These latkes not only celebrate the season, they are the first in a series of recipes in collaboration with one of my all time favourite brands, Mud Australia, whose beautiful pieces I’ve collected for years. (Chances are, if you have ever eaten a meal here, Mud will have made an appearance.).
Latkes are a Hanukkah staple, the 8 day holiday of miracles and light that starts next week. As there in an unwritten rule here that all holidays MUST be honoured with festive fair, this year I’m going big with 3 different latke flavours and multiple new toppings, marrying up some of my favourite holiday flavours to mix and match. It’s a choose your own adventure tricolore latke party, of course served on all my favourite Mud plates and bowls.
All my tips and tricks for latke success are in my journal and don’t forget to watch the video, so I suggest you make a cup of tea, pull up a chair and get latke ready with me. Crispy and light latkes forever.
Here’s to sharing comfort festive feasts with those you love and celebrations of miracles and lights. I think we all need a little bit of this right now – it transcends all beliefs.
A Note on Latkes: You really need to grate, squeeze and make these in one go. However, they re-heat and freeze beautifully. So make them ahead and either pop into the fridge (or freezer) and reheat before serving. Draining the latkes on paper towel before transferring them to a rack really ensures a perfect crispy surface with no soggy bottom.
Potato Latkes
- 1 kg (2lbs) potatoes I use Maris Piper, King Edward or Russet potatoes because they are my favourite for chips/french fries. Use whichever is your favourite variety.
- 1 medium yellow onion (personally I like a sweeter onion here)
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp salt & a good grind of pepper
- Vegetable / sunflower / flavourless oil for shallow frying
Parsnip & Sweet Potato Latkes
- 1kg of a combination of parsnip, sweet potato and potato (see best varieties above)
- 1 onion
- 2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon (sage also works well)
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp salt & a good grind of pepper
- Vegetable / sunflower / flavourless oil for shallow frying
Beetroot, Carrot & Feta Latkes
- 600g raw beetroot
- 300g carrots
- 3 spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced white and green parts
- 2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 100g feta (or goats cheese), crumbled
- salt and pepper
- Vegetable / sunflower / flavourless oil for shallow frying
To Make the Potato Latkes:
Peel and grate the potatoes and onions together on the large holes of a box grater
Rest your tea towel or cheesecloth over a large mixing bowl and fill with all your grated potatoes and onion. Gather together the corners and squeeze everything together over the bowl to catch the liquid. You will be amazed how much water comes out. Let the liquid settle for a minute or two and then pour off the water, reserving the potato starch in the bottom. Make sure you do not pour it out with the water – this is your latke miracle.
Add the grated onion and potatoes to the bowl with the potato starch. Add the beaten egg, flour salt and pepper (add any spices if you want to here).
Before starting to cook, have 2 large sheet pans ready, one lined with paper towel and one set with a rack on top.
Heat 1cm of oil in the bottom of a frying pan or sauté pan until it’s hot but not smoking. Drop heaping spoonfuls of batter into the oil, making sure not to crowd the pan. Fry on a medium heat until golden brown and flip to cook the other side.
Transfer the cooked latkes to the tray with the paper towel to drain slightly and then pop them on the rack to either keep warm in the oven (180C/350F) or cool to reheat later
Note: take your time with the frying here – if you fry them too high, too quickly, the outside will burn before they cook through.
To Make the Parsnip & Sweet Potato Latkes:
Peel and grate the parsnip, sweet potato, potato and onion together either on the large holes of a box grater or with the grating blade in your food processor.
Follow the instructions for wringing out the mixture in the pure potato version above. There will me less liquid and no starch though as there is very little potato here.
Tip it into a bowl, add the chopped tarragon, egg and flour, salt and pepper and follow the same cooking instructions as the potato latkes.
To Make the Beetroot, Carrot & Feta Latkes:
These are the least traditional of the group but add a wonderful pop of colour to your party. The feta is a bonus, but feel free to leave it out if you want to keep these dairy free.
For this mixture, I highly recommend the food processor option if you have one. I also urge you to wear gloves!
Peel and grate the beets and carrots. Tip them into a large bowl and add the spring onions and parsley, eggs, flour and seasoning and mix everything together. Add the crumbled feta and fry as per the instructions above.
Toppings:
These are just a suggestion. Feel free to get creative here with other savoury toppings. Smoked salmon, herring and salt beef are all firm favourites and make these snacks into a complete meal.
Apple & Cranberry Sauce (think Thanksgivukkah)
- 250g fresh or frozen cranberries, rinsed
- 1 large apple, peeled and cut into small cubes (or grated)
- 80g soft brown sugar
- juice of 1 orange plus a few long strips of zest
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- Place all the ingredients in a medium size saucepan and place on a medium heat. Simmer gently until cranberries “pop” and break up and the apple softens, around 10-15 minutes
- (If using frozen cranberries do not thaw first, but they may take a little longer to cook)
- Stir well and remove from the heat.
- Allow to cool and place in a clean jar with a lid. This will keep for about a month in the fridge.
Green Goddess Sour Cream
- 100g of fresh soft herbs. I like a combo of basil, tarragon, parsley, dill, chives
- 250g sour cream
- zest of a lemon
- pinch of salt
- Finely chop all your herbs. Stir through the sour cream with lemon zest and salt. You can do this in a blender. The sour cream may thin little, but a short time back in the fridge it will firm back up to dipping texture.
- Feel free to add an spring onion or a clove of garlic, but I prefer the pure herby flavour here for maximum mixing potential with the fruit sauces.
Horseradish Sour Cream .
- This is basically a suggestion more than a recipe…….
- Mix 1-2 tsp horseradish sauce (or grated white horseradish from a jar) into 250g sour cream. Horseradish, even in a jar, does vary in heat, so I urge to you to tase this and adjust accordingly. It gives the perfect tingle against the tartness of the cranberry and sweetness of the latkes.
Have you made this dish?
Let me know what you think, share your efforts and any tweaks you made to the recipe on Instagram, don’t forget to tag #BuildingFeasts or email me on info@buildingfeasts.com
