High/Low

I used to listen to a radio show where one of the personalities described his affinity for wearing the "high/low" which consisted of something high end, and something you'd pick up at a garage sale. Like designer jeans with a Hanes t-shirt. Or a DVF wrap dress with payless sandals.

I realized that in my life, I tend to High/Low a bunch of things. Like bouncing between things that are good for me, and things that are REALLY not so good.

Some examples?

High:

Lately my go to hair style is "the smush." It's really fancy. Basically what I do is put some curl creme in my hair, dry it with a diffuser, and then smush it up and pin it with bobby pins. I expect to see it all over the runways next award season with bylines like "This starlet just got out of bed" or "Looks like someone needs to hire a new stylist" or "mental hospital chic." In order to accomplish the fantastic feat of hair wizardry I rely on my favorite curl creme, which although not cheap, is rather amazing.

Low:

But before we even get to the curl creme, I start off my day with a washing "low" with my Pantene shampoo and conditioner. Tell your hairstylist you use Pantene and they'll look at you as though you have informed them that you wash your hair with gasoline. BUT it has a permanent place in my shampoo rotation, which also seems to vary from high to low. It's cheap, and it honestly makes my hair really silky looking. And if gasoline made my hair look like that, I'd probably use that too - except with the rising cost of gasoline, it's more cost efficient to use the Pantene.

High:

Sometimes I make really good choices. When Prez called me and said we should get together for drinks or a hike, I was definitely getting excited for a girls night of drinking and gossip. Instead we found ourselves at the top of a nature preserve hiking along the coast.

During which time there was plenty of gossip. Not to worry.

And at one point, Prez turned to me and asked why we don't hike here more often. (The two of us - Thatboy and I do this hike fairly regularly).

And we only got lost once! Which might be a record. Or a tie. I don't think I've ever hiked here without getting turned around at least once.

Low:

Other times I make really unhealthy choices. Like when Thatboy suggested we grab Subway for dinner before Golda's Balcony. And mysteriously we ended up here.

Where we consumed some less than healthy dinners.

And even more unhealthy desserts.

But when you're going low, you might as well add a cupcake to the mix!

Cupcakes themselves are a bit of a "high/low" given that everyone knows the best part is the top part, the one covered with frosting, and the little stump is really just a waste of perfectly good calories. (But we'll eat it anyway, just so no one gets left out.) The only exception, is chocolate cupcakes. Which are usually good enough to eat on their own. Even without frosting. Sour cream is the secret ingredient I've learned after making a lot of chocolate cakes in the past year. Something about it adds both moistness, and a really velvety texture. So make yourself a big salad for dinner, and enjoy the cupcakes for dessert!

Chocolate Cupcakes

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

2 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate, melted

2 cups flour

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1 Tbsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup warm water

1 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350. Beat canola oil, egg, and vanilla just until blended.
2. Add sugars and beat just until blended.
3. Add melted chocolate and beat until blended through.
4. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
5. Add the dry ingredients to chocolate mixture alternately with the warm water water, beating well after each addition, and ending with the dry ingredients.
6. Add sour cream and mix well.
7. Pour into muffin tins and bake 30-35 minutes, or until done.
8. Cool, the remove from pans to cool completely before frosting.

First, I am...

Last Friday, I was sitting at my desk, minding my own business, when an email alert popped up. It was from The Old Globe Theater with a chance to win free tickets to see “Golda’s Balcony.” I don’t think I’ve ever turned down free theater, and I wasn’t about to start now. I entered into the contest and went about the rest of my day.

Later that night, I got an email response informing me I was a winner! Two free tickets to see Golda’s Balcony last night. The only catch was that I had to write a hundred word review of the show for them to use. Which seemed fine to me, since I usually love to enthrall y’all with my musings on whatever theatrical experience I take part in anyway. (And as a side note, I’ve already exceeded 100 words just in this introduction, so how hard can a 100 word review be?)

As it turns out, a lot harder than one would think – because after the show as I sat and thought about which angle I was going to attack this from, I realized my problem was going to be how to keep the review to 100 words. There is just much too much involved.

