Chanukah Recipes
Slice Of Life By Eileen Goltz.
Quick Hanukkah quiz: Which came first, the latke (potato pancake) or the sufganiyah (doughnut)?
Well, if you guessed the latke, you’d be wrong. Even though Jews have been celebrating Chanukah for more than 2,000 years, the potato latkes didn’t get “invented” until around the 15th century because potatoes did not become a staple in Europe and Russia until the New World was discovered and the potato was introduced to the menu of our great great great great great bubbies and zadies.
The sufganiyot or doughnuts, however, can be traced back to a fried honey ball called “loukomathes” that our ancestors made in ancient Greece.
Being of Ashkenazi decent I always made latkes at least 3 or 4 nights of Hanukkah. For the best results I always use Russets or Yukon Gold potatoes. They are high in starch, and the starch is necessary to help the latke mixture stick together and form pancakes that don't fall apart. Most people choose to peel the potatoes but leaving the skin on will add color and texture to your pancakes. Be sure to scrub the potatoes thoroughly with a vegetable brush if you leave the skin on. If you do peel them keep them under water between peeling and shredding to prevent them from oxidizing. (Oxidation is what's happening when potatoes start turning those lovely shades of pink brown and gray.) Latkes are traditionally made with potatoes and onions, but there's no law that says you have to make them the same every time. You can use shredded sweet potatoes, apples, carrots, garlic, parsnips or zucchini in most latke recipes. Just be sure that the majority of the mixture still consists of potatoes; these other vegetables do not contain enough starch to make the mixture stick together.
Having the onions and any other veggies trimmed, peeled and measured before you start shredding is really helpful. If you have a food processor with a shredder attachment, this will make putting everything together go faster, but a good old-fashioned hand-held grater will work just as well. If you want lacy latkes with rough, crispy edges, shred those potatoes coarsely. If you prefer denser latkes with smooth edges, use the fine side of the grater.
One of the most important parts of the latke-making process is squeezing out the potatoes. Wet, juicy potatoes make for soggy, greasy latkes that fall apart in the pan because wet items will not brown well in oil. The potatoes need to be dry and the oil needs to be good and hot, so that the exterior of the latke will quickly crisp up and prevent too much grease from being absorbed. To squeeze out the potato mixture, place it in a towel and squeeze. Empty the contents of the towel into a mixing bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients.
Pour the oil into a skillet until its 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep. When the oil is about 350 degrees it’s ready. If you don't have a deep-fat thermometer, you can test the temperature of the oil by dropping a small amount of latke mixture into the pan. If it turns golden brown within one minute, the oil is ready. Form the latkes by carefully placing spoonfuls of the mixture into the hot oil, then flattening the mounds with a spatula. Fry until they are browned on the bottom, then flip them with a spatula and brown the other side. Drain the latkes on paper towels and serve them immediately, if possible. If you aren't able to serve them right away, keep them in the oven at 200 degrees on a pan or platter. To keep them nice and crispy, don't stack them up and don’t cover them.
Latke Cooking Tips
Any latke can be made low-fat just by changing how you cook it. For a lower fat version, just fry for a minute or two on each side to get the outside crispy then bake latkes for about 10 minutes at 400-450. Then turn the latke over and bake it for another 5 minutes on the other side.