I was having Sweet Potato Fries at the Wayside Grill in Mount Shasta, CA which were served with a dip. I asked the waitress for the recipe and she said if I could guess one of the ingredients she would tell me. I guessed Mayo and she gave me the other one which was Honey... I mixed this together at home until I got the color and taste as described by smcanlis.

Nonnie, I make homemade to serve with wings. I make them the same way I make homemade regular fries using russet potatoes, sliced very thin and deep fried quickly in hot oil. I just use a cast iron dutch oven rather than an electric deep fryer. Ann

GREAT thread--there's a lot of good recipes here so thanx for starting it! these were a summertime treat when i was growing up in central NY and might be sort of an acquired taste: Salt Potatoes Put 5# of small potatoes into about 2 quarts of water Add about 2/3 C of salt Boil until the potatoes are fork tender Serve with plenty of butter For a variation, cut the above into halves Pan-fry over low heat in olive oil to which you have added 8 or 10 bay leaves cut in half, turning several timeswhen they are crispy and browned, serve or, add a tablespoon of sugar and a little chopped basil and cook for another minute or two (can also be wrapped in foil and grilled). The differences in flavors is really quite good! this is from daisy--very tasty but the color of the finished dish is a little dark... Spiced Potato and Basil Gratin 6 medium boiling potatoes 2 cups loosely packed fresh sweet basil leaves 2 1/2 cups heavy cream 1 tablespoon ground coriander seeds 1 teaspoon each salt, black pepper, mace and allspice 125g Swiss or domestic provolone cheese, grated Preheat oven to 190C. Cook the potatoes in salted boiling water for 10 minutes. Drain and cool to room temperature. When cool enough to handle, remove the skins and cut the potatoes into 3mm slices. Arrange one-third of the potato slices in a thin layer on the bottom of a round 22cm baking dish rubbed lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle one-third of the basil over the potatoes. Cover with half of the remaining potatoes and the remaining basil. Finally, top with the remaining potatoes. Combine the cream and spices in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle the mixture over the potatoes. Bake for 1 1/2 hours or until the cream is thick and the potatoes are very tender. Sprinkle the cheese over the top; bake for 5 minutes longer or until the cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving. i'm sorry i didn't make a note at the time i copied these recipes quite a few years ago but i believe they probably both are from one of the frugal gourmet's books. in any case, they certainly are T & T in our household! swedish hasselback potatoes 6 medium baking potatoes 1/4 C melted butter 1/4 C grated parmesan 2 T dry bread crumbs salt & pepper paprika place the potatoes on a large spoon and cut partway through them in 1/4" slices. place cut side up in a greased, 11 x 7 baking dish, brush with butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. bake @ 375 for 45 minutes (or bake with a roast for 1 hour @ 325). mix together the cheese and the bread crumbs and sprinkle onto the potatoes. bake until tender--another 20 or 30 minutes. Portuguese herbed potatoes 6 new potatoes 6 whole bay leaves 2 T olive oil 2 T butter 1/2 tsp salt a few grindings of pepper pare a strip of skin off from the center of each potato. add potatoes and bay leaves to about 1" of boiling water. return to a boil and reduce heat, cover and cook for about 20 to 25 minutes. drain. heat the oil and butter in a 10" skillet and then return the potatoes and bay leaves to the skillet. stir and add salt & pepper. cook uncovered over medium heat until browned, about 10 or 12 minutes. serve. this is loosely based on a recipe from epicurious-- Potato Latkes ("sort of") Use leftover, mashed potatoes. If not, boil 5 or 6 red-skinned potatoes until tender and then roughly chop them, adding a little milk. Stir into the potatoes: 2/3 C of chopped leeks or shallots or onions Mix together and then add to the potato mixture: ½ C parmesan 1 egg 1 ½ to 2 tsp dried mint 1 tsp dried oregano ½ tsp salt ½ tsp pepper a package of chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry To the above, stir in: 1/3 C feta and enough bread crumbs so that the mixture will hold together lightly Form the above into small patties. Pan-fry them in a skillet on medium heat, lightly coated with olive oil for 5 or 6 minutes per side. if you like "oven french fries" or even plain oven roasted potatoes, just drizzle on a little truffle oil a few minutes before taking them out to serve. delicious! also, i don't make "gravies" very often. but i do like sauces and that includes salad dressings. if you have a sauce that you enjoy, just pour it over plain old boiled potatoes. you just might have a new dish that you really like!

I have one cast iron kettle that I use as a deep fryer, trsinc. I use shortening in that one (Crisco, that is) and it works out just fine. It keeps through many uses before needing to be replaced. For non-deep frying the way Bumblebeez does, I've usually used peanut oil. Lately I've been using the Palm Oil shortening for those applications. But long term that can get expensive (cost me almost 7 bucks for a 24-oz tub). Once I use up what I have I will most likely not replace it. I'm surprised you can't find peanut oil. It's one of the commonest. Most supermarkets carry it. Is there a Walmart or Kroger near you? I know you can get it there. Barring that, however, you can use corn oil (the #1 oil sold in America). Until Canola started making inroads, corn oil was the most likely vegetable oil on grocery shelves. If you're eliminating the use of Canola, do not buy any of the ones that say "mixed oils" or "blended vegetable oils" or something like that without first reading the label. Most of those blends are Canola and something.