Fadge - Irish Potato Bread

By
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.
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Updated on 11/28/21
Irish Fadge Potato Cakes

The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 15 mins
Total: 25 mins
Servings: 4 servings
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
277 Calories
7g Fat
46g Carbs
7g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 277
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g 9%
Saturated Fat 4g 20%
Cholesterol 56mg 19%
Sodium 415mg 18%
Total Carbohydrate 46g 17%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 7g
Vitamin C 11mg 54%
Calcium 97mg 7%
Iron 3mg 16%
Potassium 655mg 14%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Fadge is the name given to potato bread and is used mainly, but not exclusively, in Northern Ireland and in parts of Northern England. Every part of the British Isles and Ireland have their own versions of fadge, the Scottish have their Tattie scones, perhaps the most famous of this style of griddle-style cake. Fadge is not dissimilar to the tattie scone and delicious served as part of a full Irish breakfast.

Fadge is quick and easy to make and are a useful way to use up leftover mashed potatoes. This Fadge recipe suggests cooking in butter but if you want a special treat then cook in the grease from your breakfast fry-up.

Serve as part of your full breakfast, but fadge also makes a delicious potato bread to eat anytime. Lovely when still warm spread with butter.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound (500 grams) potatoes, cooked and mashed or leftover mashed potatoes

  • 2 tablespoons (30 grams) unsalted butter, melted, plus a little extra for greasing

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1 medium egg

  • 4 ounces (115 grams) all-purpose flour, plus a little extra for rolling out

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients to make Irish fadge

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

  2. Preheat the oven to 400 F/205 C/Gas 6. Place the mashed potato in a large baking bowl and add all the other ingredients. Mix the ingredients together to create a light, but sticky dough.

    A bowl of dough to make fadge

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

  3. Heavily flour your work surface of the board, if you don't use enough flour the dough will stick to the board.

    A well floured cutting board

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

  4. Roll out the dough to approximately ½ inch/1 centimeter thickness.

    Dough rolled out on a floured cutting board

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

  5. Cut the dough into saucer-sized rounds.  Score each round with a cross to mark 4 equal wedges. You can also make individual cakes by cutting with a round biscuit or scone cutter, the size you wish them to be.

    Dough with circles cut out, cut into wedges

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

  6. Grease a baking sheet with lots of butter. Carefully lay the rounds onto the sheet (they will be quite soft so you will need to handle carefully; a spatula helps). 

    A baking sheet with raw potato cakes

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

  7. Bake the rounds in the center of the oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown and risen. Once cooked lay onto a cooling rack and allow to cool slightly. These delicious rounds need to be eaten while they are freshly cooked and warm.

    Cooked fadge on a cooling rack

    The Spruce Eats / Eric Kleinberg

Tips

  • If you don't want to bake the fadge, it can also be cooked on the stovetop on a griddle or heavy-based frying pan. Cook each side of the fadge for 5 minutes until golden and risen and use as mentioned above.
  • If you can't eat the fadge immediately or you have made too many. Wrap the leftovers in aluminum foil and keep in the fridge. Warm in a hot pan or a warm oven before serving.

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