Shira’s Famous Family Recipes

Latkes and Applesauce and don’t forget a little sour cream and then of course there’s sufganiyot (doughnuts) too.

Making Latkes and Applesauce with your children is the perfect way to celebrate this holiday together.  A little messy, but a LOT of fun! Play ShirLaLa Chanukah music to make it a party!  Or practice the Chanukah blessings with Shira, here. 

Crispy Chanukah Latkes:
(serves 6-8 people)

• 6 medium potatoes
• 1 large onion
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3 tablespoons flour
• ground black pepper (to taste)
• 2 – 2 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• plenty of canola or vegetable oil for frying

Take out your grater and 3 bowls.

1. Grate those potatoes. Keep the skin on! It adds color, flavor, and everyone knows it’s good for you. You can do this in a food processor or a hand grater. I find that smaller gratings work better than larger.
2. Grate the onion right along with the potatoes and mix everything up in the 1st bowl.  Here comes the fun part, especially fun with your kids.
3. Pick up a handful of the grated potato and onion mixture.  Squeeeeeze out ALL of the liquids by pressing your hands together into the 2nd bowl, dropping the dried out pancake of potatoes and onion into the 3rd bowl. Finish squeeeeeeezing out all of the potatoes and onions.  This is a great job for your little ones.
4. Here’s a little latke secret: after a few minutes, all of the potato starch will sink to the bottom of the squeezed-out water bowl. Drain the water, carefully reserving the starch.  Scoop up the sticky starch and add it to the potato/onion mixture.  At this point, some like to throw half of the potato mixture back into a food processor with a chopping attachment so that a portion of your potatoes is grated and a portion is chopped very fine for a creamy middle.
5. Mix the eggs, flour, pepper, salt, and baking powder into the potatoes and onions.
6. Heat the oil up in one or two frying pans. Give it a few minutes and test to see if the oil is hot enough by dropping a pinch of potatoe into the oil. It’s hot enough when it sizzle sizzle sizzles. Fry those latkes.
7. Pick up a good handful of the potato mixture, pressing the mixture between your hands lightly to make a pancake shape.  Give it one more squeeze to let out any more liquids and place carefully in the oil.
8. Fill your pan with several more latke pancakes.
9. Fry until golden brown on both sides.
10. Drain on paper towels or newspaper and then keep heated in the oven at the lowest temperature until it’s time to eat!

Applesauce:

You can get this started while you make your latkes.  It will all be finished around the same time.

• 8-10 apples and pears.
  (I like to use a combination of about 6 Granny Smith, McIntosh, Honeycrisp and Gala apples plus 2 or 3 pears)

1. Peel most of them, core, and cut them all into small chunks.
2. In large, heavy-bottomed stock pot, combine apples, cover and set over medium high heat.
3. After about 5 minutes, reduce heat to moderate and simmer, covered,stirring occasionally, until apples are very soft, about 40 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and blend with whisk, breaking up any remaining apple pieces.
5. I like to leave the apple sauce a little chunky. Of course  you can also pass the applesauce through a ricer, food mill, or fine-mesh strainer, or even mash it up with a potato masher. Although the flavor of the apples and pears alone is sublime, if you like, while the applesauce is still warm you can add spices like cinnamon and/or nutmeg, and my mom always adds a touch of cognac or brandy.

 

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Posted in Activities for home and classroom, Chanukah, Holidays, Recipes