Happy Holidays! Potato Latkes

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Happy holidays everyone!

Charles Dickens wrote: This is the "season of hospitality, merriment and open-heartedness." It is..."that happy state of companionship and mutual good-will, which is the source of such pure and unalloyable delight, and one so incompatible with the cares and sorrows of the world" I hope this is true in your world as much as it is true in mine.

And now, a quickie, basic recipe for that Hanukkah treat, potato latkes, should you be in need. For Jews, Hanukkah is a holiday that centers around eating fried foods. (It commemorates the miracle of the oil. For more on that, read here) and that just brings a smile to my face. I do love the fried foods! Another (much more classic) holiday fried-delight is/are sufganyot - also known as jelly donuts - (thats right kids, Jews invented jelly filled donuts!) but the recipe just seemed too involved to try and convey. Besides, I'll take savory/salty over sweet any day.

These are nothing too fancy, just pure and simple golden deliciousness. As a huge advocate of eating fried foods, (occasionally!) I have to say, I wish I thought to have these more than once a year, they are humble yet refined perfection. This is actually the first time I had ever made them, and I was quite pleased with the results. Tasted just like they should. Fancy that. I hope you will try them, and enjoy!

5 large baking potatoes, peeled
2 small brown onions
3 eggs
1/4 cup white flour
Salt and pepper
Vegetable oil

Using a box grater, first grate the onions and then the potatoes (if you do it in this order, the onions will help keep the potatoes from oxidizing/turning brown) into a large bowl using the smallest holes. Please refer to the photo to see what you are looking for. It should look like uncooked mashed potatoes when you are done, not shreds. This will take a bit of time and some strength for sure.

After all that grating what you have will be watery. Do your best to drain off the excess liquid before proceeding.

Next add in the eggs and stir. Add the flour, salt and pepper (to taste) and stir.

In a medium sized pan, heat 1 inch of vegetable oil over a medium flame. Using a ladle, pour some of the mixture into the oil (carefully!) and let fry until golden. Turn and fry on the other side, about three minutes total. When crisp, remove from oil and drain on paper towels.

Makes about 10 medium latkes. Serve with sour cream or applesauce

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"Latke" is the Yiddish word for pancake, which the Jews living in the Pale of Settlement in the 17th century probably adapted for Hanukkah. "Because their daily diet consisted of potatoes and bread, they wanted to include a special dish cooked in oil to symbolize the main miracle of Hanukkah." - Joan Nathan, on Good Food

"Chanukah is also observed with games of dreidel and the eating of festive foods. These are traditionally fried in oil to commemorate the miraculous oil in the Temple. In America and much of Europe, the traditional food is latkes (potato pancakes). However, in Israel, jelly doughnuts are popular, and Sephardic Jews, who didn’t have access to potatoes until recent centuries, traditionally eat other fried foods like zelebi (a deep-fried dessert shaped like a snail)." - SFJCF.org

One year ago today an earthquake triggered tsunami killed more than 220,000 people in India, Thailand and other countries. There are still many who are homeless or displaced. If you can, please do give to the Red Cross.

The basis of the traditional Swedish Christmas dinner spread (julbord) is the classic smörgåsbord, featuring pickled herring, liver paté, sausages, meatballs, rye crisp bread, as well as special holiday items such as veal brawn, rice porridge, and the Christmas ham (julskinka). Holiday beverages include julöl, a Christmas beer that is darker and sweeter than the average lager; mumma, a mix of beer, ginger ale, sherry and cardamom; and glögg, a hot red wine flavored with cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and raisins. - Sweden Abroad.com