Most latkes today start with the potatoes, onions, seasonings and oil. The addition of vegetables, toppings and seasonings borrowed from other cultures makes for fun variations. For a healthier and less approach (but still yummy and crispy), these pancakes are cooked in the oven instead of the pan.
Ingredients
- 3–4 medium potatoes or about 2 pounds
- 1 cup finely chopped yellow onion (can be a mixture of onion, shallots, scallions or green onions, but mostly onion)
- 1 egg
- 4 tablespoons chickpea flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)
- Olive oil or sunflower oil (Note: I like olive oil but sunflower oil is made for high heat and also has a more neutral taste.)
- 1–2 cups Greek yogurt
- 1 cup chives, chopped
Preparation
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and prepare the pan with a thin coat of oil.
Begin by grating the potatoes and set them to drain. Toss with lemon juice to preserve the color (optional). See “The Grate Debate” below to choose your methods.
Dice the onions. Do not over-process as you will have mush to deal with. Drain like the potatoes if this mixture is very juicy.
Stir in (or pulse together in food processor) egg, flour, salt, pepper, baking powder and diced onions (and other vegetables, if applicable) with the drained potatoes.
Put the oiled pan into the preheated oven for about 5 minutes to heat it up.
To create ideal finger food small bites, portion out slightly rounded tablespoon-sized cakes onto the heated cookie sheet.
Bake for 15–20 minutes on one side until nicely browned. Flip and cook for about 10 minutes until crispy and golden.
Serve warm topped with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkle of chives.
The Grate Debate: For latkes, some say hand-grating potatoes is the only way to achieve the appropriate texture. Some say mincing is better and others are fine with using a food processor. I say, what suits your palate and your timing is best. Whatever method you choose, an important step is to let your shredded potatoes drain. Again, lots of opinions. Some wrap them in cloth and squeeze the living daylights out of them. Others say squeeze—but leave a little starchy liquid. I toss the shredded potatoes with lemon juice and let them sit in a towellined colander while I prepare the other ingredients. Then I give them a little squeeze for good measure.
About this recipe
VARIATIONS
Orange
Use basic recipe above but create topping with:
4 clementine oranges
1 shallot
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
34 asparagus florets
1 jar caviar or salmon roe (may be some left over)
1. Remove the stem and any seeds from the oranges then finely chop the whole oranges along with the shallot in a food processor.
2. Put the resulting pulp and juice into a shallow pan and cook until steam vents appear. Stir a few times and cook about a minute more.
3. Allow to cool then stir in honey, mayonnaise and mustard thoroughly.
4. Serve warm topped with orange sauce mixture, an asparagus floret and about a ½ teaspoon of caviar.
Pairing: New York Kitchen suggests: “Glenora Blanc de Blanc. Made from Chardonnay grapes, Blanc de Blanc is a sparkling wine that has a very light and vibrant body with notes of green and citrus fruit. This complements the orange sauce and brings out some of the vegetal flavor of the asparagus. The bubbles cut through some of the
body and also liven up the salty caviar.”
Pink
Substitute potatoes and onions in basic recipe with:
3 pink potatoes or about 1½ pounds (or white potatoes. Your latkes will still be pink from the beets, but pink potatoes are more fun. I used a variety
of potato called Adirondack Red.)
2 beets or about ½ pound finely diced (I recommend peeling the beets as best you can and using a food processor to dice for the least mess.)
½ cup finely chopped onion
2 shallots finely chopped
Topping:
1–2 cups Greek yogurt
1–2 apples
1. Serve warm with a dollop of yogurt and a thin slice of apple.
Pairing: New York Kitchen suggests: “Buttonwood semidry Riesling. The acidity of Riesling makes it a very versatile pairing wine. It balances the acid
of the yogurt and apple, and also has notes of apple and other green fruits which complements the apple and beets as well. We chose a wine with some sweetness so the sweetness
of the food didn’t make the wine taste bitter by comparison.”
Green
Substitute potatoes and onions in basic recipe with:
3 potatoes or about 1½ pounds
1 bunch of spinach, kale or beet greens finely chopped
¾ cup finely chopped onion
4 green onions, finely chopped
Topping:
2 cups marinara sauce
4 ounces Parmesan or mozzarella cheese
34 kalamata olives
1. Serve warm, topped with marinara sauce, a curl of cheese and/or a kalamata olive.
Pairing: NY Kitchen suggests: “21 Brix Pinot Noir. Pinot Noir is a high acid, medium tannin wine. The high acidity balances the acid in the olive, sauce and
cheese. We wanted to avoid a high tannin wine because the bitterness in tannin paired with the bitterness of kale can be very unpleasant. “
