I grew up in a family of Scandanavian Lutherans—a hardy bunch that takes potlucking and brevity and choir membership and poinsettia-arranging very seriously. Until I met Kevin, I’d never eaten a latke. Or matzo ball soup. Or gefilte fish (and, believe you me, it wasn’t until we’d moved in together that I worked up the courage to try a quenelle of the stuff and only then after his sisters insisted their grandmother’s gefilte fish was second to none). Or brisket. Or challah (save for a custard-dunked, syrup-slathered slice of French toast). Of these, it’s the years I spent latke-less that are the biggest tragedy.
Kevin, however, is ambivalent about latkes. He could take ‘em or leave ‘em. How this is possible — latkes are essentially single serving hashbrowns, for crying out loud; and they’re fried! — is beyond me. But, don’t worry, his lack of interest hasn’t stopped me for making up for my latke-less time.
Which is how it was that I came to be frying latkes on an early December Sunday afternoon while Kevin was freezing the afternoon away at Soldier Field. There were Christmas carols streaming from Pandora and the dismembered parts of our fake Christmas tree sprawled out across the living room floor. But, in the kitchen, I was frying latkes. It’s a complex, modern life we lead. A vision of progressivism, I tell you.
But back to the latkes. I should be clear, right up front, that although I love to eat latkes, I do not love to make them. They require copious grating, which means my knuckles stand no chance of surviving the experience unscathed. They require lots of oil (which, I’m aware, is the whole point) and I don’t much like skillets lined with frying oil. The oil sputters and bubbles and hisses and pops—and it cloaks your kitchen with a deep-fried stench for days.
The little disks, though, that emerge from the pan—crisped and golden on the inside, piping hot and tender and light on the inside—make it all worthwhile. Especially when topped with a dollop of creme fraiche, which is how I prepared the latke that I sampled from this batch. I stashed the remaining latkes in the freezer, to be re-warmed and crisped in the oven for fellow latke-lovers at a future date, except for one. This one I saved for Kevin, and I forced it on him post-Bears game.
He took a little nibble and hummed an “mmmm.” And then he took another nibble. And then another. I think he’s coming around.
In other December holiday news: check out the new
Holiday Recipe Index. If you’ve got cocktail parties, holiday dinners, gifts to gift and brunches to recover on the horizon (and who doesn’t?), I hope you’ll find some inspiration
there.
Yukon Gold-Celery Root Latkes
Yield: 8 to 10 good-sized latkes
4 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled
1 small celery root, peeled
1 medium onion, peeled
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten
kosher salt
freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil, for frying
creme fraiche, sour cream and/or apple sauce
Place a cooling rack over a paper-towel-lined baking sheet.
Finely grate the potatoes and place them in a colander, set over a bowl to drain while preparing the remaining ingredients. Finely grate the celery root and onion into a large bowl. Squeeze excess liquid out of the shredded potatoes and add them to the bowl with the celery root and onion. Add the flour and eggs to the bowl. Season generously with salt and pepper and stir with a fork until well combined.
Heat half of oil in a cast iron or heavy skillet over moderately-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, carefully add about a 1/4 cup dollop of the latke mixture and press gently with the back of a spatula to flatten the latke. Repeat with one or two more dollops, depending on the size of your skillet. When the latkes have become deeply golden around the edges, using a slotted spoon or spatula, carefully check to ensure the entire underside of each latke is golden. If so, gently flip the latkes and cook until golden brown on the other side. Remove from oil with a slotted spoon or spatula and transfer to the prepared cooling rack. Season with salt, while hot.
Repeat with the remaining oil and latkes.
Serve hot, with the creme fraiche, sour cream and/or apple sauce.
22 comments so far. »
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Man I love those blue plates. A lot. (where they from?)
Can’t say this Texan has ever had latkes but I think they would be really tasty. Would it be wrong to have one with a poached egg on top?
Mmm, I made these a couple of times for pot-luck food days in middle school (I seem to recall a unit in Texas History where we were each assigned a different group: Texas Irish, Texas Italian, Texas Polish, etc.), but haven’t had them in so long. I used to eat them with sour cream.
I am also a Christian girl who dates a Jewish guy and I agree, the latkes are the best part.. but Matzo Ball Soup is a close second.
I’ve never made a latke but I’ve eaten them. Yours look delicious- brown and crunchy.
My grandmother always made potato pancakes, which are basically latkes without the onion. We poured syrup all over them and I still make them now and then. Agree the worst part is the grating, but they are so much better hand-grated.
I’m on the other side of this. I am Jewish and my boyfriend is not. But lucky for me, he’s a latke lover (in fact, he’ll eat practically anything). My only issue with them, as you so aptly put it, is that “deep-fried stench” that takes weeks to go away. But it’s worth it.
Your recipe is so similar to my grandmothers – the tweaks: instead of flour, she uses matzo meal. But she also slices onions (man alive – aren’t onions great in these things??). We haven’t tried celery root (I’m going to make note of that though!), but her secret and aesthetically fun addition is grated carrot. Adds a teeny bit of sweet.
Oh, boy I’m in the mood for this Friday!
P.S. Beautiful post – your photos always get me drooling!
These look great–I can practically taste the crunch! You got a great deep golden brown on those. I probably wouldn’t have the fortitude to deal with the grating and the hot oil…but I sure would love for someone to make me some homemade latkes.
Neither my boyfriend nor I are Jewish, but I’ve always wanted to try latkes. Maybe I’ll make them on the porch, so I stink up the neighbors instead of my kitchen.
Delicious. Simply delicious.
I love latkes, but hate frying, so that’s one of my treats when I visit my mother in Israel. And although the fish has a gel-like appearance, it’s gefilte, not gelfite
noa: Thanks! Updated now.
How could anyone not like latkes? They are especially fun to serve in miniature, with a little smoked salmon, creme fraiche and dill or chives snipped on top. I hate the grating part, though. Curious: about how many does your recipe yield?
Dawn: Whoops! Forgot to mention that. It’s updated now. You can certainly make mini latkes with this recipe. In fact, I think it’d work particularly well due to the finely grated potatoes/celeriac.
What a fabulous post! I love latkes but we don’t make them any other time of the year. Why? Because as you said, the are fried and completely stink up the house. But what would Hanukkah be without the greasy smell of fresh latkes? I’ll have to try your recipe, the celery root sounds like a great addition.
Hi there, just sent some blog love your way over at The Hungry Dog
2nd on the where are those plates from?
these look great–might try them after law school final hell is over!
So nice to meet you! I came here by way of Hungry Dog’s wonderful blog. I am a lifelong latke lover. I don’t enjoy the whole latke making process but simply adore every crunchy morsel dipped in a bit applesauce and a dollop of of sour cream. With Chanukah underway I’ll begin my oil splattering tomorrow with lots of smiles as the end result. I really like your writing and your photos are gorgeous!
Celery root in latkes–talk about progressive! But these look great. I’m having the season’s first dose of latkes tomorrow–made by someone else, thankfully.
I am totally craving latkes, and the next recipe I use will be yours. The combination of potato and celery root is perfect.
And yes, I’ll be making them at my folks’ place as their kitchen fan is far more powerful than mine.
I have been eating latkes for years and years and never thought of them as single serving hash browns. What a great way to describe them. I think it is latkes for dinner tonight. We haven’t has them that much. Thanks for the inspiration.
I make another version of this with zucchini. totally worth trying and my all-time favorite. never seen anyone who doesn’t love it!
I decided I am going to make Latkes all year round. They are great as an appetizer or side dish, love them!
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