Hanukkah and pancakes!

It's that time of year again.  Hanukkah!  The festival of lights.  Part of the holiday celebration calls for eating foods fried in oil to celebrate the miracle of the oil the burned for eight days.  Latkes, or potato pancakes, are a favorite.  Everyone loves them and everyone has their own recipe.

I only make them once a year (although they're great anytime).  Mostly because we don't tend to eat a lot of fried foods in our house.  Every year my husband asks me not to make latkes because they're so greasy.  And every year, as we're eating them, he says, "I'm so glad you made latkes, they taste so good!"  

A special treat

Latkes taste amazing.  I actually think they taste better because we only get them once a year.  If we ate them all the time it wouldn't be that special.  Or that healthy.  They're a treat and we enjoy them fully.  And at the end of the day, that's a part of what really matters when it comes to our food.  Yes, we want to make healthy choices, yes we need to get rid of the chemicals and additives in our food, but yes, we also need to celebrate with special foods.  And in my book latkes falls into that category.

Cooking with friends

This year I got together with a bunch of friends and we made latkes together.  Four different kinds!  That kitchen smelled a-m-a-z-i-n-g when we were done --  potatoes,  potatoes with carrots,  potatoes with zucchini, and sweet potatoes.  I have learned from past experience that you can't mix regular potatoes with sweet potatoes because they cook at different rates.  It's also important to note that when you add things into the potatoes it changes the cooking time and sometimes requires you to turn down the heat a bit so you don't burn the latkes.

You can make latkes however you like. I've seen recipes that call for green apple to be shredded into the mix, I've heard of adding jalapenos, using herbs, making them with other root vegetables, it's all a matter of personal preference.  

In our family we tend to be traditionalists and prefer the plain potato latkes served with organic sour cream and unsweetened apple sauce.  Here's my favorite latke recipe.  And may there always be light in your home and your life.

Mira's Favorite Latkes

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Ingredients

  

• 3 pounds of russet potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and shredded
• 1 large vidalia onion peeled and shredded
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 C. gluten free flour
• sea salt to taste
• avocado oil (enough for frying)

Instructions

 

• Mix ingredients together
• Heat oil in a pan
• Drop mixture by very large tablespoons into pan
• After 2-3 minutes flip to other side and cook another 2 minutes
• Remove from pan and drain on paper towels

Notes

Although I use olive oil for most cooking, I don't like the olive oil flavor on my latkes. I use avocado oil instead because it has a wonderful buttery flavor.