Since discovering my Jewish heritage just a couple of weeks before Hanukkah began, I thought it would be appropriate to prepare a traditional dish to eat over the holiday. I wanted to make something that I new everyone in my family would love so I excitedly decided on Latkes with Apple Chutney. I know that sour cream and applesauce are the usual accoutrements to these potato pancakes, but considering my cultural make-up, I wanted something with a little more kick, like say chili flakes.

I began with preparing my Apple Chutney as I knew the cooking time would be approximately an hour, much longer prep and cook time than the latkes. The apple recipe that inspired me most came from Epicurious.com but I still made my own adjustments, like removing the raisins all together and dealing with the lack of ginger. The chutney was out-of-this-world and had a spicy bite which was suitable for all types of palettes. See below for recipe.

I N G R E D I E N T S
4 Granny Smith apples
1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
2 cloves
2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

P R E P A R A T I O N
Peel and core apples, then cut into 1/4-inch pieces.
Simmer apples with remaining ingredients and 1 teaspoon salt in a large heavy saucepan, stirring occasionally, until tender and juices have thickened, about 1 hour. Discard bay leaves.

The latkes were simple to prepare but that does not go without saying that I wasn’t anxious. I didn’t want to blow my first time making these beloved potato treats and thankfully I did not. My recipe was inspired by a Real Simple newsletter I recently received about delicious Hanukkah dishes and I liked that I could just toss them in the oven and let the heat do the magic. The combination of potatoes with freshly ground pepper and Kosher salt morphed into crispy greatness.

Tip: Don’t use foil like in the photo below. Your latkes will be perfect if you simply use a baking sheet.

I N G R E D I E N T S
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pounds (5 medium) peeled medium-starch potatoes, such as Yukon gold
1 medium red onion, finely chopped (3/4 cup)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt (I suggest Kosher salt)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 eggs, lightly beaten

D I R E C T I O N S
Heat oven to 450° F. Brush 2 baking sheets with 1 tablespoon of the oil and set aside.
Using a box grater or a food processor fitted with a shredding blade, coarsely grate the potatoes. Place the grated potatoes in a large bowl with the onion, flour, salt, pepper, eggs, and the remaining tablespoon of oil. Toss to mix well.
Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto baking sheets and press lightly to make patties. Bake 10 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom. Turn the latkes with a metal spatula and rotate the baking sheets. Bake another 5 minutes or until golden. This recipe makes 2 dozen latkes.