Latkes

Chanukah is not complete without latkes. The thing about latkes is that they smell up your house ridiculously - and I do mean ridiculously that if you make them correctly, your house will smell for days. I had gone to a lecture by a cookbook author (Tina Wasserman) who belongs to Temple Emanu-El and just came out with a wonderful Jewish cookbook. She suggested using yukon gold potatoes (they're less starchy than russet) and rinsing them after you grate them because it's the starch that turns the latkes brown. My curiosity was piqued and I had to try this.

Our plans were canceled for the afternoon of the first night of Chanukah so Katie and I were looking for something to do. While we planned to have dinner with Ann & Alan the next night, I wasn't up for making a whole meal for the 5 of us (b/c I think that brisket traditionally goes with latkes and I wasn't make that!) so I made some chicken for us and latkes. I adjusted Tina's recipe a bit because the first batch of latkes didn't stay together. And next time I probably won't use a non-stick pan (Ann's suggestion). But boy did I make latkes... and latkes... and more latkes... I think I was standing in front of the stove for 3 hours. Katie was, literally, in bed by the time I was done. I'd say there's a bit of a learning curve and it took me a while to figure out that smaller ones worked better. But the batter was a beautiful gold and they were delicious. Katie put on her ballet shoes and tutu and danced to Chanukah music in the kitchen while I cooked. A wonderful way to spend the first night of Chanukah.

Not to disappoint, our house smelled for days...