First, a little background. “Golda’s Balcony” is a one-woman show starring Tovah Feldshuh. The show, written by William Gibson, began on Broadway in 2003 and is to date the longest running one woman show on Broadway. Feldshuh has received numerous accolades for her performance, including a tony nomination. The show runs 90s minutes…ish, and I have to admit that I was a little nervous about sitting for so long during such a performance. I’m familiar with one person shows, (I think I might have taken an entire course on Anna Devere Smith….or at least that’s how it felt with so much time devoted to her solo performance pieces.) but the concept was new for Thatboy. He was surprised that the set consisted of a table with several chairs. “Who are the other chairs for?” He asked. I smiled and told him that just because there was one actress on stage, did not mean there would only be one character.

In fact, that was one of Thatboy’s favorite parts of the show – as Feldshuh morphed from Golda Meir to Moshe Dayan to Dado Elazar and back within moments, Thatboy was impressed with her acting agility. One watches with the same amount of respect given to an Olympian who seems to make the impossible seem effortless. But it is Feldshuh’s portrayal of Golda Meir which is the true triumph of the piece. She is at once grandmother and ogre. Hard and compassionate. She’s a tough talking, no nonsense, chain smoker who cries at the thought of sending young boys to war.

It wasn’t the one woman show aspect that worried me, it was the subject matter. Because one simply cannot separate the subject of Golda Meir from the subject of Israel, and more importantly Zionism. And my worry was about sitting through 90 minutes of intense political diatribe. In retrospect, I informed Thatmom after the performance, I’m not quite sure why I was worried. Within moments of entering the stage, Feldshuh had the audience in the palm of her hand with her “warts and all” portrayal of Golda Meir. I had forgotten the golden rule in Judaism, “nothing without humor.” It is true that even in dark times, troubled times, times of sorrow and hardship, the Jews, as a people, have never lost their sense of humor. And so this intensely political piece about a hard woman, often referred to as the “Iron Lady” who fought to create a Jewish homeland was lightened with humor throughout. When Feldshuh brought the audience to the Syrian refugee camps as Meir attempted to convince hundreds of refugees to give up their quota for the next month so that children could be removed from the camps instead, Feldshuh tells of the horrors of the Holocaust, but interspersed throughout are tales of her “bodyguards” the children of the camp who surround her and give her paper flowers. The constant bounce from darkness to levity is echoed in the plot itself. Meir’s narrative centers around the cabinet meeting, held in October 1973, during the Yom Kippur War. The cabinet met to discuss the growing losses in the war, and the promises of aid that were not materializing. Growing closer and closer to the moment at which the decision to arm the Israeli planes with nuclear weapons, Meir breaks off to discuss “happier things” such as her initial romance with her husband, and the time on the kibbutz. The play volleys between the cabinet meeting and important parts of Meir’s life, creating a picture of a driven, single minded woman.

In the play, Meir discusses a conversation she had with Henry Kissinger in which he stated he was first an American, second Secretary of State, and Third, a Jew.” It is clear from this portrayal of Golda Meir that she considered herself first and foremost a Jew. Everything else was secondary. Including her role as wife and mother. It forced me to think of how I would describe myself if I had to rank. Where does being Jewish fit in my self view? What about everything else? As important as my religion is, and it is the most intrinsic part of me, I don’t know that I would identify myself as a Jew beyond all else. Although the fact that others may is a weight I’ve carried around since I was in Elementary school, and the reason it is so important to me to raise our children within the Jewish faith. Despite graduating from law school, I would hardly characterize myself as “first a lawyer.” Sometimes I think I am “first a woman,” but even there I pause, because the sound of that rings against my ears like the bra-burners of the 60s and I’ve long identified as “not being a feminist.” Everything else spins around like a juggling act – a cook? A runner? An actress? A daughter? A wife? And perhaps this lack of singlemindedness is what causes a disconnect between the play and myself. Because I can’t imagine being one thing above all else.

Obviously the show provokes thought and discussion, both of the introspective nature, but also between people. It sparked an interesting conversation between Thatboy and I. He informed me that he liked Golda Meir less after seeing the show – which I think is interesting, because I wonder if he would feel the same way about her actions if she was a man. Which brings me back to the whole “woman” thing – see it’s hard to put yourself in a single box! We enjoyed our night out immensely, even if it meant running around like crazy after work to walk the dog and grab dinner, and pick up Thatboy from his office, and being absolutely exhausted today. Speaking of, I grabbed one of these at the race last weekend and thought it would be perfect for tired me today.

