be making that mistake again. Plus, I can “WOW” my friends with this bit of little info. SWEET!!!
Those garlic shrimp…er…prawns look fab!! The weather tonight seens right for a little outdoor dinner shrimp on the barbie.