“When ‘Saratoga potatoes’ first appeared in the American diet and were added to the menu of church banquets, Aunt Welt was one of three women in our church who could be trusted to make them. There were no commercial Saratoga potatoes (not yet ‘chips’), so Mrs. Loomis, Mrs. Klosheim and Aunt Welt were appointed to provide them for the feast. Mrs. Loomis had been away visiting in Syracuse and had brought back the recipe.
“I watched Aunt Welt the first time she ever made them. There was a large kettle of fresh fine lard boiling away over the wood fire; clean white towels covered the kitchen table; and, standing like a priestess before it, Aunt Welt cut the pared potatoes so thin they were transparent. Next she laid the slices in rows on the white cloths to absorb any bit of moisture, and, when all was ready, she dropped the slices into the boiling fat, leaving them only long enough to reach the right shade of golden brown.
“Then out they came crisp and delectable and were spread again on the cloths. A few less perfect ones were put aside to taste for salt and flavor, and I was allowed to sample these and report. The report was always favorable.”
— From “Aunts and Uncles” in A Vanished World (1964) by Anne Gertrude Sneller, with thanks to Peggy Manring
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