You have never known life without them. You try, but it is impossible to stay away from them. You always find a handful on your plate next to your sandwich even though you didn't ask for them. They are at every party and gathering. Every market has huge colorful displays claiming their brand to be the best. They have a very bad reputation because they are both high-carb and high-fat. They are the bad boys of food, and we can't stay away from them. Yes, you guessed it. I am talking about potato chips. The golden, greasy slices that have ruined many American diets.
George Crum invented the potato chip in 1853. Crum was a Native American chef at the Moon Lake Lodge resort in Saratoga Springs. French fries were very popular at the restaurant. One day a diner complained that the fries were too thick. Crum made a thinner batch but the customer was sill unsatisfied. Crum finally made fries that were too thin to eat with a fork, hoping to annoy the extremely fussy customer. The customer loved them, and potato chips were invented.
Crum's chips were originally called Saratoga Chips and potato crunches. They were soon packaged and sold in New England. Crum later opened his own restaurant featuring chips.
William Tappendon manufactured and marketed the chips in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1895. Potato chips were strictly a northern commodity until in the early 1920s the salesman Herman Lay sold potato chips to the southern states from the trunk of his car. At that time, potatoes were tediously peeled and sliced by hand. It was the invention of the mechanical potato peeler that paved the way for potato chips to soar from a small specialty item to a top-selling snack food.
In 1926, Laura Scudder, who owned a potato chip factory in Monterey Park, Calif., invented a wax paper potato chip bag to keep the chips fresh and crunchy. This made potato chips even more popular.
As a world food, potatoes are second in human consumption only to rice. As thin, salted, crisp chips, they are America's favorite snack food. Americans today consume more potato chips than any other people in the world. They are available in every flavor imaginable and there is even a chip of the month club. So the next time you pick up a chip from between your deli sandwich and pickle, remember that you're munching on a slice of American history. That should be worth a few fat grams.
You can make your own chips at home and fry them in the oven. They should have a bit less fat and you can control the saltiness. I also came across a recipe for potato chip cookies. Now, not only are they high carb and high fat, but are combined with sugar, nuts, chocolate and raisins. They are delicious! Oh well, everything in moderation. Here are those recipes. Enjoy.
This column has been a collaborative effort between Auburn natives chef Max Hitchcock and his mother, Susan Silverman. They can be reached at Birdscapes@adelphia.net
Oven-fried Potato Chips
Makes 4 servings
4 russet (baking) potatoes, peeled and sliced diagonally, 1/8-inch thick
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) of butter, melted
Coarse salt to taste
Pat the potatoes dry between paper towels and arrange them in one layer in two buttered cookie sheets pans. Brush the potatoes with the butter, bake them in a preheated 500 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Sprinkle them with the salt. You can add other flavors, such as garlic or herbs.
Potato Chip Cookies
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup of butter or softened margarine or butter Crisco
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups sifted flour (all-purpose)
1/3 cup finely crushed potato chips (unflavored i.e., not garlic, etc)
1/2 cup chopped, toasted pecans
1/2 cup sugar (set aside)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, beat sugar, butter, egg yolk and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add flour to the sugar mixture. Mix well. Add crushed potato chips and nuts and stir by hand.
Roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Dip bottom of a glass into the remaining sugar and flatten the balls. You can use other varieties of nuts and add chocolate chips or raisins.
Bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly. Remove from cookie sheet and enjoy.
Crum's chips were originally called Saratoga Chips and potato crunches. They were soon packaged and sold in New England. Crum later opened his own restaurant featuring chips.
William Tappendon manufactured and marketed the chips in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1895. Potato chips were strictly a northern commodity until in the early 1920s the salesman Herman Lay sold potato chips to the southern states from the trunk of his car. At that time, potatoes were tediously peeled and sliced by hand. It was the invention of the mechanical potato peeler that paved the way for potato chips to soar from a small specialty item to a top-selling snack food.
In 1926, Laura Scudder, who owned a potato chip factory in Monterey Park, Calif., invented a wax paper potato chip bag to keep the chips fresh and crunchy. This made potato chips even more popular.
As a world food, potatoes are second in human consumption only to rice. As thin, salted, crisp chips, they are America's favorite snack food. Americans today consume more potato chips than any other people in the world. They are available in every flavor imaginable and there is even a chip of the month club. So the next time you pick up a chip from between your deli sandwich and pickle, remember that you're munching on a slice of American history. That should be worth a few fat grams.
You can make your own chips at home and fry them in the oven. They should have a bit less fat and you can control the saltiness. I also came across a recipe for potato chip cookies. Now, not only are they high carb and high fat, but are combined with sugar, nuts, chocolate and raisins. They are delicious! Oh well, everything in moderation. Here are those recipes. Enjoy.
This column has been a collaborative effort between Auburn natives chef Max Hitchcock and his mother, Susan Silverman. They can be reached at Birdscapes@adelphia.net
Oven-fried Potato Chips
Makes 4 servings
4 russet (baking) potatoes, peeled and sliced diagonally, 1/8-inch thick
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) of butter, melted
Coarse salt to taste
Pat the potatoes dry between paper towels and arrange them in one layer in two buttered cookie sheets pans. Brush the potatoes with the butter, bake them in a preheated 500 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Sprinkle them with the salt. You can add other flavors, such as garlic or herbs.
Potato Chip Cookies
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup of butter or softened margarine or butter Crisco
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups sifted flour (all-purpose)
1/3 cup finely crushed potato chips (unflavored i.e., not garlic, etc)
1/2 cup chopped, toasted pecans
1/2 cup sugar (set aside)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, beat sugar, butter, egg yolk and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add flour to the sugar mixture. Mix well. Add crushed potato chips and nuts and stir by hand.
Roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Dip bottom of a glass into the remaining sugar and flatten the balls. You can use other varieties of nuts and add chocolate chips or raisins.
Bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly. Remove from cookie sheet and enjoy.
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