Above: My children's Chanukiot (menorahs) on Saturday night, the 2nd night of Chanukah
Potato latkes (pancakes) are a classic and delicious Chanukah dish. And since it's now Chanukah I am taking a tiny break from crafting to celebrate the holiday with my family, which involves feeding them! I made latkes tonight, but since I eyeball most of the quantities, my own recipe would be a bit too vague. So thanks to some help from my friends over at gourmetkoshercooking.com here's a few simple recipes with exact measurements:
Classic Potato Latkes
- 10 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 onion, peeled and cut into chunks
- 4 eggs
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- Oil for frying (canola is a good choice)
In a food processor, using the grater blade, (or with a hand grater) grate the potatoes and onions. Pour into a strainer and strain the extra liquid. In a large bowl, mix the potato-onion mixture with the eggs, salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large frying pan. When oil is hot, place large spoonfuls of the potato mixture in the pan and flatten slightly. Cook until crispy (3 to 5 minutes per side) and drain on paper towels. Can be frozen. Serve with homemade applesauce or sour cream.
Note from creativejewishmom: My family prefers Moroccan/Israeli style cooking, so applesauce and latkes is strange to them. They prefer latkes with ketchup, which I then serve accompanied by a nice salad for a smallish meal. Because the latkes are fried, and thus not altogether the kind of thing one should eat in quantity, it's best to serve them as a side dish, with a delicious soup and salad for example.
Sweet Potato Latkes
- 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and coarsely grated
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
Preparation:
Stir together potatoes, scallions, flour, eggs, salt, and pepper. Heat oil in a deep 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat
until hot but not smoking. Working in batches of 4, spoon 1/8 cup
potato mixture per latke into oil and flatten to 3-inch diameter with a
slotted spatula. Reduce heat to moderate and cook until golden, about 1
1/2 minutes on each side. Transfer latkes with spatula to paper towels
to drain.
You can find recipes for a few more varieties of latkes over at gourmetkoshercooking.com, so have fun experimenting, and wishing you a very happy Chanukah!