Only to find out, it was actually this.

Yes folks, that’s CANNED WATER. And while it makes WAY more sense that they were handing out water at a race and not Monster energy drinks, WHO PUTS WATER IN A MONSTER CAN? Such deceptive packaging. I probably wouldn’t be quite so upset if I wasn’t so gosh darn tired. Now excuse me while I drive this bus full of girlscouts somewhere important. I’m sure I’ll be able to keep my eyes open for a bit longer.

Andale! Andale!

Thatmom's friends have been very impressed with her running lately. Last year at this time, she was prepping for her first 5k in many many many many many years (yeah, Thatmom is pretty old). This year she's racking up the races right and left!

I think one of her friends, Silver Fox, is excited about the possibility of having a running buddy. See, Silver Fox is a REAL runner. Not like Thatmom and I. Silver Fox has actually run marathons! You know, marathons, those really long races where people run for hours on end for miles and miles (over 26 to be more exact). And so, when Silver Fox found out Thatmom was running races, she suggested they do one together. But a baby one. A 5k - a distance Thatmom knew she could handle.

And Thatmom called me up and asked if I would join them. Since I was going to be in town anyway. I pointed out we were running a race the following weekend, and was she really going to be up for both? And that's when she pointed out to me that she chose this race because "there's a beer garden, and I thought that you'd like that." As a side note, it worries me a bit that my mother, who used to concern herself greatly with the amount of alcohol I consumed in college is now picking out events during which I can voluntarily show off my alcoholism. As a side side note, it worries me a bit more that the suggestion of a beer garden after the race had me readily agreeing to run.

And so on Sunday morning, Silver Fox met us at Casa de Thatmom so we could head out and run the Cinco de Mayo 5k. (I know, I was confused also by the fact that it wasn't actually Cinco de Mayo.) Silver Fox had us laughing and gasping about her last marathon experience which was the OC Marathon, a race which was taking place on the same day. She has horrific memories of running in the rain, as people threw banana peels on the ground, causing her to faceplant in the middle of her race. You can understand why she stopped running after that.

No PRs were set at this race, but as usual, we all accomplished the more important goal of finishing. And we had a great time doing it. And because it was Cinco de Mayo, the expo after was filled with Fiesta type food - actually, it was the most food intensive expo I had ever been at! Thatboy was most excited about the free Taco Bell. I might have enjoyed the free churros more. Free food does taste better.

And now a little confession. The last post I posted the recipe for the buffalo chex mix, but I only made half of it. I know. It's the least juicy confession you've ever read. You were probably expecting something like dead bodies in the basement, or finding out that I'm actually a 90 year old man. Sorry friends. Anyway, the point of the story is that I was left with half a packet of ranch dressing mix. And then Thatboy mentioned that he had accidentally forgotten to tell me that he had to bring in something for a work party....the next day. (He is SO lucky he's cute sometimes). So I decided to use the half packet to make one of my favorite things- spinach artichoke dip. And I put it in a bread bowl, because Thatboy is not fantastic at bringing home my plates and servewear that he brings in to work.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

1/2 cup nonfat greek yogurt

1/2 cup light sour cream

1/2 pkg ranch dressing mix

6 oz marinated artichoke hearts, chopped

5 oz frozen chopped spinach (thawed)

4 oz water chestnuts, chopped

1. Combine yogurt, sour cream, and ranch dressing in bowl.

2. Add artichoke hearts, spinach, and water chestnuts.

3. Refrigerate 1 hour, or until ready to serve.

Inspiration

Have you met the lovely and talented Mrs. Clark? She's one of my fabulous followers, and of course, that obviously means she's probably one of the smartest people out there. Well, last week, she blogged about a buffalo chicken pizza and OMG that thing looked so amazing. So amazing. Seriously - click on the link so I don't have to go to the trouble of stealing her pictures and pretending I made something so delicious looking.

Ever since I saw that pizza, I've been craving buffalo. It got so bad that I went and melted some blue cheese on a piece of toast and topped it with buffalo sauce. That's pretty low people. That's only one step above drinking the sauce from the bottle itself. I decided it might be a pretty good idea to figure out a better way to get my buffalo fix.

