Hometown Cooking with Wynter Daniels

I’m Wynter Daniels, and today happens to be release day for my very first Lovestruck book, THE SURROGATE HUSBAND!

At our house, the holiday wouldn’t be the holidays without a batch of my home made potato latkes, or pancakes. My kids have always told anyone and everyone that mine are the best. Because they are;-) During the month of December, friends and family always request that I bring them to any gathering, so at the end of November, I start making large batches.
Years ago, whipping up loads of these sinfully delicious Hanukkah treats was a hugely labor-intensive endeavor. You had to first peel the potatoes, then shred them, which seemed to take forever. But today there are shortcuts—prepackaged bags of shredded potatoes that do just as well as fresh. No more cutting your fingers on the peeler and getting all that starchy mess all over your kitchen.

There are several secrets to perfect latkes and I’m going to tell you all of them. First—instead of flour, use matzo meal. Next, add lots of onions—about a one-to-four ratio to the potatoes. And finally, cook the latkes in olive oi rather than other vegetable oil. This is an important holiday tradition since olive oil played a part in the story of Hanukkah.

You see, it was olive oil that burned in the sacred menorah. The miracle of Hanukkah was that one day’s worth of oil burned for eight days, until more oil could be secured.

Now don’t blame me if your kitchen smells like latkes for eight days after you cook these bad boys. That’s the other miracle of Hanukkah!

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Wynter’s Potato Latkes

1 bag Simply Potatoes Shredded Hash Browns
1 ½ cup diced onion
4 eggs or 1 cup Egg Beaters
1 ½ cup matzo meal
½ cup milk
1 tbs parsley flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil for frying

Mix all ingredients except oil. Batter should be very moist. If it’s not, add more milk or some water. Heat oil in large skillet on medium heat. Drop batter into hot oil by spoonfuls, depending on the size of latkes you want. Cook about 10-15 minutes on each side or until completely golden and crispy. Remove and drain on plate lined with tripled paper towels. Serve hot with sour cream or apple sauce.
*May be cooked ahead of time and frozen, but do not heat by microwaving. Must be thawed in fridge then reheated in oven on cookie sheet or they will be soggy.