Why is it that we save those special recipes for the holidays and forget to make them year-round? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a crispy potato latke (potato pancake) to accompany your favorite egg dish? Well here we are at the holidays again and I am making some of my favorite recipes, but this year I promise to remember that Potato Latkes are not just for the holidays!
Over the past several years I have experimented with a variety of different kinds of latkesPotato Latkes made from an array of vegetables such as carrots, zucchini, celeriac (celery root) and of course potatoes. I definitely like them all and vary the flavors with complimentary seasonings and toppings to make them each their own individual recipe. However, my all time favorite (and my family’s) are my sweet potato latkes. They are just so yummy!
This year I made them with my Talley Farms Fresh Harvest red sweet potatoes and a few of their gold fingerling potatoes. I like to add a small portion of gold potatoes in as it lends a nice contrast and flavor to my sweet potato latkes. I season them with a mixture of ground cumin, ginger and cardamom as it really brings out the character in the sweet potato flavor. I use coconut oil to fry them in small batches in as it has a mild flavor and doesn’t get dark or burnt tasting after cooking several batches. I use a minimal amount in the pan and keep adding a little in between batches as needed so that the latkes are sizzling but not swimming. Then I drain my latkes on a wire rack placed on a paper towel covered baking sheet. This keeps them crisp and eliminates them sitting in any excess oil.
You can either make your latkes early in the day and reheat them in the oven to serve or freeze them and then reheat from frozen. Never put your latkes in the refrigerator as they will become mushy and lose their texture. They are simple to freeze by putting them on a baking sheet (after drained and cooled) without overlapping or stacking and freezing them for about 30 minutes. Then transfer them to a freezer bag, remove excess air and store that way in the freezer. When ready to eat, just remove as many as you need and re-heat in a 375° oven (without defrosting) for about 10 minutes. Watch carefully as they can darken quickly depending on their size.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and coarsely grated
- 2 or 3 small gold fingerling or yukon potatoes, coarsely grated, unpeeled
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup matzo meal
- or all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon ginger
- dash cardamom
Directions
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1. Stir together potatoes, scallions, flour, eggs, cumin, ginger, cardamom, salt, and pepper.
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2. Heat some 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 2-3 minutes on each side. Repeat, adding oil as needed, until all batter is used. Transfer latkes with spatula to wire rack sitting over paper towels on a rimmed cookie sheet to drain.
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3. If serving right away, keep cooked latkes warm in 250° oven while frying the rest. Serve with a dollop of creme fraiche or sour cream and sprinkled chives or caviar. If you are making earlier in the day, they can be kept covered at room temperature and reheated in a 375° oven to serve.
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4. Alternately, cooked latkes can be frozen on cookie sheet and then transferred to plastic bags. Reheat at 375° for about 10 minutes. Watch closely to see that they don’t get too dark and crispy.
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Note
- I use a shredding disk in my food processor to grate the sweet potatoes and use a box grater to grate the gold potatoes if they are real small. It makes the process really quick and easy!
(Printable recipe can be found in my recipe index under side dishes)
2 opinions on “Potato Latkes are not just for the Holidays!”
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Hi Kathleen,
I’ve been the head Latke maker in our family for years, yet I’ve never deviated from the traditional latke recipe. Your blog has encouraged me to go outside the box and try making them using your recipe. Wish me luck and I wish you and your family a very Happy Chanukah.
Marsha
Thanks, Marsha. Best of luck! I’m sure you’ll love them. Happy Chanukah to you and your family also!