Luckily, the winner of the 2009 Chex Party Mix was a Buffalo Chex Mix. And even luckier, we usually have all the ingredients for chex mix in our pantry. Because while we don't have cookies and cake and ice cream, we always have goldfish crackers and pretzels. There was a point in college during finals where I might have turned a bit orange from all the goldfish crackers I consumed. You have heard fish are brain food, right? And Thatboy is a cold cereal fan, with Chex and Honey Nut Cheerios being his favorite. Good start right?

I remember making chex mix in the oven, but this one is a microwave method, which makes it come together very very quickly. This is very very dangerous.

There is something so very good and salty about chex mix, so I knew I wouldn't be disappointed with this. And the buffalo flavor is just perfect! It's really hard not to eat the whole bag at once, but it's especially great car trip food. Gave us the perfect treat to munch on our way up to Orange County this weekend. But I'll fill you in more on the weekend later. For now, just enjoy a little buffalo-y snack.

Buffalo Chex(from Chex)
4 cups Rice Chex
4 cups Wheat Chex
2 cups Parmesan-flavored goldfish crackers
2 cups pretzels
6 tablespoons butter
2 1/2 tablespoons buffalo sauce
1 packet ranch dressing mix
2 teaspoons celery seed

1. In large microwavable bowl, mix cereals, crackers and pretzels.
2. In small bowl, melt butter in microwave. Stir in hot sauce and seasonings.
3. Pour over cereal mixture and stir until evenly coated.
3. Microwave 4 to 5 minutes, thoroughly stirring every 2 minutes.
4. Spread on paper towels to cool.

Intervals

Maybe one of my kind readers can help me figure out a workout routine I saw at the gym tonight. There were two girls....we'll call them....Thing 1 and Thing 2. They were doing some kind of interval training. I almost recognized it. Now I've done interval training before - when I'm running this is when I alternate between running as hard as I can, and a more comfortable pace. When I'm weight training, I alternate between some heavy duty cardio and weights. But what I saw tonight was new to me.

First, they began with the world's slowest walk on the elliptical. I wasn't even sure it was possible to walk on the elliptical. But I bet it would have been hard to run, barefoot as they were. Then came the part where they sat on the floor touching their toes, talking to each other. This was followed by Thing 1 returning to the treadmill for more walking while Thing 2 left the gym to talk on her cellphone. It was repeated about 3 times.

As for me, my favorite kind of intervals are those involving layers of super fattening sauces and super healthy meats. It's another way of getting your heart rate up and then down, and then up, and then down. And it's the tastiest way if you ask me.

Like this southwestern chicken and pasta bake. Layers of pasta, chicken, cheese....that's an interval I can get behind. Plus it was a great way to use the gigantic penne I picked up in Atlanta. I love bringing things home with me, and this was a great buy. Bigger than penne, but just a little smaller than manicotti tubes. They hold the chicken and cheese and sauce inside of them, so each bite is perfect.

Southwestern Chicken and Pasta Bake
12 oz your favorite pasta
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
2 cups shredded Mexican style cheese
2 cups cooked chicken, diced
1 can Mexican style corn with bell peppers
1 jalapeno, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375. Cook and drain pasta. Combine sour cream, milk, and half of cheese in a large bowl.
2. Stir in pasta, chicken, corn, and jalapeno. Spoon into a baking dish sprayed with baking spray.
3. Sprinkle remaining half of cheese on top. Bake for 25 minutes.

Pump up the Jams

I mentioned that last weekend San Diego was a-buzzin' with activity. On Sunday we headed to the Adam's Avenue Roots Festival - a two day music festival featuring a variety of musical styles. One of the performers I really wanted to see played on Saturday, but we still got to see some really great artists. And Thatboy fell in love.

Adams Avenue spans three areas - Kensington, Normal Heights, and University Heights. While your average tourist doesn't usually get over to this area, it could truly be called the "heart" of San Diego city. If you live in a city like New York, Chicago, or San Francisco, you can go for years without having to drive. Everything you need is right in "the neighborhood." Most of San Diego isn't like that, except for this area, which is home to stores, markets, fabulous local bars and some of the best restaurants in the county. And it also houses some pretty great street festivals.

The Roots Festival is no exception. Adams Avenue itself is closed off for several streets with several stages to showcase the performers.

