There’s lots to like about potato latkes

I was all fired up to test and write about those wonderful toffee-flavored little cookie bars that some call Florentines, until I remembered that Dec. 25 is the first day of Hanukkah. One of the dishes associated with the annual Jewish festival of lights is latkes, potato pancakes, a way of preparing potatoes that I personally like very much. Thinking about latkes reminded me about a variation on them that I made once; they went over very well at our house.

Latkes is a good use for dear old Maine potatoes. They are very easy to make, especially if you use a grater blade in the food processor to grate the potatoes, though hand-grating is fine, too. Usually they are fried in cakes 3 to 4 inches in diameter, and served with applesauce or sour cream. The Hanukkah story celebrates the miracle of the oil in the temple lasting eight days when it was expected to last but one. So the latkes’ significance lies in commemorating the oil required for frying them.

The same simple combination of ingredients can also be made into a single large frittatalike dish, cooked on top of the stove, or baked in a thin layer in the oven. Though latkes can be a main dish, a single one as a side dish with meat is perfectly good. In fact, tiny ones, only an inch or inch and a half in diameter, make great little hot hors d’oeuvres with a small dollop of sour cream and dab of caviar or shred of smoked salmon.

A few years ago, I made a latkelike patty of mixed grated root vegetables. I must have read the idea somewhere, though I don’t remember now where. All I did was replace part of the potatoes with grated turnip or rutabaga and carrots. It was pretty and very tasty. You could probably use some parsnips in it, too, and instead of onion, you could use leeks. Since this dish is made with fairly humble vegetables, you can clip this recipe and stick it in the Economical Dishes part of your recipe box.

I don’t think red potatoes work as well in this recipe as the white-skinned ones.

Basic Latkes

Serves 6 to 8 generously.

4 cups peeled, grated potatoes

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 teaspoons salt

2 eggs, beaten

2 tablespoons of flour

A few grinds of pepper

Oil for frying

Peel and grate the potatoes. Put the grated potato in a colander and press it against the against the side to squeeze out the excess liquid. Put in a bowl, and add all the rest of the ingredients and mix thoroughly. Heat a frying pan or skillet, drizzle oil on it then drop large spoonfuls of the mixture on it, flattening them with a spatula. Cook at a fairly high temperature until they are browned on one side, then flip them over and brown on the other. Drain on paper, and keep them warm in an oven until all of the mixture has been cooked.

Variation: Substitute 2 cups of the grated potato for one cup of grated rutabaga or turnip, and one cup grated carrots. Proceed as above.