Closing out Hanukkah with Heirloom Potato Kale Latkes

As Hanukkah comes to a close, I wanted to leave you with a fun variation for latkes for the last night, which is tomorrow.  Starting with the original latkes, which are simply made of potato and egg, I thought to change things up a bit tonight and created this fun heirloom potato and kale variety.

Inspired by a recipe I saw in Food Republic, I decided to make kale one of the star ingredients.  I can't say I followed the Food Republic recipe at all, but it provided some good tips on how to prepare the kale.  Here's my recipe, which I think is a lot easier and faster.  Enjoy on the last night of Hanukkah!

Heirloom Potato Kale Latkes 

Ingredients (serves 2)

5-7 small to medium heirloom potatoes (can include all different colors)

3 cups of kale, chopped fine with the stems removed

1 egg

Salt and pepper to taste

Good quality sour cream and unsweetened apple sauce for topping

Directions:

Combine the potato with the kale.  Add egg until the batter sticks together and then season with salt and pepper.

Fry in a hot skillet until browned on both sides.  Eat fresh and top with apple sauce and sour cream, if desired. 

More Hanukkah Goodness - Homemade Latkes

I've decided to continue the Hanukkah food posts to give you an oldie but a goodie - a traditional recipe for potato latkes.  By traditional, I mean the way that my family used to make them for me when I was a child in Slovakia, and the way my mom makes it to this day.

Different from American-style latkes, which use flour and sometimes even onions, this recipe is super simple - and all you need is literally 3 ingredients and some spices.  Something else that makes it more European is that the potatoes aren't shredded - instead they're grated really fine, creating an almost liquidy puree that runs into the most magnificent soft pancake.  A true pancake in my opinion.

And unlike folks do here, we don't dress them with apple sauce or sour cream - these babies are eaten on their own - no fixins required.

European Style Latkes (serves 2)

Ingredients:
Large Idaho potato, grated on the fine edged plane of your grater
1 medium - large egg 
Salt and pepper to taste
Oil

Directions:
Mix the potato mixture together with the egg until well incorporated.  The yolk should break completely and should create a nice binder for the potatoes.  Season with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a nonstick large skillet.  Place potato mixture into the hot oil in large tablespoons (I use a regular spoon for this).  Flip over after about 3 minutes or until golden brown.  After the second side is done, place on a plate and drain oil with paper towels.  This should make about 7 silver dollar sized latkes.  Enjoy - bet you can't eat just one!

Happy Hanukkah with Homemade Sufganiyot

Happy Hanukkah to all my Jewish friends and anyone who celebrates.  With the festival of lights officially underway, it's a great time to indulge in oil rich foods, which often times translates to fried goodies.  One of these happens to be sufganiyot (or jelly donuts) that are traditionally eaten during this holiday. 

While some people may get them at their local supermarket or even Dunkin Donuts, it's so much more special to make them from scratch, and my mom has done that here.  Reminding us so much of the "fanky" that my grandmother used to make, my mom was inspired to recreate these at home, serving them fresh from the pot.  I'm proud to say she got my dad's seal of approval where he said they tasted "exactly like Nadika used to make them." Sold and sold...

Here is the recipe she used, courtesy of Bon Appetit

How are you planning to celebrate Hanukkah?