Root Vegetable Latkes

(plus another holiday cookie!)

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Latkes

Today we are are talking about potato pancakes, or latkes. There are many cultures that have some type of fried potato fritters, but latkes are the European Jewish version. They are traditionally eaten during Hanukkah but are enjoyed year round.

Latkes are most commonly made with starchy potatoes like russets. The potatoes are grated and combined with binders like egg and matzah meal. Some recipes include grated onion while others do not. The mixture is shaped into patties and fried in oil resulting in a hot, crispy, potato-y pancake that is delicious.

Regardless of whether or not you celebrate the Festival of Lights, you will find these fried potato pancakes with the wispy edges a wonderful accompaniment to any meat or fish entree. I think they also make a great meal on their own when topped with smoked salmon or a poached egg and served on a bed of arugula.

Recipes

Root Vegetable Latkes with Horseradish Sour Cream

Yields 16-ish latkes

Time: Around 1 hour

Crisp, golden, and delicious! These latkes have root veggies added to them for extra taste, color, and fiber. Horseradish (yes another root veg!) is added to the sour cream for some extra zip.

There are two simple but mucho importante tips that make all the difference between a gummy shlumpy latke and a crisp perfectly fried one. The secrets: squeeze and save (you’ll understand this better when you read steps 3 and 4 in the recipe).

Use a neutral tasting oil with a high smoke point like avocado, canola, coconut, olive, peanut, or sunflower. I used a refined light (not extra-virgin) olive oil. Thanks to Food and Wine for the potato latke recipe.

Latke Ingredients:

• 2 lbs russet potatoes

• 1 small onion

• 2 carrots

• 3 green onions

• 2 eggs

• 2 tsp kosher salt

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 cup matzo meal, panko, or breadcrumbs (regular or gluten-free)

• Oil of your choice, for frying

• Chopped parsley for garnish

Sour Cream Ingredients:

• 1 cup sour cream

• 2 to 3 Tbsp prepared horseradish

Directions:

1. Peel the potatoes and trim the onion. Grate the potato and onion using a box grater or attachment on a stand mixer or food processor. Place into a colander that has been set inside a larger bowl. Allow to sit and drain for 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, peel and trim the carrots. Grate the carrots into a separate bowl. Trim and slice the green onions and add them to the carrots. Set aside.

3. Working over the colander, gather small handfuls of the potato and onion shreds and squeeze dry, extracting as much liquid as you can. Repeat until all the mixture has been squeezed. This is a crucial step, so don’t skip it. You want to get rid of as much water as possible to ensure a crisp outcome.

4. When you lift the colander you will see a murky liquid has collected in the bottom of the bowl. Pour that off and discard. Left behind will be a white starchy potato paste. Save it because this is the secret ingredient to help give it a crispy texture! Break up the paste with a spoon. Add the eggs, salt, baking powder, and matzo meal. Stir to combine.

5. Tip in the potato and onion mixture as well as the carrots and green onions. Using your hands, mix everything together so that the veggies are coated with the egg mixture.

6. Now it’s time to fry! Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Pour in enough oil to cover the skillet in an even layer, about 1/8-inch deep. Once the oil is hot, spoon latke batter into the pan. I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup and fit 3 rounds without crowding the skillet.

7. Fry on the first side for 3-ish minutes, then flip and fry another 2-ish minutes on the second side. Take care when flipping the latkes because the grease does spatter. Use a mesh splatter screen if you have one to cut down on grease going everywhere. Move the cooked latkes to a wire rack or paper towels to drain.

8. Repeat with the remaining batter. You will need to replenish the oil in the skillet after a couple of go-rounds, so allow the new oil to heat up before frying the next batch. Also, it is helpful to skim off any burnt pieces of veg before continuing so that the oil does not become bitter.

9. Make the horseradish sour cream by mixing the two ingredients together in a small bowl. Adjust the amount of horseradish to your liking.

10. Garnish latkes with parsley or other chopped fresh herbs and serve warm. Eat with a dollop of sour cream.

11. Store any leftovers covered and in the fridge. To reheat latkes, place on a sheet pan in a 350 F/175 C oven for a few minutes.

Sugar Cookies with Marbled Glaze

Yields 36 cookies

Time: 35 minutes plus 2 hours chill time

Classic, buttery sugar cookies decorated with a swirly whirly tie-dye marbled glaze! The glaze is not hard, I promise, and is so photogenic.

These are easy to customize with your favorite cookie cutters and food coloring. I’ve used Hanukkah-themed ones here but have also made them with Christmas shapes with red and green food coloring. The possibilities are endless and so fun.

The dough needs its time alone in the fridge for Netflix and chill. It should be cold and fairly firm before being rolled out so that the cutters will make nice clean cuts and the cookies won’t spread when baked. Thanks to King Arthur Baking for the sugar cookie recipe and Jake Cohen for the tie-dye marbled glaze technique.

Cookies:

• 18 Tbsp butter (2 ½ sticks)

• 1 ¼ cups powdered sugar

• 1 egg yolk

• ½ tsp salt

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

Icing:

• 2 cups powdered sugar

• ¼ cup milk

• ½ tsp salt

• 1 tsp almond or vanilla extract

• 1 Tbsp vodka, elderflower liqueur like St Germain, or water

• Liquid food coloring, color of your choice

Directions:

1. Make the cookies by beating the butter and powdered sugar together in a mixer until combined and smooth. Add the egg yolk, salt, and vanilla extract and beat again. Tip in the flour, one cup at a time, and beat after each addition. Mix until smooth.

2. Divide the dough in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and smoosh it down into a flat disk. Let the dough chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 F/175 C. Place parchment paper on two rimmed baking sheets and set aside.

4. Lightly flour a flat surface. Unwrap one dough disk and roll it out to a uniform ¼-inch thickness (use a ruler!), flouring the top if needed to avoid sticking to the rolling pin. Using cookie cutters, cut out cookies and place them on the prepared baking sheets.

5. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until sandy in color and just beginning to brown around the edges. Don’t overbake them. Cool in the pan set on a wire rack.

6. Make the icing by whisking together the powdered sugar, milk, salt, extract, and vodka until smooth. It helps to do this in a large, kind of shallow bowl so you have room to dip the cookie tops. Dot a few drops of liquid food coloring on the surface of the icing. Use a toothpick to make a few loops and swirls.

7. Dip the top of a cookie into the icing and rotate it 90 degrees before lifting the cookie straight up. You should have a fun, whirly, organic design. Place the cookie on a wire rack for the icing to dry and set. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Makes 36-ish cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters.

Tell Me

What do you eat your latkes with, sour cream or applesauce? My family likes applesauce, but personally, I’m team sour cream. What about you?

Next week: Look forward to New Year’s Eve appetizers plus a sparkly cocktail. It’s free for all subscribers and I’m excited to share it with you. See you next Friday!