There are food and crafts all along the street, and in addition to the stages, there were "street buskers" who played on the corners.

I used the opportunity as an excuse to play with the video camera part of my camera. I've had this camera for about 18 months and I've NEVER played with video function. I warn you - it's pretty shaky and might give you motion sickness. So when you click on the video, maybe do something else and just listen. After all, it's the music that matters.

First up we got to see Sarah Watkins.

Halfway through her set, Thatboy turned to me and said "I have a crush on Sarah Watkins." He spent the rest of the performance giving her meaningful glances and trying to get her to look his way. I have a bitty crush on her too - that girl plays a mean fiddle.

Next we heard Orquesta Primo, but the inlaws didn't want to venture to watch them perform. It's amazing how small minded people can be. TFIL put up with the fiddling, but there was no way he was going to stand and watch salsa/folklorico. But the music sounded very high energy and fun.

Also vetoed were The Devastators and Robin Henkel who were also deemed "not music" by the inlaws.

We settled on Joanie Mendenhall who played her music at what was determined to be an acceptable volume.

She describes her style as "acoustic pop/alternative" but to me, she sounded like a throwback to older times. We just watched An Education a couple weeks ago (jeepers I love Nick Hornby) and it reminded me of the music of that era. Especially with the French influence the music in the movie had.

After Joanie, we stuck around for Gregory Page.

He was a huge hit with the inlaws, beginning his set with "I'm going to sit right down and write myself a letter" which had TFIL (who was complaining that his legs were cramping from all the walking we'd been doing) grabbing TMIL and bringing her out to dance.

Sometimes I'm like a spoiled kid at Christmas - especially with music. I didn't want to leave and I wished we could have been there on Saturday too. It's just never enough with me. Luckily I don't have to wait till next year, because there'll be another street festival in September!

With all the inlaw meals I've been blogging, I forgot to add one fairly unimportant entry - the salad. TFIL likes a salad with every dinner he has, whether eating in or eating out. What has always struck me as interesting, is that he serves the salad course first. Not incredibly unusual, except for the fact that TFIL believes the Europeans are the only people who know how to cook. period. end of story. He refuses to eat barbecue, or Mexican food, or various Asian cuisines other than a certain Chinese restaurant by his house. Well, you'll never guess what culture eats their salads AFTER the meal.....that's right! Europeans. Just a little trivia for y'all because I love you so very much. So here is one of the many nightly salads we consumed with some of my favorite ingredients - fruit and nuts!

Apple Walnut Salad
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup greek yogurt
3 Tbsp vinegar (I have an assortment I alternate through depending on my mood)
2 tsp sugar
4 cups of your favorite greens
2 red apples, cored and chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped and toasted

1) Whisk together the syrup, yogurt, vinegar, and sugar.
2) Whisk in oil gradually until you have a nice thick dressing. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
3) Toss greens, apples, cranberries, and walnuts in a bowl. Toss with dressing.

For Art's Sake

Let me just begin by noting that when the inlaws told us they wanted to come visit, they specifically asked if they could come down "when there was something happening in San Diego." I shouldn't be too surprised, because the only times they've come to visit us is when we had a major event like a wedding or graduation. And even then, they tried to have us schedule events around trips they wanted to make to the symphony, or other local attractions.

"Have them come the last week of April" I told Thatboy. San Diego is just buzzing with activity that weekend! And now I regret that statement. More than anything. Because I didn't realize that when they said they wanted to go to San Diego activities, they meant - they wanted to go for 15 minutes or less. So they could get back to the hotel and sit and read and nap. Boo. Hiss. So I got to miss one of the most fabulous weekends in San Diego. Blah.

The plan for Saturday was to go to the Little Italy Art Walk. An event that happens once a year. But TMIL also wanted to squeeze in a trip to the Museum of Contemporary Art. Which is open year round. And which they could have gone to on one of their days without Thatboy and I. Because contemporary art on the street isn't NEARLY as good as something in a museum. Because, you know, if it's in a museum it's brilliant. Just like Sunset Magazine.

Once a year, Little Italy is transformed.

4 streets are closed off, along with all the streets that connect them, of course. And rows of artists of all media. It's amazing.

