Nina Safar’s 5 Recipes for a Latke Makeover

By Nina Safar of @kosherinthekitch

Chanukah is the festival of lights—and all things fried and dusted with sugar. Much like children who wait for the holidays to unwrap presents, I eagerly anticipate this holiday so I can indulge in powdered jelly donuts and fried potato latkes.

When it comes to celebrating Chanukah, I like to think of everyone’s favorite fried food—latkes—and the exciting nontraditional ways to eat them. Whenever I’m trying to give the basic latke a makeover, I think of other potato dishes, like french fries or baked potatoes. What do I enjoy topping those with, and would it work with a latke? The answer is usually YES! I’ve served “nacho” latkes with a creamy Cheddar sauce, poutine-inspired latkes with gravy, and even grilled-cheese latkes. To make your own creative latke recipes, think of your go-to comfort dishes, then use the components as toppings or fillings for a delicious latke. I am sharing some of my favorite non traditional ways to eat a latke.

Waffle Latke Brunch Board with Toppings
This hack for making latkes is super easy (no frying needed!) and creates a fun and tasty way to serve latkes for a crowd. I use my latke hack, frozen hash browns, to shorten time on this recipe. You can swap out the frozen hash browns for shredded potatoes if desired.

Ingredients for Waffle Latkes:
1 bag (30oz) Hash browns (defrosted)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons flour
Salt to taste
Black Pepper to taste

Ingredients for topping for board:

All of your favorite brunch ingredients to assemble the brunch board. Some items to include but not limited to, flaked salmon, lox, cream cheese, hummus, capers, pickles, olives, guacamole, butter, sour cream, ketchup, hot sauce etc…

Directions:
1. Place defrosted hash browns in a large mixing bowl.
2. Add eggs and flour and season with salt and pepper. Combine well.
3. Spray a waffle maker with oil then scoop about 1/4 cup (I use an ice cream scooper to measure out the perfect amount) and heat up batter until edges are golden brown.
4. Place cooked waffle latkes on a large serving platter and surround with brunch board ingredients.

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Cheddar Stuffed Latke Balls and Tomato Soup
This here is my take on the classic comfort food combo of grilled cheese and soup, Chanukah edition! Crispy latke balls stuffed with creamy cheddar cheese served over savory roasted tomato soup.

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cheddar Stuffed Latke Balls
1 6oz. package potato pancake mix
5 large eggs
2 1/4 cups water
1 8oz. block of cheddar, cut into small cubes
2 cups corn flake crumbs

For the Tomato Soup
1 container of cherry tomatoes
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, diced
1 can of diced fire roasted tomatoes (14.5oz)
3 cups of Vegetable Broth

Directions:
For the Cheddar Stuffed Latke Balls:
Beat 2 eggs then combine with water and add contents of potato pancake mix. Allow batter to thicken. Place in fridge for an additional 10 minutes to further thicken.
Scoop out about 1 tablespoon of batter then place in your hand and stuff a small cube of cheddar in the center, rolling the batter around to form a ball. Dip in eggs then corn flake crumbs and fry until golden brown on all sides. Skewer together several latke balls then serve over tomato soup.

For Tomato Soup:
Place cherry tomatoes on a baking pan. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil over the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Coat well. Place in oven on 400′ for 30-35 minutes until beginning to brown. Once the tomatoes are roasted, saute onions and garlic with remaining olive oil. Once golden, add the broiled tomatoes and allow to cook for 2 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes and mix well. Allow to cook for 2 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Puree with an immersion blender and serve with cheddar stuffed latke balls.

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Nacho Latkes

Spice up the original potato latke this holiday! Skewer bite sized potato latkes together with a layer of creamy cheese nacho sauce served on top.

Ingredients:

Potato Latkes:
4 cups shredded potatoes (1 lb)
1 small onion, chopped
2 eggs
3 tablespoons scallions, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Nacho Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Melt butter then add flour and whisk together until well combined and a paste forms. Add milk and over a medium flame whisk until sauce thickens then add shredded cheese and continue whisking until cheese melts and sauce is smooth.

Salsa:
4 tomatoes
1 bunch of cilantro
1 red onion
Juice of 1 lime

Pulse together in a processor until smooth. Optional, add 2 jalapeno peppers without seeds for spice! Plate latke skewers over sliced avocado and salsa with nacho sauce on top.

Pumpkin Hash Brown Latkes

Ingredients:
1 16 oz. bag of frozen hashed browns, thawed
2 eggs
3/4 cup pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup chopped chives (optional)

Directions:
Combine hashbrowns and pumpkin. Season with salt, pepper, coriander and nutmeg. Heat up a large non stick frying pan with oil over medium heat. Using 1 tablespoon measuring spoon, scoop out batter and cook in batches until golden brown, about 3 – 4 minutes each side. Serve with chopped chives.

Latke Coated Schnitzel

This Chanukah, surprise your family by creating a holiday latke out of their favorite weekday dish. Schnitzel is a weekly must on my dinner menu. By coating it in a latke batter then frying to crispy perfection, it is now a holiday favorite as well.

Ingredients:
16 oz (1lb) frozen hashed browns (defrosted)
4 eggs
2 tablespoons flour plus 1 cup
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken cut into pieces
Spicy mayo for serving (optional)

Directions:
Combine hashed browns, eggs and 2 tablespoons flour, creating latke mixture. Dredge chicken in flour then dip in latke mixture (using your hands to coat the chicken with the potato batter) Heat a large frying pan with oil then fry chicken pieces until crispy on both sides. Optional, serve with spicy mayo. To create spicy mayo combine mayonnaise with sriracha sauce.

Nina Safar is the food blogger behind @kosherinthekitch www.kosherinthekitch.com. Stressed about meal planning? Browse the site for deliciously easy dinner ideas and cooking inspiration. Follow her on Instagram @kosherinthekitch for more fun foodie ideas.

This article appeared in the COLlive Chanukah 5783 Magazine. Click here to download the full issue.