When autumn approaches, latkes—also known as potato pancakes—are on my mind.
When I was growing up, latkes to our family and our friends meant small, flat savory cakes made of grated potatoes and served during Hanukkah. The latkes were accompanied by applesauce and, when there was no meat in our dinner, with sour cream, too. Since my parents kept a kosher household, meat and dairy were not served at the same meal.
My mother didn’t need to read a recipe when she wanted to make latkes. She would grab a few potatoes, an onion or two and a couple of eggs and quickly put the batter together. She would grate the potatoes and onions on a box grater and add the eggs, a spoonful of matzo meal or flour and a good pinch of salt and a little pepper. The batter was ready to be formed into cakes and fried in vegetable oil in a skillet.
These days, latkes can mean much more than potato pancakes. My mother pointed out that you can make latkes out of any food, as long as you add enough egg and matzo meal or flour to hold them together, and salt and pepper. Taking advantage of the bounty of our local markets, we enjoyed preparing latkes from a variety of vegetables, including corn, pumpkin, spinach, cauliflower, sweet potatoes and zucchini.
Now I often use olive oil to fry my latkes and I also vary the accompaniments. With zucchini latkes, for example, I serve yogurt flavored with garlic and mint. With corn latkes, I serve olives, diced tomatoes, avocado, sliced green onions, cilantro, yogurt and hot sauce.
To make pumpkin or hard-shelled-squash latkes, I usually opt for kabocha squash, which has a rich, sweet-potato-like flavor and texture. Butternut squash or specialty squashes like carnival squash are also good. I bake or microwave the squash until it’s tender, scoop out the flesh and mash it to use in the latke batter.
To accompany squash latkes, I like to make apple chutney. Whenever I get Hidden Rose apples, which are pink-fleshed, I use them to give my chutney a rosy hue.
I sometimes make potato latkes with grated potatoes and sometimes with mashed cooked potatoes. Since potatoes originated in Peru, I occasionally serve potato latkes with Peruvian yellow pepper cheese sauce, a favorite accompaniment for potatoes that my husband and I first tasted in Lima.
Unlike the usual cheese sauce made with grated cheese, Peruvian cheese sauce is made with queso fresco, or fresh cheese.
For those who hesitate to make latkes because they don’t want to be standing at the stove frying them during a party, here’s a trick that I learned from my mother: Fry the latkes a day ahead and refrigerate them, or even a week ahead and freeze them.
Reheat refrigerated latkes on a baking sheet in a 450°F pre-heated oven for about 5 minutes. Watch them carefully, as their edges burn easily. For frozen latkes, put them on a baking sheet and let them thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Because they are thin, they thaw quickly. You can then reheat them the same way as refrigerated latkes. Enjoy the fall vegetables in the following latkes, or create your own vegetable pancakes. I’d be glad to know how you made them.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Faye Levy is the author of 23 cookbooks, including 1,000 Jewish Recipes and the award-winning Faye Levy’s International Vegetable Cookbook. She makes her home in the San Fernando Valley.