After the first block, TFIL turned to us and asked when we could move on to the next activity. He was done with this. He doesn't like contemporary art. When Thatboy asked him what kind of art he likes, he was unable to answer. He said he likes "art that's done well." Thatboy asked what medium he enjoyed. TFIL replied "any medium that's done well." Thatboy asked if he liked a certain age or genre of art. TFIL doesn't. We decided (between Thatboy and I) that TFIL doesn't like anything that gives people pleasure. He doesn't like television, movies, fiction books, music that has lyrics, and apparently art. Fun times.




In addition to really great art, there was also musicians. Thatboy got sucked in to watching these guys for a while.

And because I'm a shopper at heart, I had to get something. Well, I didn't have to. But I walked right by these little birdie pictures and WANT. So I picked up a print to take home.



How adorable are those chubby little chicks? The artist is Marna Schindler and she specializes in animal prints. I don't usually love animal prints, but I seriously love these birds which she calls "Little Buddies." I want to get them for everyone I know.

After we saw about half the festival, TFIL could take it no longer. He really wanted to move on to the next activity. Thatboy pointed out the next activity would be looking at more art. TFIL said "yes, but it's a different style." To which I pointed out that it was actually the same style as what we were viewing that he hated. But off to La Jolla we went! To sit in traffic because UGH La Jolla on the weekends.

The Museum of Contemporary Art is tiny. TMIL was concerned she wouldn't be able to see it all before it closed. I assured her she'd be able to see it multiple times in the time we had. TFIL was disgusted by almost every exhibit and at one point went and sat in the lobby.

This is the exhibit that greets you as you enter. It's animatronic, so the sculpture actually moves, as though it were doing the tagging. Which fooled me at first!

My favorite part of the museum is the sculpture garden. Thatboy and I usually do a quick tour of the current exhibition before heading out here for a while.



Because it's our favorite view in La Jolla.



I mean, sure, you can walk along the cove. And I've done that on many occasions. But from the MCASD garden you get the water framed with palm trees and flowers.

And even some fun sculptures.

Plus Thatboy likes to climb on everything, which is encouraged, even though it's still technically a museum.



And even when you're not looking at the water, it's still a pretty cool view.



With bright colors that just make you smile. After the museum, we dropped the inlaws off for their required nap/reading time. I put up dinner and spent some quality bitching time where I both gave and received. Apparently it does not help the situation when I start acting like a childish brat. Who'd have guessed? And then the inlaws came over for dinner.



Pot Roast
TMIL makes a great pot roast according to Thatboy. But according to Thatboy, I make it better. Even when using her recipe. This is not her recipe. I didn't want to show her up. But this makes an impossibly tender, fall of your fork meat. And I love the flavor V8 gives it. I know a lot of people use tomato sauce, or tomato paste, or even ketchup, but V8 is the way to go.

2 Tbsp flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 lb boneless chuck roast
3 Tbsp shortening
1 onion, sliced
2 tsp thyme
1 cup V8
1/2 tsp Tabasco Sauce

1. In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, and pepper. Rub all over the roast.
2. Melt the shortening in a dutch oven. When hot, add the roast and brown on all sides.
3. Lower the heat and add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer 3 hours, turning half way through.


Brussels Sprouts
I LOVE brussels sprouts. So does TMIL. Thatboy? Not so much. But I used their visit as an excuse to make a veggie I don't get to make so often. This is a super basic way to make them. Just drop them in boiling water and boil for about 9 minutes. Then toss with melted butter, salt, and pepper. This way they retain some of their crunch - which I love.


Potato Pancakes
Since the hash brown went over so well, I thought I'd try Fannie Farmer's recipe for potato pancakes. They were a hit. TMIL got so excited when I brought these to the table!

3 medium potatoes
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp heavy cream
1 egg, beaten
salt
4 Tbsp oil

1. Peel and grate potatoes. Place them on a double thickness of paper towels, fold the towels around them, and twist and squeeze until most of the moisture is extracted.
2. Put the potatoes in a bowl, add the flour, cream, egg, and salt, and toss until well mixed.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Put about 2 Tbsp of the potato mixture in the pan and press and shape with a spatula into a flat pancake. Repeat until the pan is full, but not crowded.
4. Cook each pancake 5 minutes over medium low heat until the bottom is crisp and brown. Turn and cook the other side 5 minutes more.