I have a theory. On St. Patrick’s Day, we’re all a wee bit Irish; on Hanukkah we’re all a little Jewish; and in preparation for Christmas, we should all bake and leave cookies out for Santa (just in case you choose to believe).
We may not eat a lot of fried foods in our house, but we’ll gladly rise to the holiday occasion with these delicious latkes!
Photo Credit: ©2007 Dan Hemmelgarn
Seriously, I do believe we could get a whole lot closer to brotherly love and world peace if we’d partake in each other’s holiday rituals and eat at each others’ traditional tables. In so doing, we savor our similarities, rather than focus on differences.
At Hanukkah, one such tradition is enjoying latkes. The potato latke simply begins with a mixture of grated or shredded raw potatoes and beaten eggs. It’s typically seasoned with grated onion, and then fried.
Even though latkes are customarily associated with Hanukkah, it turns out that just about every country that can grow a potato has found a way to style it into a pancake. That said, my vote for the best latkes go to the Eastern Europeans who seem to have mastered the craft.
My Austrian grandmother, for example, made heavenly latkes, but I didn’t inherit her recipes, and foolishly failed to watch her closely in the kitchen when I was a child. My Polish friend and fellow dietitian, John Krakowski, tells me his Cioci (Aunt) Helen made outstanding latkes, as well as a friend who claimed her mother’s recipe was the best. So John spent days perfecting a latke recipe that combined the wisdom of two old world cooks and modern day spuds. (John says ‘Yukon Gold’ potatoes make the best latkes, but any flaky-fleshed potato should work. You just don’t want to use a waxy potato variety.) Here it is for you to make and enjoy this Hanukkah season:
John’s Lovely Latkes
Ingredients
- 4 medium, unpeeled ‘Yukon Gold’ potatoes (or substitute with another flaky-fleshed variety)
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons matzo meal
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Black pepper (to taste)
- Vegetable oil for frying (Use enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan to about 1/8 of an inch. You may need to add more oil while cooking.)
Directions
- Grate potatoes with a box grater: Grate three of them on the coarse side and one on the shredded side. Put in a bowl, then press and drain liquid from potatoes. Grate onions with the box grater on the coarse side, then drain. Combine all ingredients in bowl.
- Heat vegetable oil in a medium frying pan, sauté pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Drop about a ¼ cup of the potato mixture into the hot oil and press center with a spatula to ensure the pancake is flat. Cook about 2 minutes or until latkes are golden-brown, turning once. Reduce heat to medium if oil starts smoking or to prevent over-browning.
- Drain latkes on paper towels. Serve warm with sour cream and/or applesauce. (This recipe will make approximately 6-8 latkes, depending on the exact size of the potatoes and how exact you are with your measurements.)
Why not invite some friends over, cook up a batch of latkes and tell stories of your own family traditions?
