Okay, who here knows what salt potatoes are? Who doesn't?

**Kimberlina** · 10-02-2005, 09:51 PM

I've always known that not a lot of people (well until recently) that weren't from around the triple cities in NY know what spiedies are. I realize even fewer people know what kolachkies are. But I never had a clue that salt potatoes were a very localized thing. I just read on the Ucle Phaedrus site I posted (Kitchen Basics) that they were "invented" in Syracuse and you can't even get them as close as Philly, which really isn't that far away.

So who knows what these are?

**Dixie** · 10-02-2005, 09:59 PM

I've never heard of them. I'll ask my dh if he has, he's from NYC. I've never heard him mention them, though.

**Mamawolf** · 10-02-2005, 10:27 PM

Not a clue. Never heard of any of those things you mentioned!

**inneedofhope** · 10-02-2005, 11:13 PM

Kimberly-
You must live near me! Salt potatoes are a summer cookout staple!

**Newsnerd68** · 10-02-2005, 11:24 PM

I had never heard of them until this past summer when we went to visit my dh's brothers and sisters in Watertown, NY. DH lived there until he was 7 and his family went to visit every summer, but he never mentioned salt potatoes. I enjoyed them. And they do seem to be a staple. I think we had them just about every day!

**Missy** · 10-02-2005, 11:24 PM

sooo....what are they? and what are the other things you mentioned???

If it's food, I am all ears!!

**Sara Noel** · 10-02-2005, 11:41 PM

Coming from Rochester, these were popular.

**Kimberlina** · 10-03-2005, 12:29 AM

Wow- I truly am shocked. Never, ever had a clue that these were local.

Salt potatoes- new potatoes, white or red, boiled whole, peels on, in heavily salted water. (By heavily, I mean the 4-5 lb bag of potatoes somes with a bag that must be nearly a cup of salt. We don't generally put th whole bag in at my house.) They are usually served with melted butter dripping of them. (Heart attack waiting to happen?) These originated in Syracuse NY, which appopriately enough is the "salt city."

Spiedies- small pieces of meat cooked on skewars, similar to shish kebab, but marinated in a special sauce. These are pretty much the only reason I eat any type of meat anymore- I couldn't resist the lure of chicken spiedies. The recipe was brought here from Italy, and I used to work with the guy whose family (the Lupos) brought the recipe back here and made it famous. The Lupos sauce is harder to get than Salamidas, but definitely better, IM(expert)O.

Kolachkies- these aren't regional, unless my house is considered a region. Being partially of Eastern European descent my family has retained at least this much of the culture. They are cookies/pastries made out of a VERY rich dough and filled with a variety of fillings- te traditional one for my family is nuts, but because of my latex allergy, I can't have too many, so I prefer apricot. Lekvar, poppy seed, raspberry jam, really any jam will work. My Mom has made these "famous." People pay her to make them for her, and we used to make them for a little shop, too. But we don't like to share the recipe. No, no, no.

**Sara Noel** · 10-03-2005, 12:34 AM

I know in Rochester, some of the potatoes were packaged with the salt included.

They are served at festivals and fairs a lot too.

**Early Bird** · 10-03-2005, 12:36 AM

It's been years -- maybe even decades -- since I saw the work 'lekvar.' This explains it, as I remember it:

http://homepage.interaccess.com/~june4/lekvar.html

**heidip427** · 10-03-2005, 07:25 AM

my dad's from montgomery county, and i know salt potatos well.

and levkar and kolachkies!

**SewCrafty** · 10-03-2005, 08:39 AM

I answered the poll too Kimberly and was astonished at how many people didn't know what salt potatoes are! Yes they are a staple around here and come with the bag of salt right in with the potaotes.

You are absolutely right, Lupo's is the BEST!

I love spiedies but am too lazy to make them, so usually just get one when we go out for lunch. LOL

I live in the "Triple Cities" in NY and in our grocery stores you can buy Lupo's speidies uncooked in the meat section or you can buy a bottle of the sauce.

I have tried and tried to make Kolachkie, but mine come out all messy looking. They taste good, but not fit for cookie trays. ROFL Oh and I'll pass on lekvar thank you very much.

Our next door neighbor when I was growing up made the best kolachkies and she also made perogies with lekvar.

**Michelle** · 10-03-2005, 08:42 AM

I've never heard of salt potatoes or Kolachkies. I've heard of speidies, but I've never had them.

**Kimberlina** · 10-03-2005, 09:10 AM

Ummm, pierogies with lekvar? Really? That just sounds awful. I do love pierogies, though. I make them from scratch once or twice a year, typically around Easter. Lekvar in cookies isn't bad though, but you would have to like "dried plums" (the new terminolgy to make prunes hip) or it really just wouldn't be your thing.

The only spiedie sauce you can get around here is Salamida's, but I can easily get Lupo's when I go home, and every year we order some on-line to send to relatives in California who tried it and loved it.

And I didn't realize so many people WOULD know what kolachkies are. Our kolachkies are very different than any other recipe I have seen, though. Ours has yeast in it, no cream cheese (replaced with something else) and it is rolled like pie crust, cut, filled, and rolled back up like a litle tube. The original recipe called for it o be filled and folded, then crimped, but ours arr very distinctive the way they are, and we're not changing them!

**Darlene** · 10-03-2005, 09:45 AM

Know what the salt potatoes are but have never had them or the kolachkies. Mark has had the potatoes & really liked them.
I've had & enjoy spiedies, it's been a while. Think I'll put them on the menu for next week and use Dee's families special recipe.